Coquina Lake is a 6.2 mile lightly trafficked out and back trail located near Darby, Montana that offers the chance to see wildlife and is good for all skill levels. The trail is primarily used for hiking, walking, and nature trips and is best used from July until September. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.
This is an excellent trail that is easy to moderate. It is well marked and easy to follow. Just remember to stay to the right at the Y. There were many camp sites to choose from and no bugs this weekend. The fly fishing was fantastic, with every fish I caught between 12-14 inches. I will definitely come here again. Next time, I will stay longer than a weekend.
This trail as it all! Two states, two time zones, two lakes, canyon views, moderate elevation gain and wild weather changes! In mid September we experienced sunny and 65° at the start of the trail and by the top it was 40° with sleet, rain and snow. Prepare for that! But all in all, this is a great hike that only took about 4 hours and would absolutely do again.
Great Lake - the hike in is in good shape but strewn with boulders most of the way.
I did this hike last September. It was a good moderate hike, rocky at the beginning and a constant incline. When you get up to the first lake/pond take a RIGHT for Coquina Lake! not a left! It is super overgrown there and there is literally no sign that Coquina is in that direction. It is! Climb through the overgrowth and you’ll reach a flatter rock face that will lead you up to Coquina. Make sure to watch how you get in so you remember when you leave! Watch for cairns on your way out
First thing is the signage for this was pretty lackluster. The trailhead says its the trail for upper bear lake, no mention of coquina. secondly when you get close to the end, which for us was right around 3.44 miles, the trail is super rocky and it's eady to lose it. This lake was beautiful and great for camping. Tons of wood laying around for a fire and lots of great flat spots for tent. The hike in was pretty easy with a backpack although very rocky so it's slow going. We had a cow elk calling from time to time and even ran through our camp at one point. The mosquitoes and flies were not bad at all but it was getting really cold at night.
Loved it! Beautiful hike, great for the dogs, although we wished it would have been a market trail because the first time we went, we didn't know which trail to go on and ended up 5 miles into the Nez Pierce Wilderness on the wrong trail with no lake to be found. We will be back!
We did this hike yesterday with our 4 dogs, you see 2 other lakes on the way, one you can access, although the water level was down and it was very muddy, at least this August. Coquina was a beautiful lake and larger than we expected. It was a Saturday and we still only saw 2 other groups.
my husband and I did this hike with our son for his very first backpacking trip carrying his own gear. Beautiful hike. great scenery. loved looking down over the lakes in the canyon and skirting past another. the only problem is the mosquitos are awerful even with 100% deet. the actually chased us in our tents where we spent most the day. fishing is ok but the fish are definitely used to jump for their food so take a fly fishing pole