Panhandle
Difficulty: Moderate
Trip Type: Day Hike / Multi-Day Basecamp
Distance: ~2.4 miles round trip
Elevation: ~9,820 feet
Time: ~1 hour round trip
Access: Maintained trail to Wall Lake, then unmaintained off-trail navigation. ATV or off-road buggy required to reach the vehicle turnaround.
Bugs: Minimal (little to no bugs)
Getting there
Accessing this area requires navigating the rugged Goose Lake Jeep Trail. You will absolutely need an ATV, an off-road buggy, or a highly capable off-road vehicle. Your driving portion ends when you reach the vehicle turnaround near the Goose Creek waterfall area, which serves as your staging spot to park and shoulder your packs.
Be extremely cautious when parking your vehicle; local pine martens are highly active in this basin and are notorious for chewing on wires and cables underneath parked machines. Just before the trail ends near the falls, look for a hard right turn that points you north to begin the hike.
The hike
The total outbound journey to this destination spans one point two miles from the vehicle turnaround, climbing a total of two hundred and eighty vertical feet from the start. You will begin by walking the short, well-defined path north to pass Wall Lake.
Once you leave the shoreline of Wall Lake, the maintained path completely ends. From that point, you will navigate entirely cross-country for roughly one additional mile to push further into the upper basin and arrive at the shores of Panhandle Lake.
Tips & safety
Trail Conditions: The easy path stops entirely at the first lake. Moving beyond that point requires basic directional awareness and cross-country route-finding through the timber and rocky terrain.
Weather: High-altitude mountain weather can turn fast here. Come fully prepared for sustained cold rain or sudden storms.
Vehicle Care: Double-check your lines and undercarriage before leaving your off-road machine at the waterfall to ensure local wildlife hasn't chewed through important cables.
Fishing: Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks lists historical data for this alpine basin, but we didn't catch any fish at this specific stop.
