St. Mary's Glacier
Idaho Springs, Colorado
Details
Distance
1.86 miles
Elevation Gain
758 ft
Route Type
Out-and-Back
Description
Added by Alyssa Aaron
Quick hike with amazing views only 45 minutes from Denver! If you'd like a little taste of snow year round this is your spot. Pack your skies, snowboard, or sled for the way down.
Just West of Idaho Springs on I-70 take the St. Mary's Alice Exit. Take a right and stay on the main road and follow the signs for about 8 miles (watch on the right side of the road for a surprise pink pig). There are two parking lots for the trailhead. The larger one is South of the trail and a smaller one North, both of which require a $5 parking permit. We parked at the South lot and there are two porta potties which is where you need to go to pay for your for parking. You'll see the box for your permit on the outside of one of the potties (don't forget a pen).
From the parking lot head North on the side of the road for about 100 yards where you'll see a sign and the start of the trail. The trail up to the lake is surprisingly short but steep and rocky. At times it can be difficult, especially for smaller children, when going over the larger rocks. As always stay on the trail; in this case it's surrounded by private property. After only 3/4 of a mile up the trail you will start to see an opening and once you're out of the tree line get ready for the views.
First you will come upon the lake. This is is a great spot for a snack or even a picnic. You can walk around and there are plenty of spots to sit and take in the view. Out to the right you'll see the glacier, which oddly enough isn't even a glacier despite it's name, but a large perennial snowfield. The fun doesn't have to stop at the lake, as the trail continues up the north side of the glacier! As you continue up the trail on the snowfield it becomes slippery, as you can imagine, so I used Yaktrax during this part. Continue up the snowfield and it will relatively quickly open up to a beautiful tundra. Now you can turn around and hike back down or grab your skies, snowboard, or sled for a quick trip back down to the lake!
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St. Mary's Glacier Reviews
Completed on 11/24. This is a short, but super rewarding hike with stunning winter views :) The trail has steep & icy sections so microspikes and poles are highly recommended. Snowshoes would also help at the steep incline to the top of the glacier and if you want to go further up to explore. The frozen lake and glacier are breathtaking, but it can get very windy and cold and weather can be unpredictable so layer up properly. We carried a hot thermos of hot chocolate with us and that was the best decision ever :) You have to pay for parking, street parking is not permitted. You can park closer to the TH for $20 or the parking lot just a lil further down for $10. A great winter adventure if you’re ready for the conditions. We had an amazing time :)
5.0
We loved this hike in September! It was easy. Beautiful views!
5.0
We did this in the middle of the week in July and it was still busy. $5 parking and some dirty bathrooms at the lot. No trail head sign, just a bunch of rocks headed up the mountain. Looks like an avalanche or rock slide trail at first. However the top is worth it. Great views of the mountain lake. My GPS clocked from the trail head to the lake about .5 miles. Then depending on how far you go up to the glacier it’ll be another .5 to .75 miles. If you go parking lot to bottom of glacier you are look at about a 2 mile round trip. Maybe less. Don’t bring strollers or anything like that. It is an easy and short hike, but rocky. The path needs some love.
4.0
Pretty stupid you have to pay 5 dollars cash and no card options. I didn't carry cash and drove all the way here for nothing
1.0
St. Mary’s Glacier is a beautiful spot but because of it’s relatively short distance from Denver and short trail length it can become overcrowded quickly. I would not attempt this spot on weekends unless you plan on arriving early in the morning to get a parking spot and experience a sparser crowd. However, it’s a Colorado classic and worth the visit. If you make it up to the lake, I recommend taking the trail to the right of the lake that heads up to the side of the mountain. This offers a spectacular view of the valley below.
4.0
A relatively short trail which was nice! A little steep at some points but definitely worth it to see the views!!
5.0
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