Avalanche Lake

Avalanche Lake is a mountain lake in a steep basin in Glacier's Lake McDonald valley, reached on foot from Avalanche Creek. The lake and its waterfalls are a big payoff for a real hike, so keep it on your list if you want one of the park's best-known lake views. It isn't a roadside stop or a quick detour.

The hike starts at Avalanche Picnic Area and follows the Trail of the Cedars boardwalk before leaving the short loop for the lake trail. The full out-and-back is 2.3 miles each way with 500 feet of climbing. After the boardwalk, expect a narrower natural-surface path with roots and rocks and a steady moderate climb. The first lakeshore landing is the usual turnaround; walking farther along the shore adds distance.

The Avalanche Creek area and the trail are popular, and the first spot at the lake can feel crowded in summer. If you'd like a little more space, continue along the shore for another view; visitors report that people spread out farther along it, but you'll add mileage. Summer visitors also report the trailhead lot filling early, so an early start helps if you're driving.

From the shore, look across the clear lake toward steep mountain walls cut by several narrow waterfalls. For a photo, keep some water in the foreground and include the falls high on the far slope; the water can reflect the basin when it's calm. The broad view is the reward for making the walk all the way out.

Avalanche Lake sits in a glacial cirque, a steep-sided bowl carved by ice and fed by Sperry Glacier. Glaciers also scoured Glacier's broad U-shaped valleys and left lake-filled basins like this one. The lake is a particularly clear place to see that shape from the valley floor.

The walk begins through old-growth western red cedar and western hemlock around Avalanche Creek. These trees are distinctive in Glacier, and the boardwalk through the grove is a worthwhile part of the approach rather than just a warm-up for the lake. Glacial boulders and wind- or avalanche-felled trees also mark the forest route.

Avalanche Picnic Area, off Going-to-the-Sun Road, is the place to start. The trailhead area has parking, toilets, picnic tables and potable drinking water; there is no food service at the lake or trailhead, so bring food for the hike. Dogs aren't allowed on the trail or along the undeveloped lake shore.