Iceberg Lake Trail is OPEN

Near the end of the hike--Iceberg Lake is below the snow field on the mountain in the middle
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When we arrived at the park, the Iceberg Lake Trail was closed due to the presence of a goat carcass near the lake.  This caused increased bear activity, resulting in the closure.  I checked daily on the trail status and as of July 3rd, the trail was still closed but this morning there was a large note on the park blackboard saying "Happy 4th of July, Iceberg Lake Trail is OPEN".

We set out just in front of another large Park Ranger-led tour.  The trail head was just behind our motel room and we saw a large moose heading off to the adjacent stream.  The initial 1/2 mile was a difficult uphill slog but after this the uphill grade was very easy.   At the midpoint we reached the Ptarmigan Falls which showed the dual colors (green and red) of the ancient sedimentary rocks.

Waterfalls draining the lake
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The trail went through open meadows filled with wildflowers and densely forested sections.  We saw the most diverse wildlife (moose, squirrels, chipmunks, marmots, rabbits) on this trail but alas, no bears.  Went we reached Iceberg Lake it suddenly appeared in front of us, filling in the bowl-like area that fronted the large mountain behind it.  The water was very dark and still and perfectly mirrored the surrounding mountain.

When we arrived, there were only a handful of people there and they were leaving.  We had several precious minutes of quiet solitude at the lake shore.  Naturally we had to take off our shoes and wade in the freezing waters.  After less than a minute my shins were aching from the cold.  This was a perfect ending to our vacation.