Sky Pond Rocky Mountain Section Guide

Elevation: 9,240 with 1,660 foot gain by the end of the trail.

By 6:30 am, the parking lot at Glacier Gorge trailhead was almost full. Read the trail bulletin board for any safety warnings on the trail. During the busiest time of year, a park ranger will be here answering questions. Ask all the questions.

The sign will point you to Loch Vale, Alberta Falls, and Mills Lake. When in doubt, follow the Loch Vale signs.

First, A few highlights on this first half mile or so:

• You’ll have three water crossings, two bridges, and one plank walk across a stream.
• Once get to the section where the trail parallels Glacier Creek, the gorge walls will rise.
• Access to the water is possible, but it will take some careful scrambling.

FIRE TRAIL: If you are taking the fire trail to bypass Alberta Falls, the well-hidden entrance is .4 miles into this trail section.

Alberta Falls

Less than a mile into the trail, Alberta Falls roars. The trail weaves around the western edge of the waterfall, but feel free to climb and explore the 30-foot cascade drops of this stunning sight.

Large slabs of rock line the edge of the gorge, with plenty in safe spaces where you aren’t at risk of slipping over the edge. Beware of hungry critters hoping you’ll share those snacks with them.

The falls are named after Alberta Sprage, the wife of Abner Sprague. He was a Rocky Mountain pioneer and among the first to offer lodging and services to passing tourists. Sprague Lake is named after him, where a mountain resort once stood.

Be prepared for crowds during any season that the access road is open to the trailhead. As the first waterfall, many people chose to come this far and sometimes only this far.

The Loch

It’s important to realize that the next stretch of trail is the longest between two “main attractions” on the Sky Pond hike at Rocky Mountain National Park. Less than a mile in, you’ll see East Glacial Knob to the west (and possibly some rock climbers up there).

About .3 of a mile later, the Loch & Mills Lake Junction provides that spiderweb of trails. Keep heading toward the Loch.

A glacial knob is an isolated, rounded bedrock hill or small mountain sculpted by the erosive action of flowing glacial ice. They are composed of resistant bedrock that was able to withstand glacial erosion while a glacier eroded the surrounding rock. This left the knob exposed as an isolated rocky hill.

The trail weaves through a series of switchbacks, but as someone with a moderate fear of heights, I didn’t feel uncomfortable anywhere on this trail.

Beware of intense winds on this trail. The Loch Vale took my breath away figuratively and literally.

Timberline Falls

At this point, the trail becomes strenuous, with even snow in many places well into summer. Luckily, the winds died down enough beneath the trees to pull out my crampons. I didn’t come this far to only come this far.

Timberline Falls is a 100-foot waterfall. The first thing to remember is that the waterfall edge IS the trail. You can’t get to Lake of Glass or Sky Pond without scaling the side. You’ll also lose some of the trail traffic at the Loch.

In any event, you’re going to get wet on this trail, whether it’s mist or flat-out climbing through streams of water edging down the rock.

WARNING: Most accidents that happen on this trail involve hikers who weren’t wearing hiking boots with a good grip or didn’t bring crampons to this snowy area.

(CLICK TO EXPAND ANY OF THE PHOTOS ABOVE)

Lake of Glass

The last two lakes on this trail sit on rocky shelves, sort of a “peekaboo” lake that you won’t see until you’ve scrambled to lake level. Staring at the reflection of the mountains into the water hypnotized me. To catch my breath and get some energy, I sat down to eat.

We found another waterfall here, just before you climb the lip to the Lake of Glass.

Arrive at Sky Pond

Like a dead-end on a cul-de-sac, the trail comes to an abrupt yet breathtaking view when you get to Sky Pond.

Taylor Peak stands in front of you and the intimidating Cathedral Spires, including Sharkstooth and Petit Grepon, two popular climbing routes. The other spires are the Foil and the Saber.

We spent a good hour here, climbing the edge of the lake and as far as we could go up without technical equipment. If there’s a heaven, I bet it looks a lot like Sky Pond.

Getting to Sky Pond Hike in Rocky Mountain National Park

To access the Sky Pond Hike in Rocky Mountain National Park, you’ll go through the Beaver Meadows Entrance Station leading to Bear Lake Road.

The timed entry is generally from late May through late October. Access permits are required between 5:00 am and 6:00 pm during this period. Reservations open on the first day of the month for the month BEFORE you plan to visit. That means July visitors should book reservations on June 1. September visitors need a reminder on August 1.

The reservation fee is $2, money above and beyond the price of the park access pass. No guaranteed parking comes with that reservation. It just gets you into the park. Reservations are available in two-hour intervals, starting from 5:00 am – 7:00 am through 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

Finding Parking for Sky Pond Hike in Rocky Mountain National Park

Accessing the trailhead for the Sky Pond hike in Rocky Mountain National Park comes with three options.

1. Park & Ride: Park at the lot 5.2 miles from the turn on Bear Lake Road. Bear Lake Shuttle Route transit starts at 6:30 am and ends at 7:30 pm. Winter guests will need to drive to the parking areas up the road. Exit the shuttle at the Glacier Gorge Junction Trailhead.
2. Glacier Gorge Junction Trailhead: The easiest access point to the Sky Pond hike is here, but parking is limited to fewer than 50 spaces. Unless you’re starting an early morning hike, this lot will be full, possibly even in winter.
3. Bear Lake Trailhead: Just another mile up the winding road is the Bear Lake Trailhead, with a larger parking lot with 200 spaces. Starting the Sky Pond hike from Bear Lake only adds 0.3 miles to the journey, and you get to see Bear Lake!

Finding and Following Sky Pond Hike Signs

At first glance, parts of the Sky Pond hike in Rocky Mountain National Park looked more like a spider web than trail intersections.

Too many things can go wrong (snow-covered signs, missed trail markers, cairns knocked down, etc.) that I leave as little to chance as possible.

As you can see on the trail signs to the right, Sky Pond isn’t always mentioned.

NOTE: Distances are rarely 100% accurate. This trail is estimated to be between nine and 10 miles roundtrip.

Trailhead to End of Trail Terms for Sky Pond Hike

This quick guide will help you learn the names associated with landmarks along the Sky Pond hike.

• Glacier Gorge: As the name suggests, it’s a gorge carved by an Ice Age glacier and also the name of the main trailhead for the Sky Pond hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. Searching for “Glacial Gorge” will take you to many wrong places.
• Alberta Falls: The first waterfall on the trail to Sky Pond. It is less than a mile from the trailhead and very crowded in summer.
• The Loch/Loch Vale: “Loch Vale” translates from Scottish to Lake Valley. The valley is where three lakes are located, one being “The Loch,” which is on the Sky Pond hike in Rocky Mountain National Park.
• Cathedral Wall: The towering western wall of mountains at Loch Vale, is also a popular rock climbing site.
• Timberline Falls: Another name that’s a definition, as this waterfall marks “above the tree line.” You cannot go forward without scaling the falls.
• Lake of Glass: The second to last lake on the trail.
• Sky Pond: Don’t let the name “Pond” fool you–this is a lake by every definition, and sometimes lake and pond are used interchangeably.
• Sharkstooth/Petit Grepon: The spires that stand on the northwest side of Sky Pond, with Petit Grepon being a popular spot for rock climbers.
• Fire Trail(s): Trails that are not usually marked on the map but provide shortcuts to get around the backcountry or busy trail spots.

EPIC Sky Pond Hike Add-On Trail

At the same time, you can easily parlay the Sky Pond hike at Rocky Mountain National Park into a trip to Mills Lake, which is just a one-mile roundtrip detour.

We hiked in good time under ideal weather conditions. The climb down the waterfall took us more time than the ascent. We saw others struggling as well. Take your time.

After turning onto Andrews Creek/Andrews Glacier Trail and taking the 1,000-foot ascent in .9 miles through rugged terrain, we enjoyed solitude we couldn’t get on any other trail section.

The USGS claims this is the only REAL glacier left in Rocky Mountain National Park and that I thought this detour was necessary since it might not be around much longer with climate change.

In the end, at 11,390 feet, the side trail was worth it. You can do this trail and camp at the Andrews Creek campsite with a wilderness permit.

Map Of Sky Pond Hike in Rocky Mountain National Park