Adventure on Little Lakes Valley Trail
After spending the winter months in the desert, we were so excited to head north to the Eastern Sierras for a change in scenery! We quickly realized that there was no hurry, the amount of snowfall this year was record breaking and in June, it was still snowing. So far, even though it was June already, our adventures had been limited to low elevation adventures. But we found some truly great places to boondock and explore while still having the Sierra Nevadas nearby as a gorgeous backdrop.
Trona Pinnacles | Fossil Falls | Volcanic Tablelands | The Buttermilks
But by now we were itching to get into the mountains, to see the beautiful high elevation scenery that has been tantalizingly close but not close enough. After a few hiking attempts, we finally had success with hiking Little Lakes Valley Trail! (Although it didn’t come easily!)
Little Lakes Valley Trail is apparently a well known, highly traveled day hike in the Sierras. It was our first time hiking the Little Lakes Valley Trail and we found the secret to avoiding the crowds without even knowing there were usually crowds to avoid! We literally saw one other person on this trail during our hike. Our hike came with a few extra obstacles but we were thrilled to be among the massive granite peaks and high elevation lakes!
Quick Trail Info:
Distance: There are numerous lakes on this trail, hence the name, as well as access to other trails. Here are the mileages to some of the main lakes you’ll encounter on Little Lakes Valley Trail from the Mosquito Flats parking area:
- Gem Lake: 3.5 miles one way
- Chickenfoot Lake: 3.0 miles one way
- Long Lake: 2.0 miles one way
Difficulty: Easy (though more challenging with snow cover)
Elevation Gains: About 640 feet from Mosquito Flats parking area to Gem Lake.
Directions: From Bishop, follow the 395 north to Tom’s Place. Turn left onto Rock Creek Road and follow it for 10.5 miles where it will end at a paved parking area.
Permits: None required for Day Use though there is a permit required for Overnight Use.
Trailhead Facilities: Vault toilets
Read on to see how our experience on Little Lakes Valley Trail was a bit different – from road closures to literally crawling on the trail as we enjoyed both sunshine and feet of snow!
Our Experience Hiking Little Lakes Valley Trail
The drive up Rock Creek Road to get to Little Lakes Valley Trailhead is gorgeous! From Tom’s Place it’s about 10 miles of mountain scenery and elevation gain. The trailhead for Little Lakes Valley Trail is at the Mosquito Flats parking area where the road ends. But for us, the road to Mosquito Flats was closed! So we had to park in the parking area for Hilton Lakes Trailhead which is about 1.4 miles short of reaching Little Valley Lakes Trailhead. But we were determined to get into the mountains and do some hiking!
From the Hilton Lakes Trailhead parking area, we had a beautiful viewpoint of Rock Creek Lake down below. As you can see, the snow wasn’t too bad here but we knew we were in for it when the road to Mosquito Flats was still closed.
And so we set off and hiked 1.4 miles just to reach the Little Lakes Valley Trail. This was no easy feat! And much more slow going than our usual pace as each step was an unsure one. The depth of snow and how firm or slippery it was varied a lot!
We finally made it to the Mosquito Flats parking area and noticed the picnic table… buried!
After a mile and a half of hiking we finally made it to the actual trail!
The snow was a little spotty as we officially started Little Lakes Valley Trail and even some dry patches as we crossed into the John Muir Wilderness. After that though, the entire trail was snow. Luckily there were some other brave footsteps to follow.
Every now and then as we took a step our foot would sink deep into the snow. Other steps would just be super slippery – probably looked like we were doing some sort of jig. But a happy dance wouldn’t be uncalled for among such stunning scenery!
Little Lakes Valley Trail has some water crossings (we think – at least our version of the trail did ) and for one of those in particular we could see the water rushing under the thick layer of snow. We weren’t able to rock hop like we normally would but instead we had to trust the snow that crossed the water. But we didn’t fully trust it so we went down on all fours to distribute our weight more evenly and crawled the snow bridge over the water crossing!
As we came to the each of the lakes along Little Lakes Valley Trail there was a layer of ice over the majority of them but they were not completely frozen over. The lakes were absolutely beautiful, complemented by the towering granite mountains making up the breathtaking valley.
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We were glad to have footsteps to follow as we moved from lake to lake! Sometimes though we thought it better to take the high route and make our own path. We didn’t want to get too close to the lakes – being unsure of where the actual shorelines were!
I believe that we made it to Long Lake before stopping for lunch – peanut butter and jelly with a side of priceless scenery! We took time to appreciate the beauty that surrounded us as well as the euphoria that we get from being in the mountains.
Although there is definitely more to see further on Little Lakes Valley Trail we knew we had a slow going snowy hike back (not to mention the additional 1.4 miles on the closed road) so this is where we turned around.
On our way back we spotted our first human! On skis. With his adorable dog who liked playing catch with snowballs. All the snow on the (often busy) Little Valley Lakes Trail made it so we were able to enjoy peace and solitude with our gorgeous scenery! And the obstacles made this easy (but stunning) hike into more of an adventurous journey into the mountains.
All in all, we were so glad that we managed to get as far into the mountains as we did. The hike was not only peaceful and beautiful, but fun and adventurous. And if we’re going to be somewhere with that much snow we prefer it to be that breathtaking and sunny 😉 Can’t wait for our next opportunity to get in the Sierras and what adventure awaits!
Thanks for Your Support!
Thanks so much for reading about our snowy adventure on Little Lakes Valley Trail! For some more adventurous articles check out the articles below:
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