Land to the east of the lake is in a state of permafrost which helps to prevent drainage of the area.

[2] During the summer, the park is filled with wildflowers, some of which have not been found anywhere else outside of the Arctic Circle.

[3] The park is named after Summit Lake, the headwaters of Bear Creek.

Summit Lake is a tarn which sits at 12,836 feet (3,912 m) elevation in a glacial cirque on the north face of Mount Blue Sky and the east face of Mount Spalding.

[6] Later secondary sources occasionally report it as the highest lake in the United States.