Parking
Park at Two Ocean Lake Trailhead at the end of gravel Two Ocean Road. The Emma Matilda route leaves from the far end of the lot.
Overview
About Emma Matilda Lake Loop
Why go
- Lookout Rock opens a clear view across the lake to Mt. Moran.
- Wildflowers, aspen groves, and forest make the long circuit varied.
Heads up
- The 10.7-mile route has long forested stretches between lake views.
- Marshy ground can be muddy after snowmelt.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Grand Teton map
Full mapElevation6,877–7,336 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
2 active Grand Teton alerts
- ClosureConstruction closures and delaysConstruction is causing current road and area closures and delays across Grand Teton; use the signed Taggart Trail detour. - Moose-Wilson Road is closed between Moose and Laurance S.Official details
- ClosureJackson Lake boat ramps closed; Signal launch riskColter Bay and Leeks boat ramps are closed; Signal Mountain Boat Ramp is open, but water is below the ramp edge and loose cobbles make launching risky.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Grand Teton Tour Guide
Your drive to Emma Matilda Lake Loop, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Grand Teton National Park. 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 Grand Teton audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Two Ocean Lake: A Picnic or a Half-Day Walk0:00 / 0:31
“You’re nearing Two Ocean Lake, where a few picnic tables sit under conifers beside the trailhead, with water visible through the branches. Bring your own lunch for a simple lakeside break.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Grand Teton Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Coyote’s Meadow Pounce
- Ash That Welded into Rock
- The Insect Inside the Gravel Tube
- The Trapper Behind Jackson Hole
- 118 audio storiesacross Grand Teton’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Grizzly Bear, Brown Bear, Gray Wolf, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 70 trails, 121 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“…We have been driving around with the audio tour and it has been informational and spot on. The whole family has been impressed. We used it for Yellowstone and Grand Teton.”
Trail guide
Hiking Emma Matilda Lake Loop
A long loop around the lakeEmma Matilda Lake Loop is a 10.
Emma Matilda Lake Loop is a 10.7-mile loop from Two Ocean Lake Trailhead, with a roughly one-mile connector to the lakeshore circuit and the same connector back. Allow five to seven hours. It is a moderately strenuous half-day hike, not a quick shoreline stroll: the route climbs over ridges, crosses open meadows, then spends long stretches in forest. Lake views come in openings rather than continuously. There is no reservation for this hike, but ordinary park admission applies. Pets are not allowed.
The first ridge and meadowStart from the far end of the lot, take the left fork at the first split, then turn right at…
Start from the far end of the lot, take the left fork at the first split, then turn right at the lake-loop junction just over a mile in to go counterclockwise. The approach passes tall brush and thimbleberry patches. A fairly steep ridge climb soon opens a view back over Emma Matilda Lake; aspen groves and a meadow add color, especially in fall. At the four-way junction around mile 3.6, the right branch climbs toward Grand View Point. Stay left to keep following the lake loop.
Lookout RockThe trail enters forest on the south side and reaches a small footbridge and Lookout Rock at…
The trail enters forest on the south side and reaches a small footbridge and Lookout Rock at about mile five. The outcrop rises roughly 30 feet above the water, with Mt. Moran and the northern Tetons across the lake. This is the clearest place to stop for the view. The path then leaves the shore and climbs back through dense forest, so don’t expect a lakeside walk the whole way.
Closing the circuitAnother footbridge comes after mile eight as the route swings around the lake’s eastern end.
Another footbridge comes after mile eight as the route swings around the lake’s eastern end. At a meadow junction, a branch leads toward Pacific Creek Road; keep to the main circuit. Views over the lake and the Tetons open again near mile 9.4, before the final junction returns you toward Two Ocean Lake Trailhead. Watch the forks: the connector and nearby trail networks make it easy to accidentally shorten or extend the walk.
Wet ground, flowers, and a nameThe lake’s marshy setting keeps parts of the trail wet, and the route is often muddy after…
The lake’s marshy setting keeps parts of the trail wet, and the route is often muddy after snowmelt. Early to mid-summer brings wildflowers and mosquitoes; fall brings color in the aspen groves. The lake is named for Emma Matilda Owen, wife of William O. Owen, who organized Grand Teton’s first ascent in 1898.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Grand Teton
172 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
195 sightingsBrown BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
32 sightingsGray WolfMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,816 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
614 sightingsBisonMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
738 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Grand Teton. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
