Helen Lake Trail

Helen Lake Trail is a 4.3-mile point-to-point backcountry route from Foot Elizabeth Lake Campground to Helen Lake. It follows Elizabeth Lake’s west shore, passes the Head campground, then climbs gently through open meadows into a tucked-away alpine basin. The 4.3 miles are one way; turning around at Helen Lake makes an 8.6-mile return to the same campground. The catch is access: Foot Elizabeth is already deep in the wilderness, not a roadside trailhead.

The route begins beside the lake and stays close to its west shore. Red rock and the high walls around Red Gap Pass rise across the water, while short stands of trees and open stretches keep the shoreline views in reach. You pass Elizabeth Lake’s Head campground before leaving the lake behind. This first stretch is a good part of the hike in its own right, not just a walk-in to the destination.

Past the campground the trail gains a little height, then crosses open meadow with scattered subalpine fir. A large creek coming down from the Ipasha and Old Sun Glacier area cuts across the route. Beyond it, Mount Merritt and Old Sun Glacier fill the west side of the view, with Ptarmigan Wall to the east. The grade is modest, but the creek crossing can make the walk harder than its elevation numbers suggest.

Helen Lake sits below the Ahern headwall, with waterfalls coming off the snowfields and glaciers above it. The basin is boxed in by high rock on three sides, so the lake feels much more enclosed than Elizabeth Lake. For a photo, keep some of the lake in the foreground and the Ahern wall behind it; that shows the shape of the basin instead of isolating the cliffs. A useful fishing detail: upper Elizabeth Lake has fish, but Helen Lake does not.

The mapped start is Foot Elizabeth Lake Campground, which has no road access. From Chief Mountain Customs, the full walk to Helen Lake is about 13.6 miles one way; this trail row covers only the final 4.3 miles. Another backcountry approach comes from Many Glacier over Ptarmigan Trail and Ptarmigan Tunnel, whose access is seasonal. Treat this as part of a wilderness itinerary, and allow around three hours one way for the Helen Lake segment, plus time at the lake. A night at a wilderness campground requires a permit; the Helen Lake site is exposed to wind and does not allow wood fires. Pets are not allowed on Glacier trails or in the backcountry.