How to hike Glacier National Park’s Pitamakan-Dawson Loop

Last updated on March 3rd, 2026

The Pitamakan-Dawson Loop is one of the best hikes in Glacier National Park and we’re sharing everything you need to know to tackle it!

Glacier National Park has no shortage of incredible hikes to explore. During our multiple trips to Glacier, we’ve been able to hike many of the park’s best trails, but one of our absolute favorites is the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop.

This long day hike takes you up into the mountains of the Two Medicine area, with epic ridgeline views of the park’s glacial peaks and multiple lakes. And all without some of the mega crowds of the park’s more famous hikes (we’re looking at you Highline Trail 👀).

In this guide we’re sharing the different options to hike the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop, plus important things to know about the trail, so you can experience it for yourself!

Want to Learn More as you explore?

We highly suggest downloading the Guide Along – Glacier (totally worth the cost!!) audio tours to navigate you on the road. Even when you don’t have service it knows where you are and provides commentary and history about the area. As well as alerts you when to stop for specific sights. These guides are fun to listen to and the narrator feels like a fun friend in the car with you!

Pitamakan-Dawson Loop Route Options

The Pitamakan-Dawson Loop is a LONG hike, especially for a day hike. And has quite a bit of elevation gain and loss, making it pretty difficult. But the nice thing about this trail is that you have a couple options to help shorten the distance. Below is a rundown of the three different ways you could do this hike!

Option #1: Hike the entire trail

Distance (round trip): 18.8 miles
Elevation gain: 3,779 feet
Difficulty: Hard
Trail Map & Current Conditions

The simplest (and cheapest) way to hike the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop is to do it all on foot! While it is almost 19 miles to do it this way, this is the best choice if you want to start very early (before 8 AM), plan to hike into later in the day, or just want to save the boat tour costs.

Option #2: Take the boat to the start (what we did!)

Distance (round trip): 15.9 miles
Elevation gain: 3,448 feet
Difficulty: Hard
Trail Map & Current Conditions (This links to the full route, which is still very helpful to read!)

If you want to shave off some of the mileage (about 3 miles!), you can take the Two Medicine boat tour one way to the start of the hike. This skips the North Shore Trail portion of the hike, which is relatively flat, so it doesn’t eliminate any of the big climbs, but it does help save your legs a bit! 

To do this, you will need to get tickets for the boat tour, which do sell out, so make sure to do this in advance. While there are one way tickets, they are only for a return trip, so if you plan to take the boat to the start of the hike, you will need to book a roundtrip ticket ($20.25 per adult).

Another important thing to know is that if you choose this option, you will have to do the hike clockwise, going up Dawson Pass first. This is the steeper uphill climb of the hike, but you will have a more gradual downhill at the end.

We opted to do the hike this way and loved it! Not only did we get a scenic boat ride, but it did save our legs a bit (which were grateful by the end of the hike). The only downside is that the earliest boat tour is 8:00 AM, so we couldn’t start the hike as early as we would’ve liked.

Option #3: Take the boat on the way back

Alternatively, you can take the boat at the end of the hike. The route is the same as the map under option #2, but you will do it in reverse. First, you’ll hike up Pitamakan Pass first and then descend via Dawson Pass (hiking counterclockwise), before taking the boat back across the lake.

The plus side of doing the hike this way is that you can start early in the morning, allowing you to beat some of the sun and heat on your way up. However the downside is that you will need to time your descent with the boat schedule. Depending on when you arrive at the boat dock, you may have to wait a bit before taking the boat back, especially if it’s busy and the boat has to make multiple trips. 

Sound like the right option for you? To do the hike this way you will need to purchase a one way return boat ticket. They do not sell these at the boat, so you must purchase one in advance. To our knowledge, they do not sell out of these, but we’d highly recommend buying it sooner than the day of to ensure you get one. 

While taking the boat to the start of the hike requires you to get a physical ticket from the ticket office, we have read reports that you can just show your boat confirmation email if you’re taking the boat back. That way, you don’t have to wait until the ticket office opens at 7:30 AM to start the hike. You could alternatively pick up your ticket the day before if you happen to be in this area of the park.

What to expect on the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop

So what is the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop actually like? Here’s a breakdown of the different sections of the hike, so you know what to expect. This is based on our experience taking the boat and going clockwise, but the majority is applicable to all hikers!

Boat ride across Two Medicine Lake

The first part of our Pitamakan-Dawson Loop adventure took us across Two Medicine Lake. We booked the 8 AM boat tour and at 8 AM sharp we were cruising. On the ride, our driver shared lots of fun facts and history about the lake, which only enhanced the beauty of the ride.

Once we made it across the lake, you hop onto the Two Medicine South Shore Trail for 0.8 miles, before turning right onto a trail for 0.1 miles that will connect you with the Dawson Pass Trail. There is a pit toilet 0.2 miles from the boat dock, so make sure to use this before you continue on!

Hike up to Dawson Pass

Once on the Dawson Pass Trail, you’ll begin your climb up to the pass. It’s a consistent, but steep uphill climb that will definitely have you breathing, but isn’t unbearably steep. 

The first part of the trail is in the forest and pretty overgrown, which felt like prime bear hiding habitat. In fact, within the first minute on the trail we saw a fresh looking pile of bear scat. 

While the first section is more through the trees, you do have occasional views and pass over a creek, which is great for filling up on water. 2.4 miles in, you’ll reach a turnoff for No Name Lake. We opted not to turn off here, but we hear it’s a beautiful lake! 

Around 3.5 miles in, you emerge from the trees and the scenery starts to get better and better, with sweeping views of Two Medicine Lake and No Name Lake, the surrounding peaks, and various waterfalls tucked up high in the mountains. And it only gets more epic the higher up you go!

But besides the views, this section of the hike got extra exciting, as we encountered a dozen Bighorn Sheep. Plus tons of wind! As soon as we got close to Dawson Pass, we got blasted with wind, which did not go away until we started making it down Pitamakan Pass.

Dawson Pass to Pitamakan Pass

The section from Dawson Pass to Pitamakan Pass is hands down the best part of the entire hike! 

You follow the ridgeline between the two passes, which is relatively flat and has stunning views in every direction. You’ll be able to see Old Man Lake, Seven Winds of the Lake, and Pitamakan Lake from high above. Plus many glacial peaks off in the distance!

However, the trail is pretty narrow here, with a sloped drop off on one side, which may make it a bit tough for those afraid of heights. We were a bit nervous beforehand about this section and its narrowness, but even with wind blasting us (thankfully into the rock wall, not the edge), we felt safe along this portion of the trail. Having hiking poles helped us feel more secure as the wind threatened to push our bodies.

Pitamakan Pass to the trailhead

Once you make it to the top of Pitamakan Pass, you will begin your long descent back to the trailhead. Right as you begin your descent, you have a head on view of Old Man Lake, which is beautiful! But after that, you’re mostly in the trees for the rest of the hike, with some sections being more exposed. You’ll also have a couple creek crossings, which are great for filling up water!

A lot of people say the first and last part of the hike aren’t very scenic, but we found them to be much more scenic than expected. And they are totally worth hiking to be able to get up onto the passes!

Camping along the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop 

If you want to break up the hike into multiple days, you can camp along the trail at two different backcountry campgrounds: No Name Lake (4.8 miles in if going clockwise) and Old Man Lake (near Pitamakan Pass). 

You are required to have a wilderness permit to do this, which can be reserved in advance or in person, depending on the availability.

A+K Tip: Grizzly bears are seen often at Old Man Lake, so make sure to be extra vigilant about food storage if you camp here. 

Planning your Pitamakan-Dawson Loop hike

When to hike the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop

The Pitamakan-Dawson Loop is only accessible in the summer months, due to large amounts of snow in the winter. Snow pack, snow melt, and the season’s first snowfall can vary year to year, but typically a safe timeframe to attempt this hike is from July 1 until mid to late September. 

If you plan to utilize the boat, you will only be able to do so from July 1-September 14. We personally hiked the trail on July 8 and it was perfect, with zero snow left on the trail.

How long does the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop take?

According to AllTrails, this route takes anywhere from 9.5-10.5 hours, which is a safe bet if walking the entire route. With taking the boat one way, we did the hike in just under 8 hours. But we were moving at a quick pace!

Where to park for the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop

There are a couple different parking options when hiking the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop. If you do the loop without the boat, you can park by the campground at this parking lot and start and end at the same spot. 

For those taking the boat to the start of the hike, you can park near the boat dock. You will have to walk back to this parking lot from the end of the trail later. So to reduce that walk when extra tired, you could park here instead, walk to the boat, and then end right by your vehicle.

If you’re taking the boat at the end, you will end by the boat dock, so we suggest parking there, so you end the hike at your vehicle.

Both parking areas have access to toilets and the boat dock area also has water fountains.

Clockwise or counter-clockwise

Since this hike is a loop, you can either do it clockwise or counter-clockwise. Most people on AllTrails suggest going counter-clockwise, since it’s more gradual uphill. However, we opted to go clockwise instead for a couple reasons. First, it allowed us to take the boat first, which meant we could just hike all the way back to our van. And second, we liked getting the harder part done first and having a more gradual downhill for our knees. 

Things to know before hiking the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop 

What to bring on the Pitamakan-Dawson Loop 

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