Walker Lake Trail

 

After a day of needed rest for our legs, we decided to take a short hike to Walker Lake, just off the north June Lake Loop.

We only hiked a total of 2.2 miles, but it was quite a workout. For a change of pace, this trail drops 500 feet in under a mile to the lake, with a fork through Bloody Canyon to Mono Pass (another 4 miles and 2,000 feet of climbing), if you’re feeling ambitious. We were not.

We began to see the lake after just a few steps down. The problem was we had to watch our feet constantly since the trail was so steep and rocky.

We made it to the shore, with a few people behind us carrying fishing gear. You really have to want to fish to lug all that stuff down a treacherous trail.

There are huge cedar trees all along the trail, both dead and alive, which gave the forest such a pleasant smell.

Stands of aspen surround the shore, where the trail was overgrown and became hard to follow. We did see a deer along here.

There are a few cabins at one end of the lake, with their own private access road. What a peaceful place for a vacation home.

This is the view they have of Bloody Canyon.

It turned out the hike back up was not quite as difficult as we thought it would be. Maybe we’re finally adjusting to the altitude, although the elevation on this trail was “only” 8,000 feet.

This short but challenging hike to another pristine Sierra Nevada lake would be a nice one to do next month when the aspen leaves are changing color.