Beartooth Highway, MT · WY
A lake payoff after one muddy, buggy mile at Clarks Fork.
Overview
Vernon Lake Trail is a roughly 5.4-mile out-and-back from the Clarks Fork Trailhead to a small, high-country lake in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness. Allow 2½ to 3 hours. The route follows Russel Creek Trail #3 for about a mile, then turns onto Vernon Lake Trail #565, climbing over several short hills before dropping to the lake. It is a good half-day walk for an alpine-lake finish, not a quick stop from the highway.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs this the hike 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 trailhead
Clarks Fork Picnic Area“You're coming up on Clarks Fork Picnic Area, a small riverside stop with two picnic tables. This is a good choice for a lunch break with a little more to see than the river.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Beartooth Highway Tour Guide.
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“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
Start at the signed trailhead beside US 212 and follow Russel Creek Trail #3. Near the beginning, the separate Flume Trail and a falls overlook make short side trips; the accessible Flume Trail has interpretation about a hydroelectric flume built in 1916. The route then travels through forest beside the Clarks Fork. The slow-river stretch can be muddy and mosquito-heavy. Turn right at the Vernon Lake Trail #565 junction after about a mile.
The spur climbs and dips over several short hills. A small pond appears about a quarter mile after the turn, then Lillis Lake comes at roughly mile two from the trailhead. If that is far enough, turn around there. About a quarter mile beyond Lillis, a side trail heads toward Margaret Lake; stay on the Vernon Lake route to reach Vernon. The trail drops through forest toward the lake shore.
The lake sits at 7,977 feet, covers 8.2 acres, and reaches 32 feet at its deepest point. Lily pads fringe the water, with forest and jagged peaks around the shore. Brook trout and Yellowstone cutthroat are listed here; a 2022 survey sampled eight brook trout averaging 13.1 inches. The pads make casting awkward, but breaks along the western shore give anglers a clearer line. For a photo, include some shoreline or lily pads beneath the mountain skyline. A few campsites are reported, with better camping on the south side; firewood there can be picked over.
Clarks Fork Picnic Area is four miles east of Cooke City on US 212. The Forest Service lists open parking, two picnic tables, a toilet, and no potable water. The picnic site is day-use only and its season is weather dependent, roughly June 1 to November 1; check Highway 212 access before driving. Keep pets under control and pack out their waste.
Distance is approximate: the official lake guide lists 3 miles from Clarks Fork without saying whether that is one way or round trip, while the connected mapped route reaches the shore in about 2.7 miles. This entry uses 5.4 miles round trip. Lillis Lake, roughly 2 miles from the start, makes a shorter turnaround at about 4 miles out and back.
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
ChallengingRussell Creek Trail20 mi · 12 hr · At the trailheadA full-day high-country climb to Fossil Lake and back.
ModerateFox Lake Trail9 mi · 5 hr · At the trailheadA high-country trout lake rewards the long walk from the highway.
ModerateRock Island Lake Trail6.8 mi · 3.5 hr · At the trailheadMarsh bridges, a Kersey overlook, and a high alpine lake.
ModerateWidewater Lake Trail11.6 mi · 6.5 hr · At the trailheadA long walk at 8,000 feet to a large trout lake.
ChallengingMariane Lake Trail16.6 mi · 9.5 hr · At the trailheadLong, high backcountry miles lead to a rocky alpine lake.
ChallengingOtter Lake Trail18 mi · 11.5 hr · At the trailheadA long high country walk to a remote trout lake.
EasyKersey Lake Trail3 mi · 1.3 hr · 0.1 mi awayAn easy three-mile return to a trout lake on the Beaten Path
ModerateBroadwater River to Curl Lake Trail6.5 mi · 4.5 hr · 0.1 mi awayMarshy meadows and a rough final approach to Curl Lake
Picnic area · At the trailheadClarks Fork Picnic AreaA riverside pause with a little highway and flume history.
Campground · 1.4 mi awayColter CampgroundA hard-sided-only campground two miles east of Cooke City.
Campground · 2.3 mi awaySoda Butte CampgroundA quiet, wooded base near Cooke City and Yellowstone’s northeast entrance.
Store · 3.2 mi awayCooke City StoreA working mercantile still uses its hand-crank cash register.
Visitor center · 3.3 mi awayCooke City Visitor Center and MuseumNine touchscreens bring Cooke City's local history to life.
Campground · 3.4 mi awayFox Creek CampgroundSleep under conifers with Pilot and Index Peaks in view.
Sight · 6.9 mi awayCrazy Creek FallsA short walk reaches a broad cascade beside the Beartooth Highway.
Campground · 7 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.
