381 km elevation 1-way / ~4 hours
This is my favourite back-country campground. I went there for a 2nd time last September for two nights, and it was just as wonderful the 2nd time.
The trail starts at Red Rock Canyon in Waterton Lakes National Park, which is a great place to visit in its own right. There’s a good family friendly walk to Blackiston Falls, starting from the same parking lot!
The trail to Twin Lakes starts with what is called the Snowshoe Trail, which I suppose people must actually snowshoe on over Winter! It’s a fairly flat mixed-use trail, and in summer you’ll encounter people bicycling with their dogs or trail running, or even horseback riding. It’s an interesting trail going through a beautiful valley that was more beautiful before half of it burned in the 2017 Kenow fire. The first 1/3 or 1/2 of the trail, you’ll be walking through regrowth in a burned area. It’s been neat seeing how the area has regrown over the last few years.
About half way to Snowshoe you’ll cross a small bridge, after which you get into forested trail again.
This mixed-use trail takes you to the Snowshoe campsite, which is about 3/4 of the way there and a great spot to stop for a rest before getting into hiking-hiking, and eventual switchbacks to the lakes. This is a branching point for a few different hikes, and some folk camp at Showshoe as a starting point for other trails.
At this point the trail to Twin Lakes narrows and becomes a hiking/horse trail through some beautiful meadows.
The most intense part of the hike is right at the end, with switch-backs climbing to the lakes and campsite. There are metal bear-proof lockers to store your food/bag next to the horse-hitching post. I did actually see horse-back tour come through on my second day, doing the whole loop back to Red Rock. That was neat. 😀
There are 4 tent sites at Twin Lakes, and they’re all nicely sheltered and private.
There’s a very cute meal site at the lake shore. The campsites are sheltered from the wind, but that meal site gets the full blast coming across the lake.
I saw a cow moose swim across the lake one afternoon!
On the 2nd morning I got packed up early and had absolutely gorgeous lighting on the walk back to Red Rock.
I’m hoping to get back out there again this year. 🙂
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