Otatso Creek Trail

Dogs No Dogs

Features Birding · Fall Colors · Lake · River/Creek · Spring · Swimming · Views · Waterfall · Wildflowers · Wildlife

This trail starts just upstream from the campground at Slide Lake along the meadows overlooking the lake where the Gable Pass Trail drops down. You follow along the outlet where the massive slides that dammed up the lake create perfect pika habitat across the creek. The views are fantastic of Yellow Mountain and up the drainage where you can see a waterfall that feeds into the lake.

Continuing down the creek, you come to a second smaller pool and the cutoff for the Slide Lake Campground. As you follow along this smaller lake, you begin to enter some trees, then fully enter into the forest.

This pleasant forest trail parallels the creek as it flows out of the park. Small pocket meadows break up the forest with intermittent views of the creek. The trail breaks out of the forest to wonderful meadows. Groves of trees dot the meadows that you pass through. You reach a large meadow with wonderful views and a patrol cabin and shed. You get some unique views of Chief Mountain and follow a great trail to the park boundary.

From the park boundary out, is a rough road that eventually takes you to the highway. This road can be navigated on foot or driven with a high clearance, four wheel drive vehicle. When muddy earlier in the season, it can easily be undriveable. This is the more level route to Slide Lake.

This content was created by Jake Bramante of Hike 734. Visit hike734.com for more expert Glacier content and maps that help you decide which trail to run.

Wonderful flowers and birds through a mix of forest and meadows. Trail may have deer, elk, or bear. Small mammals such as squirrels and chipmunks in the forest with pikas in the limestone boulder fields.