Beartooth Lakes Loop

Beartooth Lakes Loop is a 7.8-mile clockwise circuit from the small parking spur at the southeast end of Beartooth Lake. It links six alpine lakes on trails 619, 620, and 621, trading lakeshore meadows for a high granite ridge and back again. The route climbs about 1,010 feet and tops out near 9,920 feet; allow about four hours, with extra time if you linger at the lakes or move slowly through wet crossings. It’s a rewarding half-day hike, not a quick lakeside stroll. Start on 619 and keep the turns straight: 621 is the return leg, not the way toward the ridge.

At the trailhead, take Beartooth Creek Trail 619. The level start crosses Beartooth Lake’s outlet at about a tenth of a mile, then skirts the north side of the lake and crosses several small inlet streams. At roughly 0.8 mile, it leaves the shore and climbs the Beartooth Creek valley through open meadows. Expect a small creek hop near 2.2 miles and another crossing around 2.5. At 2.7 miles, turn northeast onto Beartooth High Lakes Trail 620; the other branch heads toward Native Lake and is a different walk. Cairns mark the initial open crossing on 620, and a rock hop over a creek comes around 2.8 miles.

The route reaches its high point, about 9,920 feet, near mile 3.25. Views open across granite ridges and blue lakes toward Lonesome Mountain and the high eastern edge of the plateau. On the way down, pause at Horseshoe Lake’s south shore: a small island and narrow peninsula sit below that mountain backdrop. This is the loop’s best place for a lake-and-ridge photo; include the shoreline in the frame so the island and peninsula give the view some scale.

Beyond Horseshoe, the path drops between lake benches past Marmot and Shallow Lakes, then reaches the northwest shore of Claw Lake around mile 4. Rocks help at Claw’s inlet, though they may not keep your feet dry. The trail then wanders through meadow, scattered trees, rock outcrops, and small tarns. A short rise around mile 4.6 leads into a steeper descent among granite knolls and marshy ground. Near mile 5.1, broad, shallow inlet streams feed Beauty Lake; grassy islands and rocks offer places to cross, but this is another wet stretch.

At about mile 5.25, turn south on Beauty Lake Trail 621. Trail 620 continues toward Night and Island Lakes, so this is the turn that closes the loop. The path reaches Beauty Lake near mile 5.5 and follows its tree-fringed east shore, with high ridges to the north and Beartooth Butte to the west. From around mile 6.1, 621 turns southwest and descends beside the outlet stream; Crane Lake appears through the trees. The descent steepens near mile 6.6, then opens into willow-dotted meadows east of Beartooth Lake. Cross the outlet again around mile 7.6 and retrace the short shared access stretch to the parking spur.