Easily one of the best hikes in the area, and a couple different ways to do it. My favorite starts at the trailhead at the Gold Lake Lodge turnoff from Gold Lake Highway. Find the trail that heads toward Round Lake Mine(a solid inclined hike up about 500 feet, if my math is right). At the top, you’ll find the abandoned mine, a bunch of scrap metal, and a beautiful, unmatched view over Round Lake. From there, take the trail to the right downhill to Round Lake itself(as opposed to the trail to the left, which continues on up to the Pacific Crest Trail). Facing Round Lake, hang a right and follow the lake counter-clockwise until Silver Lake. At Silver Lake, there are a ton of great swimming holes. From Silver Lake, head towards the Bear Lakes(cub, little bear, and big bear), and you’ll catch an amazing view of Long Lake along the way. Wrap around Big Bear and head back uphill toward your original starting point. Favorite lake? Big Bear, no question. Once you’ve done this trail a couple of times, the insider tip is to make your way around the *inside* of Big Bear instead of following the normal trail around the outside. Tons of little coves to swim in and rocks to dive off of. Look for the highest point on the rocks surrounding the lake — there’s a single tree perched right on top — that’s what you want to aim for. This is a 4.5 mile loop by my calculation(Joel E.‘s review describes a 2.5 mile loop… not sure why we have different numbers). This is a perfect«full day» hike — not really a full day, but you can easily use up a full day if you stop and swim a lot.
Joel E.
Place rating: 5 San Francisco, CA
This is one of my favorite hikes near Graeagle, CA in the Lakes Basin Area. The hike is a 2 ½ mile loop that includes very beautiful scenic views of 4 alpine lakes — Big Bear Lake, Little Bear Lake, Cub Lake, and Long Lake. Elevation: ~6,700 ft. Difficulty: Moderate Hiking Season: May through October Gold Lake Highway intersects with Highway 89 approximately 48 miles North of Truckee(1 ½ miles South of Graeagle). Drive 6.6 miles down the Gold Lake Highway to the Lakes Basin Campground. Take this narrow road .9 miles to the trailhead parking lot.(Note: keep going past the sign to the Elwell Lodge and also past the entry to the Lakes Basin Campground).
