Running Waterton Lakes National Park: Bertha Falls

My second day of training on vacation consisted of a hike up to Bertha Falls.  I had never done a solo hike before.  I was a bit nervous hiking alone in bear country, but it turned out to be one of my favorite things I did this past trip.

Distance: 6 kilometers round trip (roughly 4 miles)

Estimated Time: 1-2 hours

Who: Anyone able to handle significant inclines and rough terrain.  If your kids are used to hiking then they will be fine.  My kids would have wanted to be carried long before the half way point.

Here is the trailhead to Bertha. This trailhead is located just off of Evergreen Avenue.  There is a decent sized parking lot here, but you could walk here from anywhere in town.

I had seen a few maps and they all said that Bertha Falls was 1K.  So, I was thinking that I could do this while my family was napping.  Nope.  This is a lie.  Or they just don't tell you where the kilometer starts.  It surely doesn't start here.  From here you have 3Ks to get to the falls.  Trust me.  It's 3 kilometers one way.

The beautiful view as you climb.

This was a lookout at 1.5K mark.  (there was a sign.  I just forgot to take a picture of it.  It also said that I had 1.5K to go.)  The view into Glacier National Park, USA.  This is a perfect place to eat a snack and drink some water.  There is a bench to sit on too.  I could have sat here all day long.  So peaceful.

Somewhere between half way and the falls, I climbed down to the river.  There was a pool that you could wade in or little kids could swim in. There was a couple of ladies there that were testing out their water filter.  The one that works like a straw.  It was pretty cool.  So, if you have one of those filters, then you could get yourself a drink.
 

This is Bertha Falls.  It's a good turn around spot if you're not going up to Bertha Lake, which I was not.  You will know you are here when you hit a wooden bridge and another wooden bench to sit on.  I'm pretty sure there was a sign too.

Next time I'm thinking I will train run this one.  It's a good distance of 6K round trip, not too steep, and oh so beautiful. But I'll wait another year or two to take the kids.