Beartooth Highway, MT · WY
A high alpine lake at the end of a long forest approach.
Overview
Companion Lake Trail is an out-and-back to a 9,394-foot lake, reached from the unmarked Lady of the Lake trailhead on Goose Lake Road. Budget about 7.5 miles round trip and four hours: about 3.5 miles each way on the forest path and named Companion branch, plus the last 0.25 mile from Goose Lake Jeep Trail to the shore. That final stretch is off-trail, and the high elevation adds to the effort. A shorter access starts from Goose Lake Jeep Trail if a suitable vehicle can reach it. A separate no-4WD estimate of about 2.5 miles has no stated start point or one-way/round-trip convention, so it does not describe this complete round trip.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs the full walk right for you?Map & elevation
Plan your hike
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Beartooth Highway Tour Guide
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 area
Colter Campground“You're coming up on Colter Campground, a wooded overnight base about two miles from Cooke City. Its eighteen sites are first come, first served and restricted to hard-sided vehicles, so tent campers need another option.”
Plays on the road 1.6 mi from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Beartooth Highway Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“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
The foot approach starts with a Forest Service bridge over Fisher Creek and passes a small cabin before continuing through forest toward Lady of the Lake. Take the Companion Lake branch from the Lady route toward Goose Lake Jeep Trail; the mapped branch runs about 0.8 mile. The mapped line ends where it meets the jeep trail, and the lake is another 0.25 mile across open, nearly level ground. Note the turn so you can retrace it.
Companion Lake covers about seven acres at 9,394 feet. It holds self-sustaining Brook Trout, and backcountry campsites are reported along its shore. Frame a photo with the rocky ridge across the water to show the lake in its basin.
Wildlife
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.
Keep exploring
ChallengingLower Aero Lake Trail11.3 mi · 7.5 hr · At the trailheadA long climb to an island-studded lake beneath sharp alpine peaks
EasyLady of the Lake Trail #314 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.1 mi awayA creek bridge and old cabin lead to an alpine lake.
EasySoda Butte Creek Trail2.5 mi · 1.5 hr · 1.7 mi awayA short historic-route walk on gravel east of Cooke City.
ModerateBlack Warrior Trail #5781.9 mi · 1.5 hr · 2.1 mi awayA rough-track climb from Miller Creek Road to near Daisy Pass.
ModerateHenderson Mountain Trail #5792.9 mi · 1.5 hr · 2.2 mi awayA short, high-country walk above Cooke City.
ChallengingLost Wolverine Trail #11311.7 mi · 7.5 hr · 2.3 mi awayA high-country traverse to Wolverine Pass through wildflower meadows.
ModerateWoody Falls Trail2.7 mi · 1.8 hr · 2.3 mi awayThree tiers of waterfall reward the short uphill walk.
ModerateSheep Creek Basin Trail #5765.4 mi · 3.5 hr · 2.5 mi awayA high-country climb to a basin above 9,000 feet.
Campground · 1.6 mi awayColter CampgroundA hard-sided-only campground two miles east of Cooke City.
Campground · 1.7 mi awaySoda Butte CampgroundA quiet, wooded base near Cooke City and Yellowstone’s northeast entrance.
Store · 2.3 mi awayCooke City StoreA working mercantile still uses its hand-crank cash register.
Visitor center · 2.3 mi awayCooke City Visitor Center and MuseumNine touchscreens bring Cooke City's local history to life.
Picnic area · 2.9 mi awayClarks Fork Picnic AreaA riverside pause with a little highway and flume history.
Campground · 6.2 mi awayFox Creek CampgroundSleep under conifers with Pilot and Index Peaks in view.
Sight · 9.8 mi awayCrazy Creek FallsA short walk reaches a broad cascade beside the Beartooth Highway.
Campground · 9.9 mi awayCrazy Creek CampgroundA 16-site campground on a bluff above its namesake creek.Parkwolf’s Beartooth Highway ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
