Bozeman: Emerald Lake
Pass a handful of big canyon waterfalls on your way up to an alpine lake with jaw-dropping views on this 9.4-mile out-and-back in Gallatin National Forest.
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Trail Facts
- Distance: 7.6
Waypoints
EMD001
Location: 45.4590606689453, -110.921096801758
Go S on multiuse trail from parking lot
EMD002
Location: 45.4554100036621, -110.915603637695
Continue through aspen and mixed conifers in steep, craggy hillsides before crossing East Fork Hyalite Creek
EMD003
Location: 45.4475898742676, -110.911003112793
Proceed straight on gentle incline; Emerald Lake sits at the head of the East Fork Hyalite in the Gallatin Mountains, an area known for its many waterfalls and superb winter ice-climbing
EMD004
Location: 45.4420394897461, -110.909301757812
Pass the long, braided flows of Horsetail Falls on W wall
EMD005
Location: 45.4323997497559, -110.91130065918
E wall begins closing in; break for views down valley
EMD006
Location: 45.4220314025879, -110.918296813965
Steep switchbacks up loose trail to an unnamed set of falls plunging alongside trail; continue S
EMD007
Location: 45.4177513122559, -110.921798706055
Trail leads into open meadow with Flanders Mtn. and The Mummy looming across the canyon. Cross narrow bridge, staying on Emerald Lake Trail
EMD008
Location: 45.4164886474609, -110.924301147461
The wildflower-sprinkled valley transitions into a U-shaped cirque of near-vertical, often windy cliffs
EMD009
Location: 45.4146690368652, -110.927696228027
Emerald Lake: See the weathered N face of Mt. Chisholm from the shore of this wild blue gem. Overnight camping allowed