Continuing our May 2021 trip to Glacier National Park, we stretched our legs on the Rocky Point Trail, also known as the Rocky Point Nature Trail. This easy trail is 1.7 miles in total distance hiked and varies in elevation about 150 feet.
To reach the trailhead from the Apgar Visitor Center, turn right at the four-way stop onto the paved Camas Road. Drive 1.3 miles to Fish Creek Campground Road. Turn right and drive just over one mile to the campground entrance on the right. Instead of turning in at the campground, veer left onto the gravel Inner North Fork Road. Drive another 0.4 miles to the closed gate ahead and the large parking lot on the left.
The clearly marked trailhead is about 75 feet back down the road on the opposite side from the parking lot. With a starting elevation of about 3250 feet, the trail descends 40 feet in its first 750 feet to cross Fish Creek on a sturdy wooden bridge. After crossing the bridge, the trail climbs 55 feet in the next 800 feet. Along the climb, 1000 feet from the trailhead there is a trail junction with a short trail to the right leading to the campground. Stay to the left to continue the hike.
By this point, it is obvious that something happened to the forest here as it is almost non-existent north of the trail with a mature forest south of the trail. What happened is the Robert Fire of 2003 with the trail being the last line of defense as firefighters fought to preserve the campground area.
Continuing on, the trail descends about 90 feet over the next 1100 feet (2650 feet or ½ mile from the trailhead). Along this descent is another trail from the campground on the right at about 2430 feet from the trailhead and a social trail at the same junction leading to the lakeshore. At the half-mile point, another trail junction begins the 0.7-mile loop trail the leads to Rocky Point in 0.2 miles on the right fork and the Lake McDonald trail junction in 0.2 miles on the left fork. The 0.3 miles between consists of a switchback that climbs (counter-clockwise) or descends (clockwise) 120 feet. Of course, that elevation change has to be made up in the other two legs of the loop. We chose to hike the loop in a counter-clockwise direction so we could reach Rocky Point as quickly as possible.
This is a beautiful, well-maintained trail that provides some rather unique vantage points to see the lake and surrounding mountains. On the weekday we hiked, there were only a handful of vehicles in the parking lot and we only saw one other family on the trail.
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| Part of the large gravel parking area at the gated end of Inside North Fork Road |
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| Graveled Inside North Fork Road from the parking area |
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| Trailhead |
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| Western White Trillium (Trillium ovatum var. ovatum) |
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| A Western White Trillium that has aged to pink |
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| Bridge over Fish Creek |
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| Looking back at the bridge and upstream |
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| View downstream |
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| Trail from Fish Creek Campground on the right |
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| Columbian Ground Squirrel (Urocitellus columbianus) |
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| The results of fighting the Robert Fire in 2003 are to the left of the trail |
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| "X" marks the spot in the Robert Fire |
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| Another trail from the campground on the right |
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| A social trail leads to Lake McDonald |
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Lake McDonald with the Belton Hills on the left,
the snow-covered Swan Range in the center,
and the Apgar Mountains on the right |
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| Lake McDonald and the Belton Hills |
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| A closer view of the Swan Range |
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| The trail splits to form a 0.7-mile loop |
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| Apgar Mountains |
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| Swan Range |
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| Rocky Point |
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| Clear water |
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| Belton Hills |
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| A rock splits off from Rocky Point |
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Gunsight Mountain (left 9258'), Lincoln Peak (center 7450'),
and Mount Jackson (right 10052') above Lake McDonald (3153') |
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Mount Brown (left 8565'), Little Matterhorn (short center 7886'), Edwards Mountain (right 9072'),
and Gunsight Mountain (far right 9258') above Lake McDonald |
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| Trail climbing the slope back to the Lake McDonald trail |
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| Apgar Mountains |
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| Still climbing after a switchback |
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| Recovering from the Robert Fire of 2003 |
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| Lake McDonald Trail junction |
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One last view through the trees of Gunsight Mountain (left), Lincoln Peak (center),
and Mount Jackson (right) above Lake McDonald |
A Glacier National Park entry fee of $35 per vehicle, $30 per motorcycle, or $20 per person is valid for seven consecutive days. Other fee payment options include the America the Beautiful - National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands passes including the Annual Pass ($80), Senior Pass ($80 for a lifetime), Access Pass (free with a documented disability), and Military Annual Pass (free for active-duty personnel). Also available is a Glacier Annual Pass for $70.
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