Sight · Rocky Mountain National Park
Five miles in for an alpine lake beneath a jagged granite wall.
Overview
Black Lake is an alpine lake at the head of Glacier Gorge, tucked beneath a steep granite cirque. Go if you want the lake at the end of a substantial mountain hike; it isn't a roadside stop. The approach from Glacier Gorge Junction is 5 miles one way with 1,430 feet of climbing.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs it worth the hike?Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Rocky Mountain Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Rocky Mountain 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 Rocky Mountain audio tourRecorded for this place
Glacier Gorge and Alberta Falls“The Glacier Gorge trailhead is coming up, the starting point for Alberta Falls.”
Plays as you drive up to Black Lake in the Parkwolf Rocky Mountain Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“…No cell service for majority of the day but had continuous access to the app - the maps, the tour guide as you drive is amazing. Highly recommend purchasing the subscription.”
Guide
Waterfalls and other lakes break up the route, including Alberta Falls, Mills Lake, Jewel Lake and Ribbon Falls. The trail gets steeper and rougher beyond the lower lakes, so save energy for the last stretch. Glacier Gorge parking fills early; the Park & Ride and Bear Lake shuttle are the practical backup. There is no food service at the lake.
From the north shore, Black Lake sits beneath a wall of granite peaks. McHenrys Peak rises ahead; The Arrowhead is to the right, with The Spearhead and Chiefs Head Peak above the headwall. For the clearest photo, keep the lake in the foreground with McHenrys Peak rising behind it.
Black Lake fills a cirque, a bowl carved by glacial ice at the head of a valley. Ice widened the park's V-shaped valleys into U-shaped ones and left the steep cirque walls around lakes like this one. That is why this last basin feels enclosed after the more open lakes below.
Wildlife
3,124 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
1,601 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
19 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
19 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
30 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
270 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Rocky Mountain. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateMills Lake Trail5.4 mi · 3.5 hr · 3.1 mi awayAlberta Falls breaks up the climb to Mills Lake.
ChallengingTimberline Falls Trail7.6 mi · 6 hr · 3.1 mi awayA long waterfall hike with The Loch along the way.
ChallengingNorth Longs Peak Trail to Granite Pass13.6 mi · 11 hr · 3.1 mi awayA long, rocky climb to the broad saddle below Longs Peak.
ChallengingSky Pond Trail9 mi · 7 hr · 3.1 mi awayClimb past two lakes to a high basin under granite spires.
EasyAlberta Falls Trail1.7 mi · 1.5 hr · 3.1 mi awayA short climb trades a little effort for a close waterfall view.
ModerateThe Loch Trail6 mi · 3.5 hr · 3.1 mi awayA waterfall break before a high lake beneath Taylor Glacier.ChallengingBlack Lake Trail9.6 mi · 7 hr · 3.1 mi awayWaterfalls, two lakes, then a high cirque beneath McHenrys Peak.
ChallengingAndrews Tarn Trail9.1 mi · 7 hr · 3.1 mi awayA rough high-country climb ends at a tarn beneath Andrews Glacier.
Sight · 1.6 mi awayLongs PeakThe park’s 14,259-foot summit is a serious, exposed climb.
Sight · 1.7 mi awayMills LakeA ten-acre glacier-carved lake beneath the peaks of Glacier Gorge.
Sight · 1.7 mi awaySky PondA long climb ends at a high lake ringed by spires.Sight · 1.7 mi awayTimberline FallsA 100-foot waterfall above The Loch, after a hard climb.
Sight · 2 mi awayChasm LakeA high alpine lake under Longs Peak, reached by a hard hike.
Sight · 2 mi awayThe LochAfter a real climb, alpine peaks mirror across the lake.Sight · 2.7 mi awayAlberta FallsA short, uphill hike ends at a thunderous waterfall.
Sight · 2.9 mi awayLake HaiyahaA mountain lake tinted green by a 2022 rockslide.Parkwolf’s Rocky Mountain ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
