Sierra Rec Magazine is the Sierra Nevadas only regional publication dedicated to outdoor lifestyle news and features for the entire Sierra Nevada Range. Centipede at Grizzly Lake, Emigrant Wilderness, insect, Stanislaus National Forest. Backpacking Hyatt Lake, Emigrant Wilderness (2D/1N) Trip Details: Total distance: 13.0 miles Total elevation gain: 2,527 feet Route Type: Cross country out-and-back Wilderness Area: Emigrant Wilderness, Stanislaus National Forest Season: Early (early June in a low-snow year) Like much of the Sierra Nevada, the Emigrant Wilderness is a land of endless granite landscapes carved out by glaciers and water over millions of years. After a restful night, we hiked up the rocks to perhaps our favorite part of the trip. #8 - Granite Dome Loop via Kennedy Meadows. Everyone seemed more keen to get to camp and then explore more, so we did not visit Sardella or Upper Lewis Lakes, but took a quick rest at Ridge Lake before continuing to Iceland Lake. We left the trail at a relatively obvious spot to cross the creek. Sand and dirt are also good choices. Posted on August 18, 2014. Trail engineers had carved stairs into the granite in a few sections, and we marveled at the high cliffs along the way. Where is the best place to hike in Emigrant Wilderness? Most backpackers take two days to make the 13-mile hike from the Kennedy Meadows trailhead to Emigrant Lake deep in the Emigrant Wilderness.A camp near Emigrant Lake makes a great base for exploring nearby lakes such as Buck Lakes, Long Lake, Huckleberry Lake, or Big Lake, or climbing peaks like 9,400' Sachse Monument or 10,500' Bigelow Peak (Class 1). It was fun exploring the camp in such a remote area and it felt like a mini ghost town! Camping, there would be a wet and cold ordeal. 19777 Greenley Road The descent to Huckleberry Lake was painful. If you came to camp Emigrant Wilderness - Upper Relief Reservoir is a great site to do that. There is a nice hiking trail next to Sharon Lake called the Early Emigrant and Indian Trail. For this evening, we had soaked brown minute rice with dehydrated black beans and a little taco seasoning for about an hour. A small stream that flowed through the field had frozen overnight. The views are awesome although this time it was a little bit hazy. It was going to be a long drive and a then a long hike. Ultra-light Krocadiles, Rooster Tails, Mepps and Panther Martins can also be trolled or fan-casted from the bank on almost any of the Emigrant Wilderness Lakes. The two times Ive done this loop the crowds were extremely thin, so we never had to search for campsites. however, there are no quotas or fees within the Emigrant. Try your hardest to not camp on vegetation, and always try to look for previously impacted sites to concentrate impact. This page covers all necessary alerts for the area, and from there information about permits, closures, fire bans, etc., can be found. Emigrant Wilderness - Emigrant Lake, Pinecrest, 6 miles away : Hotels Near Sharon Lake: Super 8 Gardnerville Topaz Lake, Gardnerville, 25 miles away: Best . In the afternoon, we climbed up the little hill behind our camp to scope out the terrain for the next day, to possibly change our route. The Crabtree Trail climbs gradually up a forested ridge for 2.5 miles to the easily accessible Camp Lake. The hike between Emigrant Lake and Lunch Meadow is incredible; probably the highlight of the route. We've got you covered, with trails ranging from 268 to 2,857 meters in elevation gain. The Lake is just as beautiful as usual, but it was crowded on Saturday and Sunday. Whatever you have planned for the day, you can find the perfect trail for your next trip to Emigrant Wilderness. It was still near freezing when I started my backpacking trip. Where: Emigrant Wilderness, Stanislaus National Forest. Check out the links in the side bar for more info from the Stanislaus National Forest. Daytime temperatures were in the low 60s and nighttime lows int the 20s. The longest climb is less than a mile, and covers roughly 700 feet of elevation gain in that time. Along the way we met a friendly older gentleman who was going out for 2-3 weeks with his fishing gear. Highest Elevation: 9200 ft. Park: Stanislaus National Forest (California, USA) Trail(s): Huckleberry Trail, Lunch Meadow Trail. Varying terrain including forests, alpine lakes, and rocky ridges make for fun and enjoyable trips. This takes you north of Yosemite National Park in Stanislaus National Forest. I returned to do this loop again in 2020, and it felt just as special even after hundreds of backpacking miles under my belt. Even so, the trail had well-constructed steps that ascended the granite. Campfires are prohibited above 9000 feet, and no campfires are allowed within mile of Emigrant Lake. More on this later. The wide meandering creek flows out of Kennedy Lake, which is pretty, but muddy this time of year. Sunrise and Moonset under smoky skies over Hyatt Lake. Large boulders, epic rock formations, pine trees as far as the eyes can see, and plentiful lakes make this loop a serene escape from Californias busy cities. They were both closed by Sunday, October 18th, though were open earlier in October. After all, doesnt LNT tell us to always stay on designated trails? I always roll down the windows, crank up the classic rock, and breathe in the delicious scent of the forest. After a co-worker of mine lamented that he got snubbed for all of his backpacking trips this year (COVID, fire, smoke), I knew we had to plan a great trip to change that luck. It is bordered by Yosemite National Park on the south, the Toiyabe National Forest and the Hoover Wilderness on the east, and State Route 108 over Sonora Pass on the north. I decided we needed to continue down the main trail a bit more until we passed a larger granite hump on the ridge to reduce unnecessary climbing. Super 8 Gardnerville Topaz Lake, Gardnerville, 32 miles away: Kirkwood Mountain Resort, Kirkwood, 33 miles away: Best Western Topaz Lake Inn, Gardnerville, 33 miles away: Lazy Z Resort, Twain Harte, 33 miles away : Ski Areas Near . Learn how your comment data is processed. The best troutin' is in the more remote lakes, many located in the southwestern portion of the area. Stranislaus Wilderness Volunteers is a group of citizens who formed in 1991 with a shared love of wilderness and are dedicated to protecting it. I planned a 3-night trip to Emigrant Wilderness to fish Emigrant Lake and some smaller lakes. Where is the best place to hike in Emigrant Wilderness? The trail is only maintained for part of this route. 2021 Valet marketing - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Valet Marketing. Option to stay in Upper Relief Lakes. The Marines' Mountain Warfare Training Center, the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, and the Hoover Wilderness form the Emigrant Wilderness' eastern border. Unlike our first two days, we had to get up and hiking early today, since we had miles to hike and a long drive home ahead! United States. It is a place where the pines, cedars, and firs of the Stanislaus National Forest gradually thin as granite cliffs, mountain tops, and monoliths take over. Third, I had already planned a 7-day trip in the area as a backup, so I was able to shorten that itinerary and cover 4 lakes instead of the original 8. Second, the lakes of the Emigrant Wilderness are known to have some large fish. I ate dinner, watching the sunset reflect off the calm lake. The waypoints mapped here indicate suggested places to camp each night to break up the days, but there are other options out there. There are over 185 miles of trails designated for foot or horse traffic only. Once the pavement ended on Crabtree Road, we followed a nicely graded fire road past the horses of Aspen Meadow Pack Station to the trailhead parking area. This is a historic route that is no longer maintained by the Forest Service. What is the longest trail in Emigrant Wilderness? Upper Buck has great campsites on granite on the South side and good fishing. It is mostly granite, but there are pockets of dirt if you need to stake out your tent. Once we scrambled down this bit, we found a small creek, and followed it, along a clear use or game trail. Native brown trout can be found in Summit, Lily and Horsemeadow Creeks. The Emigrant has really went downhill the last few years as well as as other wilderness areas. Travel & camp on durable surfaces. . Watersheds drain to the Stanislaus and Tuolumne Rivers. Official websites use .gov A .gov Inflammations should take longer than that to develop, I thought. The Best Backpacking Destinations in Ansel Adams Wilderness; Explore Parker Lake; Explore John Muir Wilderness. To get to the lakes, we had to hug the ridge to our left, due south west. There were remnants of recent visitors (Aspen Meadows Pack Station leads multi-day horse packing trips out here), but on this day we had the entire place to ourselves. #1 Pinecrest Lake Road. According to users from AllTrails.com, the best lake trail to hike in Emigrant Wilderness is Gianelli Trail to Chewing Gum Lake, which has a 4.7 star rating from 311 reviews. For more information please visit the Stanislaus National Forest Recreational Opportunity Guides listed below: Operated under special use permitwithin the Stanislaus National Forest. #7 - Granite Dome Loop via Kennedy Meadows. In Emigrant Wilderness, that was above 9,000 feet. However, if you are not used to high altitude (elevation is about 8,500 feet) you might suffer from altitude sickness and get tired easily. Beautiful views. Supervisors Office I packed away my rod and continued along the lakeshore. The Backcountry Horsemen of California, Midvalley Chapter (BCHM) assist several National Forests in many capacities, including in Wilderness. You must arm yourself with a good topographical map and a compass to find some of these high country lakes. The smoky skies made for an amazing sunset and sunrise the next morning. My main concern was to stay warm at night. Historic and scenic, the trail offers magnificent vistas far south into Yosemite and north to the jumbled volcanic peaks of the Sonora Pass country. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. There is some controversy about them, and some are being phased out, though not this one. If you have to walk through grasses or a meadow, try to identify dry areas, and do not walk in a single-file line if you are with more than one person. When shes not guzzling instant coffee in the backcountry, you can find her down the ski slopes or using inappropriatelanguage around children at the climbing gym. An official website of the Off the 108, turn right onto Crabtree Road and 10 miles down the road is the parking lot and overnight campsite for this trailhead. Do not take this route, as it is a cliff down to the lake. The water was so clear, we were a little sad that our day was too short to stop and soak in them. Location: Emigrant Wilderness, Tuolumne County, California Trailhead: Kennedy Meadows, elevation 6,300 feet Highest point on the trail: Mosquito Pass, 9,360 feet Emigrant Lake elevation: 8,825 feet Elevation Gain: 3,060 feet Hiking Distance: 14 miles Best seasons: Mid-summer through fall Campsites: Pleasant sites at either end of the lake, a few along the north shore We took a cross-country shortcut to Emigrant Meadow Lake along Cherry Creek, where we stopped for the night at 17:18. 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