Colorado might not be known for its beaches, but – believe it or not – there are plenty of places around the Centennial State where it’s possible to dip your toes in the sand while relaxing in front of a watery view. Granted, most people who have spent time exploring the state already know that.

What Coloradans might not know is that one mountain-style beach was recently dubbed special enough to make the cut to be included on Frugal Flyer’s list of the ‘best secret beaches’ in the United States.

In order to create their ranking of 95 ‘secret beaches’ around the country, the company conducted an online survey of more than 3,000 people representing a diversity in demographics, building the ranking based on those responses.

As might be expected, top spots on the list were dominated by states with a coastline, with Hawaii locations snagging spots one, two, and three. That said, some landlocked spots made the cut to be featured, too, including Colorado, which landed a lone beach on the list of 95 sandy spots around the country.

Ranking 35th overall was Colorado’s Sandbeach Lake, which is located in Rocky Mountain National Park. The hike to this lake is a bit lengthy, at 8.4 miles round-trip coupled with 2,043 feet of elevation gain, according to AllTrails. Sandbeach Lake is located on the southern side of the park.

According to hikers who have traveled the trail, the route to the spot is mostly a trek through the forest, ending with stunning views of the lake. A late-summer hike time is recommended, as the shady nature of the trail can mean it holds snow a little later into the season compared to other parts of the park.

Is this a true ‘beach’ on par of those found oceanside in places like Hawaii, California, and Florida? Not exactly, but with a 4.6-star rating for the trail and more than 1,200 reviews, people seem to think it’s worth the effort to get there.

Find the full ranking of the 95 ‘best secret beaches’ around the US here.

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