Stanley Glacier Group Hike

HIKE#3: Stanley Glacier - Kootenay National Park
Full Day Hike

Brief description:
Time: 4-5 hours return trip
Distance: approximately 10-12 km., depending on route
Level of Difficulty: Moderate
Elevation Gain: 365 m (1200 feet)

Summary: This is a beautiful hike which encompasses remnants of a forest fire, a hanging valley, high peaks (Stanley Peak, Storm Mtn., Mt. Whymper and Boom Mtn.) and the receding Stanley Glacier.

The first half of the hike leads up switchbacks through a huge burn, an area that fell victim to a lightning strike in 1968. Another burn in 2003 has actually created some quite amazing vistas, as well as generating a great deal of new undergrowth. As the trail continues alongside the creek, the forest thins and gives way to the open Stanley basin, with views of the glacier, a sheer rockwall with a high waterfall, larch trees, caves and maybe some occasional wildlife.