Hiking Iceberg Lake near Whistler
Contents
Iceberg Lake Hike Information
Difficulty: Moderate
Distance: 19.80Km
Elevation Gain: 1,245m
Highest Elevation: 1,785m
Average Gradient: 12.57%
Effort/Reward Ratio: Moderate / Moderate
Time Needed:
– Slow: 7 – 8 Hours
– Moderate: 6 – 7 Hours
– Fast: 5 – 6 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: No
Season: ~June to October
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: None
Iceberg Lake Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 50°09’16.0″N 122°58’05.1″W
Iceberg Lake Overview
Iceberg Lake is a popular hike near Whistler, taking visitors to the glaciated eastern cliffs of Rainbow Mountain. At the base of these cliffs lies a small, glacial lake that is often filled with broken glacier chunks in the early summer (hence the name), though if you go later in the season these chunks will have all melted. The turquoise blue lake is a nice sight regardless of when you visit.
There are several ways to reach Iceberg Lake, but they all generally begin from the town of Whistler, with no dedicated parking lot. Instead, visitors must park on the street, usually at the end of Mountain View Drive or Alpine Way. Thanks to a plethora of mountain biking and hiking trails through this area, there are various ways to reach the lake no matter where you park. That said, the most popular route is via 19 Mile Creek, which is partly fed by the lake itself.
Most parties will simply tackle this hike as an out and back, however the route linked here suggests a loop, adding on a portion of Skywalk North on the return journey. While this adds a few kilometers to the trip, it’s a worthwhile addition and provides some rewarding subalpine views for a greater length of time than simply returning back directly.
Aside from the distance, there is nothing particularly technical or challenging about Iceberg Lake, it’s mostly just a long forest plod. The mellow average gradient and largely maintained trail allows for fast travel.
In terms of seasonality, Iceberg Lake is generally a summer hike, typically meaning July to October as the peak season. Once winter arrives this hike will not really be feasible due to the length. If you want to see the lake with glacial chunks of ice in it, you will want to visit earlier in the summer as the lake begins to thaw, typically early July. You can likely go in June as well, but there will be plenty of snow towards the end of the hike, and the lake will likely be completely snow covered.
Iceberg Lake is a somewhat popular spot for grizzly bear activity, particularly in late summer when the berries ripen. There are lots of berry bushes in the meadows below the lake and grizzlies have been spotted there frequently grazing upon them. Hikers used to be able to camp here (there is even an outhouse), but after too many grizzly encounters camping was banned in the area. Dogs are also not welcome in the area either due to the bear activity.
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Is Iceberg Lake worthwhile?
Iceberg Lake offers nice views at the end that most people will very much find worthwhile (hence this is a very popular trail), but the majority of the hike is a relatively boring forest plod with little to see. If you’re somebody that likes to climb mountains this might feel a little incomplete, and while adding on the Skywalk North loop to exit helps a little, you still never really break out of the subalpine for those panoramic views.
Overall, it’s a good hike to keep in the back pocket for those days when you want something simple to a nice viewpoint, but there are better hikes out there if you’re a little more ambitious. It has nothing on something like Wedgemount Lake or even Watersprite Lake.
How difficult is the hike to Iceberg Lake?
While the distance and elevation might imply this is a somewhat difficult hike, it never really felt that taxing. Most of the hike is a steady ascent on a well established trail, and the average gradient is quite low as well. This hike is even easier if you do it as an out and back, shaving off around 3-4km and a couple of hundred meters of gain. You could actually make it even longer by descending via Screaming Cat Lake, but I haven’t heard particularly positive things about that lake, so I didn’t bother as it would have just meant an even longer time spent in the forest.
Technically speaking there is nothing challenging about this hike at all. The last bit up to the lake is a little steep and loose at times, but really it’s not a problem whatsoever.
Iceberg Lake Route Information
As noted there are several ways you access Iceberg Lake, with some parties beginning from Alpine Way and hiking in via Ricks Roost Trail, while the more popular access (as shown here) is from the end of Mountain View Drive and following the 19 Mile Creek trail. Either way, these trails join up further along the 19 Mile Creek trail, it’s only the beginning that differs. Parking for the Mountain View Drive access is simply on the side of a residential street.
The first couple of kilometers of this hike climbs somewhat steeply via a series of trails that intersect biking trails. It can be a bit confusing, but generally if you follow the orange markers you should be able to figure it out. If not, bring an offline map for navigation. After a kilometer or so you will reach a bit of a viewpoint from a bench overlooking the village, with Green Lake and the Wedgemount peaks behind.
You’ll now continue ahead through the forest, passing by a couple more junctions. After around 4km total you will reach the start of the loop that I took, with the Kevin’s Home Run trail providing the descent. You’ll now continue along the 19 Mile Creek trail, crossing a bridge over the creek shortly after the junction.
The trail now remains very close to this fast flowing creek for the whole climb up to the subalpine. There are a few nice waterfalls along the way, with a bench installed at one or two. At around 1,500m (almost 7km) you will finally break out of the forest into the subalpine, with the looming eastern cliffs of Rainbow Mountain on the horizon. You’ll now pass an outhouse that used to serve the campers in the area (no camping allowed anymore, apparently. I didn’t see any signage indicating this, mind you).
Continuing ahead you’ll reach a meadow filled with bushes and creeks, which is where the bears like to hang out later in the summer once the berries are ripe. While the views are nice now, you still can’t see the lake until you’ve climbed up to a basin directly beneath the cliffs. This involves crossing over the creek by hopping on rocks, before a steep, somewhat loose ascent up via a mix of rock and sandy steps.
Soon enough you’ll crest the ridge and see the glistening, turquoise blue lake below the cliffs. At the north end of the lake is what’s left of a glacier feeding into the lake, which gives it the blue colour. Sadly I’m not sure how long this pocket glacier has left as it is quite small and likely receding every year.
Should you wish to do so, you can cross over the outflow of the lake to explore the other side by hopping over a few rocks, and I would probably suggest doing so as the views were a bit nicer on the other side. There’s also a ridge overlooking the meadows down below, with the Wedgemount and Whistler peaks in the distance.
Once finished at the lake, if your plan is to return the same way, you can obviously just retrace your steps. If you plan to do the Skywalk North loop as I did though, you would now walk towards the forested slopes north of the lake. You should pick up an obvious trail as you do, at which point you can just follow it as it climbs somewhat steeply to a high point just below 1,800m. You get some nice views here and there as you do, especially looking back at the cliffs above the lake.
From the high point you will have a couple of kilometers wandering around this subalpine, with some pleasant views as you do so. It’s never fully panoramic, but you do get a greater variety of views than simply going to the lake. After meandering around following this trail as it gradually descends, you’ll reach a signpost indicating a junction. Here you can either opt for the direct route back to the 19 Mile Creek trail via Kevin’s Home Run (as I did), or you could alternatively continue along the Skywalk North trail towards Screaming Cat Lake. Taking the latter route will extend your hike quite considerably as it takes a much more drawn out descent back to the trail. Instead, I suggest taking Kevin’s Home Run, which was a pleasant and very direct route back via a smooth forested trail for the majority. Once back on the 19 Mile Creek trail you can simply return back to the trailhead the same way you came.
When should I hike Iceberg Lake?
The peak hiking season for Iceberg Lake will be July to October, but some people go in June. There will be snow at the end of the hike if you do go in June, and the lake may be mostly snow covered still at that point. The best time to visit to see ice in the lake is early to mid July.
Top Tip
I certainly suggest extending the hike to include some of the Skywalk North trail on the way out, but I wouldn’t bother following it all the way. Once you hit Kevin Home Run, take that trail back to 19 Mile Creek.
As noted, grizzly activity is not uncommon here, especially in the late summer when the berry bushes are ripe.
