Finally got ourselves over to horse thief creek, near radium hot springs, and tackled the trail to lake of the hanging glacier. This is a magnificent, even iconic, Purcell mountain hike. The road and trail are now open, after washouts and footbridge damage last year. Kudos to those who repaired the foot bridges. They are excellent structures.

The trail is in very good shape and measured out at 7.6 km one way with a difference in elevation of about 760 m from trail head to lake shore. The destroyed footbridge over horse thief creek has been replaced by a robust welded aluminum structure. This is a strenous hike, although not at all technical. It meanders easily for a few km to the main footbridge. During this time little elevation is gained. At about 4.5 km the effort begins in earnest as long series of switchbacks takes you up to the hanging valley. Most of the elevation is gained here over a few km.

The lake itself is awe inspiring, silty green with stunning views of
jumbo and other mountsins. Small icebergs floating near the shore just add to the charm. If youre wanting a hike with much to offer, do this one. Be mindful the trailhead is a long way back from radium hot springs, some 57 km to the end of the road.

Trailhead


Views along horse thief creek


First footbridge


New horse thief bridge


Waterfall along the trail


Larch Meadows near the lake


The lake


Little icebergs


The glacier


Mountains and ice


This is a highly recommended adventure.

Thanks so much for your report. This was to be our next Radium HS adventure. Very happy to see it's all good!

Do this hike! The drive in and effort required will be rewarded. It's a true bucket list adventure. Try to time your hike to allow time to stay up there, either for a lunch break or night over. There are a few spots in the larch meadows where camping is good.

Unfortunately, the weather thundered and rained on us at the end of the day so we had to hastily depart.

I look forward to your report :-)

Nice trip going Andy. Larch meadow looks cool.

Hey Ben, this would a trailrunner's dream. The first few km are a soft steady climb but then you have to grunt about 400 m up in a few km through beautiful forest. The last few km are a moderate climb again. The lake is amazing, but there are great scrambles to do also.

Thanks for the update, I've been waiting a couple of years for the repairs to happen.

Too bad you got chased out by weather, you can either make your way along the shoreline to the glacier or (better still) hike up the ridge to the west for great views.

Yeah, that was the only disappointment, not being able to continue on. We'll do it again next year but make sure we hit a good weather day. Amazing place though, spectacular. The new foot bridges across hell roaring and horsethief creeks are really well done. So grateful for the folks who did that work.