An alternative is to take the Elk Bench Trail 211D from the visitor center. It drops 500 feet down to the Lakes Trail. The trails intersect on a pleasant bench, where deer browse among the cottonwoods. You may hear the yipping of coyotes across the lake. The Lakes Trail stays near the shore, sometimes a hundred feet above the lake, sometimes near the deep green water.
Stumps are visible under the water, a reminder of the lake's short history.
Don't go more than 10 feet off the trail. It's illegal to do so near the lake because the land is designated a research area. The trail is patrolled by Forest Service workers. The lake can be a bird watcher's bonanza. Hundreds of swallows swoop through the air.