I am a slow hiker and it took our group about 7 hours to do the trail, including time spent sitting down and contemplating the lake.
You can still, however, find a good place to sit, eat a sandwich and watch the lake. The biggest difference from hiking this same trail many years ago is that we saw quite a few people at Iceberg Lake. I did see a person who swam out a little but he was noticeably slower coming back so not a good idea. Iceberg Lake is stunningly beautiful, has icebergs floating in it, and was extremely cold. As you get closer to Iceberg Lake, there will be a beautiful small looking lake in the distance to your right-this lake is not Iceberg Lake. There is then a point where hikers turn left to go to Iceberg Lake and away from the Ptarmigan trail. Since most of the trail is open, the views are breathtakingly beautiful.Ībout half way to Iceberg Lake, there is a good resting point on some rocks with water below (this might be Ptarmigan Falls?). footbridge) where a railing might be nice but they were very doable, especially in good weather. There are a couple of small crossings (e.g. The trail is considered strenuous, mostly for its length, but would be challenging in snow. We also saw a moose far in the distance on the trail.
On the way to Iceberg Lake we saw a grizzly above us on the trail (maybe about 15 minutes in) and on the way back (about 1/2 hour or so from the end and again in an open meadow area with a few trees), we had to wait to go down the trail for a brown bear with two or three cubs. Early on, you walk through open areas with meadows. The entrance is a hefty initial incline (to the left of the cabins), which is very steep (for maybe a quarter of a mile) however, the trail is mostly a gentle elevation with a few dips. The entrance to the Iceberg Lake trail is the same as the entrance to the Ptarmigan trail. Parking by the trailhead is limited so we got one of the last parking spots at the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn. The trip took about three hours with a bathroom stop along the way. Then you drive further to the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn. Mary Village, taking Hwy 89 north and turning left toward the park around Babb and using the Many Glacier Entrance. you need a $2 vehicle reservation, which can only be purchased in advance-either far in advance or no later than the day before by getting online at 8 a.m.), driving to St. We stayed in Whitefish, MT so we reached the entrance to the trail by entering the park at the Apgar Visitor Center entrance, crossing the park using the Going to the Sun Road (if you enter between 6 a.m and 4 p.m. Iceberg Lake is on the east side of the park. Most hikers were in groups however, we did see some single hikers. The entire trail, including the walk from the parking lot, is about 10 miles roundtrip. We were there in the second week of August and the day was warm but that isn't always true. A lot of the Iceberg Lake trail is in the sun and bears are active there.
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