Waterton Hikes: Bertha Lake

Distance: 11 km return (+4km around lake)

Elevation Gain: 460 m

Sunday morning was grey, drizzly and cold. Alan and I went for breakfast in town then decided to be productive and do something. We chose the Bertha Lake trail because it was less committing (we left the camper at noon) and because we knew we would be missing out on any vistas the other hikes promised due to low cloud cover. The trail was wet and muddy initially, but had better drainage higher up. There was a nice lookout over Waterton Lake early in the hike, but the majority of the walk was switchbacks in the trees. The best part was the bridge at Bertha Falls.

Bertha Falls near the start of the hike

Hiking up into the clouds

When we arrived at the lake, it was glass calm and misty. It was pretty spectacular. We chose to do the 4 km loop around the lake so we could check it all out as the shape of the lake prevents you from being able to see the whole thing. We passed maybe 8 other people in the 4 km loop and enjoyed the peace and quiet of having yet another lake to ourselves.

Alan gets a different perspective of the lake than most

Hiking through the blueberries around Bertha Lake

Spooky mist on the lake

We stopped on a rock and made tea and soup to warm up and watch the clouds roll by. As we hiked, we picked blueberries and wild raspberries by the handful. I am surprised we didn't see any bears!

Alan watching the clouds

Working our way around the lake

The trail gets up above the lake in a few places for a better view

Very quiet and very calm

Based on the photos I have seen of Bertha Lake, there are some beautiful mountains above. We didn't see those on our hike, but we did have a really nice walk in the clouds. The walk around the lake was certainly worth it and was far more interesting than the boring trudge to get to the lake.

Jenny made a friend!