Hiking the Big Pine Lakes
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| This is the beautiful trail you follow on the North Fork of the Big Pine Lakes |
Hiking the Big Pine Lakes and the Temple Crag
About the Hike
The hike to the Big Pine Lakes starts along the North Fork of the Big Pine Creek Trailhead. The first lake is a little under 6 miles (9.6 km) one way and the second lake in the Big Pine Lake chain, where you get great views of the Temple Crag, is about another half mile up the trail. From there you can hike to all of the seven lakes in the chain or even to Black Lake. Finally, there’s a glacier nearby and good climbing for those climbers out there. Here's a link to the GPX file of the hike...
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| This is the first Lake |
Know Before You Go
I read quite a few blogs before making this hike and none of them really talked about how to get a permit for Inyo National Forest. I think part of that is because regulations change all the time on how permits are given out, but I think it is pretty safe to assume the system they have in place now works well and will continue that way. If you hike the lakes outside of the high season from before Early May to after September 1, you don’t need a permit to camp and hike the trail. If you plan on just hiking the Big Pine Lakes and not camping you don’t need a permit either. But if you plan to camp at the Big Pine Lakes during the high season, you will need a permit to camp, and they limit the amount of people to 32 people camping per day in the entire lake chain. The permit system was one of the things that no other blogger mentioned, so I’ll give you the low down here.
The rangers start handing out permits at 11am on the day before your hike is to begin. So in other words, if you want to camp Saturday night, you need to show up at one of two ranger stations. One is the White Mountain Ranger Station in Bishop, and the other is... The stations open prior to then as well, so you can show up and sign up on a roster sheet for when the permits open. The rangers then call off names and work their way down the roster and put you in for a permit in the system. The tricky thing is you are not just competing with people at the ranger station you’re at, but also with those at the other ranger station. We got lucky and arrive just before 11am and put our names down there were a few people ahead of us, but only a couple were wanting to go on this hike. When we were called up at about 1110 we got two of the last four spots.
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| See the Rattlesnake under the big rock? |
Staying Safe
The Inyo National Forest and the Eastern Sierras are in what is definitely prime bear country. California is home to both the black and brown bear, and the lake chain for the Big Pine Lakes is definitely bear habitat. That being said, the trail is heavily traveled up to the first two lakes, and I doubt bears frequent that area. The further up you go, however, the less traveled the area becomes, and the more likely bears become. Bear boxes and cans are recommended for use in the area, but you can also rope your food as well. The Inyo National Forest recommended a dual system of equal weighted bags for roping (Something that I have never seen before, and I’m from Montana). But if rangers recommend it, they’re probably not wrong. That being said, setting up a tied rope should be sufficient, and I honestly think if you’re camping in the high season around the first two lakes, the bear protection is more for keeping rodents away from chewing holes in your tent.
All that being said, on the big sunny portion, we did run across a big rattlesnake just as it crossed the trail. It's the first time I've been rattled at in California, and we had a little dog with us that would've certainly attacked it and been bit. Fortunately a group just ahead of us saw it first and warned us so we were able to pick up the dog and make sure nothing happened, but it is something to be aware of, especially if you are doing this hike with a four legged.
All that being said, on the big sunny portion, we did run across a big rattlesnake just as it crossed the trail. It's the first time I've been rattled at in California, and we had a little dog with us that would've certainly attacked it and been bit. Fortunately a group just ahead of us saw it first and warned us so we were able to pick up the dog and make sure nothing happened, but it is something to be aware of, especially if you are doing this hike with a four legged.
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| I tend to overpack, I know |
Packing List
I made a pretty comprehensive packing list for summer and winter that you can find here. Remember that even in the summer, during a heavy snow year, it’s likely that you may have to hike through snow at the upper lakes so things like ice axes and crampons are recommended.
The Hike
The start of the hike can be a little frustrating if you’re planning on camping for the night. The parking for those camping is about a half mile from the trailehead down the road. So I would suggest dropping your bag at the trailhed and walking or hitching a ride back the last portion to the trailhead. (I honestly wouldn’t think I would need to say this, but I was the only one I saw doing this).
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| This is the North Fork of the Stream that you follow to the lakes |
The trailhead parallels the Big Pine Creek with a big, wide, and well kept trail to begin the day. After about a 1/4 of a mile, the trail starts to go uphill and you cross a large rushing waterfall before hitting a large area of switchbacks that parallel the now gushing river. After that you go through a small section of flat through the trees and come out on a 4 wheeler path, turn right, and start what is probably the worst part of the hike. This area is a sandy trail, and is open in the sun. It slopes uphill and away from the cool river to the first mountain switchbacks. This set of switchbacks is almost entirely in the sun, so be prepared with a brim hat. This area of switchbcks is also where we were rattled at by a rather large rattle snake, so be careful if hiking here during the hot summer months.
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| This is the hot arid section |
Once you reach the top of the switchbacks, the trails straightens out and parallels the creek again, and for the last half of the journey you are walking through a pretty gradual uphill slope in and out of the sun and paralleling and crossing the Big Pine Creek over and over again.
Eventually about 6 miles in you reach the first of the lakes and a little before that, a turnoff for Black Lake. The rest is pretty simple. Follow the trail up and around and down to the many lakes in the area.
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| Lots of good places to camp around the edge of the lake |
Where to Camp
You can camp just about anywhere once you get far enough up the trail, but the best place, in my opinion is around the lakes. The most sought after lake is the second lake, where you get a great view of the Temple Crag, but it’s also very windy on the rocks overlooking the lake. On top of that, it’s a very crowded spot in the high season, and you’ll likely not only not get a good spot later in the day, but regardless, you’re going to be sharing your quiet wilderness time with those around you. That can of course be a good thing, if you’re into that kind of thing, but if not, beware. Additionally, the higher up you go, the more secluded and probably better experience you are going to have. Especially during the high season. You’re also a lot more likely to see wildlife.
Remember that camping on brush, including grass is prohibited, and that you will need to find a nice sandy or rocky spot for your tent or sleeping bag.
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| Out Fishing |
Fishing the Lakes
Fishing the lakes can be a lot of fun. From my experience, it looked like they had stocked the lake with some trout, or they had just hatched. That being said, I think fishing it later in the high season is better as it gives fish some time to grow, especially after a heavy snow year like we have been having recently.