Lake Blanche Trail
Reviews
Great view , worth it , no real scramble, bad bathroom
All the backpacking info for those who want it: Not sure why nobody warned me about the steepness (just kidding!) it is indeed consistently steep the whole way up with only a couple short plateaus. We backpacked up and I would highly recommend!! Even took a 1-year-old in a backpack with a frame. Camped near the waterfall on the left of the lake, there are plenty of spots by the other two lakes as well, just has to be 200+ feet from the water. It got a little chilly at night right before sunrise but totally doable if I had brought an extra blanket to put in my sleeping bag. Just a heads up, the hike ends up being around 9 miles, not sure where AllTrails got the 6.4. It’s a quarter mile walk up a paved trail til you reach the trailhead on the right. Parking lot fits maybe 15 cars so plan on parking on the road. We got there Friday at 1:30pm and parked about 20 cars back from the lot on the road. Took ~3.5 hours to hike up with heavy pack packs and lots of breaks, then 2 hours down the next morning. Tons of hikers going up Saturday morning. We also saw a moose on the way down a good 40 feet from the trail! Perfect weather for shorts and a t shirt, there’s a good amount of shade on the trail.
It was a great hike, we started around 5:30pm and there was plenty of parking. Not many people on the trail and we made it up just in time for the sunset which was gorgeous. It was cold near the lake so we wished we had jackets then, but even hiking back in the dark was warm enough once you were away from the lake
Honestly, the trail was really awesome. I went with my 18 year-old sister and my 19-year-old girlfriend. Everything went awesome. We did wish to bring hiking sticks that everyone else had on the trail but other than this it was a beautiful hike. Be ready to take the nicest ice bath because your feet will be aching if you’re a beginner
Awesome trail great views second half is steeper but keep pushing it’s worth it! No swimming or dogs allowed!
Great hard trail! Definitely not for beginners but an amazing view!!! Highly recommend and if you are slightly active you can definitely do it!
Beautiful hike! The views down the canyon are almost Zion-esque. We arrived at 7:45a on Saturday morning, and it was already packed, but there is plenty of space to park on the road. I found hiking poles to be helpful, but very few others on the trail were using them—they are definitely not necessary.
Beautiful morning for this hike, our group started at 7:10 am. I saw a marmot on my way down. I lost my reading glasses maybe at the front of the restrooms, I was by the creek waiting for the rest of the group, and maybe there.
I started about 6:30 and it was chilly first couple miles. Dry except for a little runoff early on. Not a lot of people to contend with on the way up, but a bit crowded coming down. No bugs. Snow patches above the falls and lots of snow a mile farther
Crowded AF. But excellent views and conditions. A must see.
The ever beautiful Blanche. Lots of people. Quite a few campersBugs are coming out.
Alright, so I had a great albeit very challenging experience with Lake Blanche trail, so I’m going to tell you my mistakes so you don’t make the same. 1. I highly underestimated the difficulty. It is indeed hard. There were many areas I had to climb over rocks. The altitude change makes going up very hard - and I’m a pretty fit person. 2. Wear good shoes. Since I underestimated the trail, I wore Teva sandals. I often hike in sandals. Do not do this hike in sandals. DON’T. 3. Wear freaking sunscreen and a hat. Today I am red as a tomato because I didn’t listen to the warnings about low shade coverage. I didn’t even feel like I was burning during the hike. But alas. 4. Bring a lot of water. Another mistake I made was only bringing 28oz. I ran out very fast which just made everything harder. 5. It is WORTH IT to get to the lake. The views are absolutely incredible. Going down is much easier too - you won’t be tired like you will be going up.
Lake Blanche is so stunning with Sundial Peak behind it! I loved having snow all over the mountains! The path is dry except a tiny bit of spring g run-off near the bottom. We actually hiked eight miles going around the lakes and waterfalls, but my activity accidentally paused.. it took us 2h 15m to get to Lake Blanche and 1h 45m to return.
Such a great hike to a beautiful lake. Gradual incline all the way. It gets a little steeper the last mile or so. Trail is dry. A little bit of mud in the beginning but very minor. No snow on the trail. Seen lots of marmots at the top. I decided to hike to Lake Florence and Lake Lillian as well. If you aren’t too tired once at Lake Blanche I would definitely recommend going farther and seeing these. It would add another 1.5 miles total. Past Blanche the trails get a little less marked so make sure you have a map on you. Lake Blanche definitely the highlight though! Bathrooms available. This trailhead gets VERY busy so try to avoid peak times because you probably won’t find parking. I got at the main parking lot at 630am on a Friday and there were only a couple spots left. There is an upper parking lot too and then you’ll find many people will park on the road shoulders.
Incredible views! Was pretty steep getting up, but absolutely worth it to see the beauty!
Beautiful hike! A little chilly by the lakes. Otherwise, still one of my favorite hikes.
Completed June 4th Lots of little wildflowers along the trail. Only mud is at the start of the trail. Went past Lake Blanche and climbed up the boulder field above it, beautiful views. Arrived at 6:50 or so and there were still a couple of parking spots. Heading to the right of Blanche and going to the other two lakes is well worth it and there was almost nobody there. There are two moose in the area, so be aware.
Absolutely stunning- favorite hike yet! Started early by 6:00- plenty of parking. Very cold until about the last hour coming down- and sun not up by the lake either. Did not need hiking poles- never too slippery of parts.