Quartz Creek

Dogs No Dogs

Features Birding · Lake · River/Creek · Spring · Wildflowers · Wildlife

Nice trail run, but might have some more overgrowth and downfall and has a creek ford.

The trailhead is found on the Inside North Fork Road between Polebridge and Logging Lake. It is less traveled and receives less maintenance than most of Glacier's other trails, so be aware that it may have more downfall and be a bit more overgrown.

The trail starts out in the open meadows of the North Fork area with younger lodgepole pines sprouting up. It's an old road and the travel is easy. You are near the creek, but aren't right alongside it. You come to a large meadow with a slightly newer house which is one of the original homestead properties in the park. From here, the trail becomes singletrack and spends more time in forests.

You eventually come to a crossing of Quartz Creek. In the spring, during runoff, the creek can be dangerous to ford, so make sure you check the trail status report or with a ranger. From here, you follow up the creek on the east side where it goes through more open forests and smaller meadows until you reach the campground at Lower Quartz Lake and the Quartz Lake Loop trail.

This content was created by Jake Bramante of Hike 734. Visit hike734.com for more expert Glacier content and maps that help you decide which trail to hike.

Forest flowers and great flowers in the meadows in spring and early summer such as geraniums. Expect to see small forest birds, hawks, and small mammals. Deer, elk and, to a lesser extent, bear can be found in this area.