Parking
Use the Island Lake Campground Trailhead off U.S. 212; the campground is first come, first served. The 8.9-mile route ends at a trail junction, so plan your return or a verified connection before starting.
Overview
About Beartooth High Lakes Trail
Why go
- Island Lake, Night Lake and Grayling give the route a clear lake-to-lake rhythm
- Granite benches open broad views across the Beartooth Plateau
Heads up
- The full 8.9-mile line is one way; retracing it nearly doubles the day
- Wet meadows and rocky crossings can slow progress in exposed high country
Beartooth High Lakes Trail #620 is an 8.9-mile point-to-point hike from Island Lake Campground Trailhead to the Green Lake Trail #619 junction. It crosses high Beartooth Plateau country through alpine lakes, granite benches and open meadows. The distance is one way; walking straight back makes it nearly 18 miles. Allow about five to six hours for the mapped line, with more time for lake stops. At roughly 9,400 to 10,000 feet, the altitude makes this feel like a bigger day than the mileage alone suggests.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs this the hike for you?Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Beartooth Highway map
Full mapElevation9,373–9,964 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
1 active Beartooth Highway alert
- ClosureBeartooth Highway seasonal closure and falling-rock advisoryBeartooth Highway (US-212) is closed for the season between Cooke City and Red Lodge; do not plan to travel the highway as a through route.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Beartooth Highway Tour Guide
Your drive to Beartooth High Lakes Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Beartooth Highway. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Beartooth Highway audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Island Lake0:00 / 0:29
“Island Lake's access road is ahead, leading to a shore you can enjoy without committing to a hike. The lake holds brook trout, and there's a boat ramp as well as fishing from shore.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Beartooth Highway Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Top of the World Store
- The Songbird That Dives
- Hauser Lake Trailhead
- Beartooth Lake
- 62 audio storiesacross Beartooth Highway’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Grizzly Bear, Gray Wolf, Bison, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 82 trails, 36 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Beartooth High Lakes Trail
Island Lake to Night LakeThe trail leaves the west end of Island Lake and follows its shore before reaching Night Lake…
The trail leaves the west end of Island Lake and follows its shore before reaching Night Lake early in the walk. The lakes and the rocky skyline are the payoff from the start. Lonesome Mountain makes a strong backdrop from the Island Lake side; for a photo, keep some shoreline in the frame so the reflection and mountain read together.
Past the lake chainBeyond Night Lake, the route continues through alpine tundra past Grayling and smaller unnamed…
Beyond Night Lake, the route continues through alpine tundra past Grayling and smaller unnamed lakes, then crosses granite benches toward the western end. It meets Green Lake Trail #619 at a remote junction. That connector is a separate route, not part of the 8.9-mile #620 line; check its map before relying on it for an exit. Beauty Lake is a nearby side trip, but it adds distance.
Footing and conditionsExpect a narrow native-surface trail, rocky stretches, wet meadows and small stream crossings.
Expect a narrow native-surface trail, rocky stretches, wet meadows and small stream crossings. Those can slow you down even where the grade looks modest. The route stays above 9,000 feet, and snow can linger at high elevations into early or mid-July. Beartooth Highway access is seasonal, and weather changes quickly on the plateau. This is bear country; carry bear spray and know how to use it.
Start and returnUse the Island Lake Campground Trailhead off U.S. 212.
Use the Island Lake Campground Trailhead off U.S. 212. The campground is first come, first served, and dogs must be leashed while you are in the campground. The far end of #620 is a trail junction rather than a road pullout, so decide how you will return or continue before setting out. For a shorter day, Night Lake is reached near the start and makes a natural turnaround.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Beartooth Highway
42 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
22 sightingsGray WolfMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
49 sightingsBisonMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
122 sightingsMooseMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
260 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
16 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Beartooth Highway. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
