Iceberg Lake

A pleasant trip into Glacier National Park, coming out to be about 9 miles round trip. The lake sits at the basin of mountains carved by glaciers thousands of years ago. Along the way, hikers will have incredible views of several of the peaks in the area: Mount Grinnell, Swiftcurrent Mountain, Mount Wilbur, and Ptarmigan Wall.

Starting at the Swiftcurrent Inn, the trail steadily climbs in elevation, though once hikers reach the fork in the trail and continue to the left, the elevation levels out for a bit. From the trailhead, the trail will go through a very open area, which is where the views will be stunning. However, about 1.5 miles into the trial, hikers will go through a thick forest as they progress towards Iceberg Lake. Along the way is the Ptarmigan waterfall, though it is hard to get a full view of it from the trail, and the area around the waterfall is very steep and unsafe for hiking. Continuing past the waterfall and keeping left at the trail junction, hikers will eventually exit the forest and be greeted by the steep walls of a cirque, whose basin holds Iceberg Lake. The walls of the cirque are actually an arete, also known as the Ptarmigan Wall, and towers 1500 ft above the trail. As the trail comes to the lake, visitors will get to walk through an Alpine meadow, and depending on the time of year, see many wildflowers in bloom. 

This area is known to have bears and so hikers are advised to carry bear spray, stay in larger groups, and make noise when going through areas with particularly high bear activity. Ask the park rangers if any of the trails or areas are closed at the time before beginning on a hike.