Glacier Pass Trail (Jasper)

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Features Commonly Backpacked · Fall Colors · River/Creek · Views · Wildflowers · Wildlife

Glacier Pass Trail is one of a handful of trails in the North Boundary Trail area of Jasper National Park. These trails are long distance wilderness trails through the roadless, northern backcountry of Jasper National Park. The forests, meadows, mountains, and valleys with their rivers, offer a sublime beauty and true wilderness experience for those with the stamina, expertise, and comfort in remote isolation, to run these trails.

Camping along this trail is limited to the established trail camps. Permits and reservations are needed for the trail camps. They can be gotten online at the Parks Canada permit/reservation website: https://reservation.pc.gc.ca/

Please review the Parks Canada website and follow Leave No Trace principles.

Glacier Pass Trail is found 15 miles from the Rock Lake trailhead, the closest trailhead. From the Rock Lake trailhead, run about one mile to the Willow Creek Trail sign. Follow Willow Creek Trail to the North Boundary Trail, and then go west on the North Boundary Trail for 5.4 miles to a marked trail junction where Glacier Pass Trail starts.

Glacier Pass Trail start to Mowitch Creek (6.6 miles)
Initially, the trail travels through a mix of grass, willows, and forest as it climbs a low ridge to run upstream along Deer Creek. On the north side of the creek, there are occasionally views of the creek and mountains, through breaks in the trees. After 2 miles the trail leaves the creek to break out of the forest into willowy meadows for a half mile. Then its back into the forest until the 5 mile mark where the trail enters meadows, passes the McLaren Pass trail junction, Little Heaven trail camp, warden cabin, and horse camp. Leaving the horse camp, the trail heads down into the valley to the east, and veers northwest in this valley full of willows. At the 6.6 mile mark Mowitch Creek is reached, a very pretty place with hints of Desolation Pass ahead.

Mowitch Creek to Spruce Creek trail camp (5.4 miles)
Cross Mowitch Creek 3 times to continue on to reach Spruce Creek trail camp at the 12.0 mile mark.

Spruce Creek trail camp to Glacier Pass (5.8 miles)
Another 0.6 miles brings one to a trail junction. Go left/west here to continue on to Glacier Pass. The trail to the right heads northwest to Desolation Pass. From here, to Glacier Pass, the trail is not maintained regularly so the going can be rough. Good route finding skills and patience help.

Glacier Pass and the Jasper Park Boundary are reached after a total of 17.8 miles. From here the trail continues into Willmore Wilderness with many options for more adventures, with some options looping back into Jasper National Park.

Fir forest - spruce, fir, lodgepole pine, etc. Meadows of willows. There is an abundance of animal tracks. Deer, elk, moose, wolves, bears, and more all call this home.