Big Pine Lakes and Palisade Glacier, Sierra Nevada, California. Breathtaking scenery, delightful mountain river sounds and emerald lakes as reward awaits you if you’re ready to throw yourself into this challenging workout, 11/27 Awesome trail, great views and a killer workout! Did this as an overnight at 6th. A single day of hiking can place you among the seven varied, and dazzlingly beautiful Big Pine Lakes. His paintings of the lakes and peaks of the area only gained popularity after his death in 1985. Trailhead: Big Pine Creek … However on the way down. wilderness area, but finally they decided to keep the cabin due to its historic value. We started around 8:30AM and returned back at 5:30PM. Anglers try their luck in Big Pine Creek with good success. Congratulations, That’s quite a hike. I will recomend to go early, sun goes down around 4:30. Going up it may feel quite hard due to elevation. a Thousand Faces. The Big Pine Lakes hike consists of 6 different lakes and is 16.2 miles round trip. Key Facts About Big Pine Lakes: Location: John Muir Wilderness in Inyo County. Big Pine Lakes makes a perfect weekend journey, or to allow time to explore all the lakes and venture up some of the side-canyons, plan on 4 or 5 days. Trailhead: Big Pine Creek, elevation 7,660 feet First Lake elevation: 9,957 feet Elevation Gain: 2,297 feet Hiking Distance: 4.8 miles to First Lake, 6.5 miles to Fourth Lake Best season… The trail is absolutely gorgeous and I didn't end up needing the microspikes I brought. Big Pine is located 15 miles (24 km) south-southeast of Bishop, at an elevation of 3990 feet (1216 m). Some parts of the trail had patchy snow/ice and the lakes were frozen over but no micro spikes/crampons required. It’s getting colder and colder up there and the snow is about to set in for the season so hit this trail while you still can! * ( 1st hike for us). Great daytime activity! Every effort is made to provide accurate and up to date information, but we cannot be responsible for errors or for changes that may have occurred since publication. The … Bring a lot of water. Started at 8:00 am and got back to the car at 4:00 pm. It is approximately 78 feet deep at its deepest point. There is no shade for the first 3/4 of the trail. He had the cabin built in the late 1920s for $12,000. Breath taking views and beautiful weather, the hike took about 2 1/2 hours to get to the first lake. It is very windy and that increases the cold very much. This lake is 635 acres in size. Dogs are also able to use this trail. We went on Saturday, November 28, 2020. Steady elevation gain, went clockwise to lakes 1-3 first. Temps on Monday (11/30) night was around 28 degrees and Tuesday (12/01) was around 30 degrees. Length 16.2 miElevation gain 4051 ftRoute type Loop Overall a great hike and WOW, everything you see is magical and breathtaking. As the trail climbs past the chain of Big Pine Lakes there are many opportunities to observe the affects of glacial activity, such as cirques, glaciated granite and glacial erratic. This hike starts off slightly uphill for quite a ways until you start rounding some corners and eventually you'll make it to a waterfall. Order Online Tickets Tickets See … Definitely want to come again with warmer temps and enjoy taking a dip in the lakes. Commonly referred to as the Big Pine Lakes trail, the technical trail name is Big Pine Creek North Fork Trail. the Phantom of the Opera. Big Pine Lakes - Key Facts. The information provided on this website is done so without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. For our first backpacking trip of the season, we decided on the North Fork of Big Pine Creek - a beautiful basin of glacier-fed lakes that I have been eagerly waiting to do. The main trail goes … Big Pine Lakes is in the Lakes category for Inyo County in the state of California. Beautiful lakes and amazing hike. Elevation Gain: 2,297 feet California. Along the South Fork of the Big Pine Creek, there are three lakes, each containing Brookies in the 6-8 inch class. https://www.recreation.gov/ Nestled among 14,000-ft peaks, the lakes can be … The views at the end (and even on the way there) are INCREDIBLE. Location: John Muir Wilderness, Inyo County, 10 miles west of Big Pine, 15 miles south of Bishop. Check with rangers about the suitability of conditions before setting out on any hike or other forest activity. Contact the camp host or check the … Going down was not too steep so it was much easier, took me 2 hours to get back without resting. Or you can break through the ice at the lake to get water too. Big Pine Lake is part of the Otter Tail River Watershed and is connected to Little Pine and Rush Lakes … The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from March until October. Big Pine (formerly, Bigpine) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Inyo County, California, United States. It is strenuous in some parts going up (elevation) but super easy coming back. Starting at the Big Pine Creek Campground, this trail passes … The steep, 4.8-mile hike from road's end takes you up the North Fork of Big Pine Creek, past waterfalls, wildflowers, and an historic stone cabin to First Lake (shown left). North Fork Parking, Palisade Glacier Trail, Lon Chaney's Cabin, Rein Orchids, Fireweed Monkshood, Leopard Lillies, Indian Paintbrush, Groundsel, Big Pine Creek Campground and Glacier Lodge Loop, First Falls and Second Falls Trail to Third Lake, Fifth, Fourth and Black Lakes from Big Pine Campground, Seventh Lake and Sixth Lake via North Fork Big Pine Creek Trail, Bishop Pass Trail to John Muir Trail to Piute Trail, Big Pine Lakes and Palisades Glacier Trail, Mount Sill via Big Pine Creek South Fork Trail. Big Pine Lakes is displayed on the Mount Thompson USGS quad topo map. Big Pine Lakes are seven beautiful glacial reservoirs located near Big Pine, California, high up the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Menu & Reservations Make Reservations . The temperature drops very fast at night so be prepared. When fishing, anglers can expect to catch a variety of fish including Black … Best Camping in Big Pine on Tripadvisor: Find 31 traveler reviews, 33 candid photos, and prices for camping in Big Pine, California, United States. You really need to be prepared for the cold this time of year, but it was surely worth weathering the winds yesterday!! The stone cabin hikers pass along the trail is marked as a Ranger Cabin but was originally owned by actor Lon Chaney, the Man of When researching spots to explore, my friend Chris from Last Adventurer told me about the North Fork of Big Pine and it’s blue glacial lakes (not unlike those in Banff). A shorter option is to hike to the third lake which is about 11 miles round trip. The North Fork Big Pine Creek Trail offers some of the best high alpine scenery in the Sierras. The south lake is called PINE … overall amazing. The views are stunning and marvelous!!!! But the rest of the trail is drop dead gorgeous. hard, but beautiful views. I didn’t carry more than 1L the whole trip as water is plentiful to filter during the hikes. The Big Pine Lakes trailhead is 20 minutes from the small town of Big Pine, California, ~6 hours from the San Francisco Bay Area and ~5 hours from Los Angeles.See the AllTrails map here. A side trail loops to Black Lake, … Use-trails lead to the spot on the north side of the lake. Sadly Chaney died at the age of 47 not long after the cabin was finished. The seven Big Pine Lakes are tucked against the dramatic crest of many of the highest and most rugged peaks in the Sierra Nevada - the Palisades, Temple Crag (shown right), and Thunderbolt Peak. Turn left across the creek at road's end and follow the signs to the campgound - 50 yards. Spent 3 days 2 nights ... camped at Lake 3 both nights. Such an incredible trail!! #5 Best Value of 9 places to stay in Big Pine “ We had a great camping experience at Sage Flat Campground, up in Pine Creek Canyon, Big Pine, California. 38 Reviews. The 1968 state survey found 15,291 lake basins, of which 3,257 were dry. There’s a creek about .70 miles up that you can filter water from. As the peaks of the Palisades pierce the sky with its craggy span of summits you will find it is as picturesque … weather was chilling but doable if you wearing a light ecoball jacket. Big Pine (formerly, Bigpine) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Inyo County, California, United States.Big Pine is located approximately 15 miles (24 km) south-southeast of Bishop, at an elevation … Big Pine Lakes on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada is a little known paradise hiding deep in the wilderness. Big Pine Lakes Trail is a 16.2 mile heavily trafficked loop trail located near Big Pine, California that features a lake and is rated as difficult. The east side of the Sierra Nevada is much steeper than the west, rising 10,000 feet above the open flatlands of Owens Valley over just a … lots of patches of ice along the trail. 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