Lone Pine Lake is as far as you can hike via the Mt Whitney trail WITHOUT a permit…read more The hike is short. 5 miles roundtrip. Out and back. There isn't to much of an elevation gain. You cross across some rivers by stepping on big logs. And, there are nice views of waterfalls along the way, as well as the lake itself. It is a very fun and easy hike.

I think people are so consumed with summiting Mt. Whitney that they forget there's a beautiful lake…read morejust a short distance from the main trail. It's only 2.5 miles from the trailhead, but because of the high altitude it took us longer than we expected. The lake is at 10, 050 ft. and it is absolutely gorgeous! It was also very tranquil and had we not been pressed for time, we would've liked to sit on one of the tree trunks to just relax and enjoy the scenery more. The lake is also the only place you can hike to without a permit. Don't be stupid and think you can go beyond the lake without a permit! If you get caught by the wilderness police, i.e. Park Ranger, you'll be fined $5000 and a 6 month imprisonment!!

Totally worth the drive up to visit and hang out in the day use area. A hidden gorgeous area w…read moreviews that are breathtaking. Small general store. We didn't camp just a day visit.

Peaceful trailhead. Lush nature all around. Plenty of parking. Need a Whitney permit. The Whitney…read morePortal Store there serves food. Though the store closes 8pm, that restaurant closes a lil sooner. We arrived around 7:45pm and were famished yet too late. I like that there are free WAG bags for grabs at the wooden structure. My car was safely parked there over the weekend.

Great scenery. It gets Cold and Windy in Winter time. I've…read moreheard it's the same in summer time, too. Definitely recommend.

The Alabama Hills area serves as a steady transition from Lone Pine civilization to Whitney…read morewilderness. + Quiet, peaceful scenic area. Pleasant nature ambience. - Minimal shade, water, and restrooms. Dry climate. - Barely anyone around to ask for help or directions. . Tip: I recommend stopping by Nightmare Rock and Mobius Loop trail to see the photogenic Mobius Arch circumscribing Mt Whitney next time you're cruising through Alabama Hills. . Fun fact: many old western movies were filmed among these hills, including Django Unchained.

Marvelous experience! Truly deserving of its title Tallest Peak in the Contiguous US. We went the…read morelonger 45-mi route from Cottonwood Pass, which took us 3 days 2 nights. Camped 1st night in the forest by a creek, 2nd night by Guitar Lake. Lots of privacy throughout this ordeal. Each day we passed about 10 ppl each. Heard cows mooing. Saw pikas, marmots, chipmunks, and fighter jets. Mesmerizing night sky completely blanketed with stars. Tough altitude experience. Lightheadedness and windedness from AMS will kick your butt. Better train beforehand by hiking shorter mountains such as San Gorgonio (11.5k', tallest peak in SoCal). Many people camp at least one night somewhere along the trail to help acclimate/acclimatize to the lower air density overnight. Turns out the hut at the summit (14.5k') will protect you from lightning. You will definitely need a water filter. Don't wanna lug 5 L of water for 20+ miles. Refill your bottles at creeks and lakes.

We were very lucky to snag a couple of last minute permits. Drove 4 hours and started hiking at 1…read moream. Summit the mountain around 8 am and enjoyed our time at the top. The views are amazing and the 99 switchbacks seem like eternity. We got back to the parking lot at 6pm and drove home. Weather was great at about 40 degrees. An unforgettable adventure. Please come and create your own.

Not going to lie, this hike unexpectedly really beat me up. I intended to do the entire loop but…read morewas just so exhausted/overwhelmed when I woke up that I ended up turning back, although I took a different way back. I only made it to Lake 3 but to be fair, it started heavily pouring with intermittent thunder and lightning. The elevation gain destroyed me with my 20+ pound backpack, but I eventually made it to Lake 3 where I joined 2 other girls who basically adopted my clueless self. It is beautiful but perhaps would have been better without the cloudy skies. Overall, I would do this trip again but with more training!!

The Cottonwood Lakes are a series of 5 lakes in the high Eastern Sierra Nevada at about 11,000'…read moreelevation where you can catch California golden trout. This is a great place to camp out if you are looking for a place to acclimate before doing a high altitude hike such as Whitney. For convenience, you can just camp out at the trailhead which is at 10,000'. It takes about an hour to get from the Cottonwood Lakes Trailhead to the Whitney Portal. I arrived here on July 3rd in the afternoon and spent one night and the following day fishing and hiking the area as a warmup to Whitney, which I was hiking on July 5th. Ultimately, I did not have any altitude sickness issues beyond a very mild headache which I could treat with ibuprofen. From the Cottonwood Lakes Trailhead, the Cottonwood Lakes are about 5.5 miles away, so 11 miles roundtrip. Cottonwood Lake #3 is the largest of the five, and I ended up catching all my trout here. However, I didn't spend much time, if any, at the other lakes due to time constraints. I caught 4 trout in about an hour and a half. It's a very beautiful area, with large open meadows and lots of wildlife. I saw a deer and a pair of coyote while hiking to the lakes. There are also hordes of mosquitos so be sure to bring powerful mosquito repellant. Cottonwood Lakes can also be the midpoint in a hike to Mt. Langley, but that's another review.

A fun trail to walk with kids. There's plenty of free parking in the lot. The route to the hike is…read morereally just a dirt road. The trail is about a mile to and back. There are 2-3 porta potties available at the parking lot. There is very little to no shade. It's literally the desert and rocks. I do not recommend this hike during the summer. It's definitely too hot. Remember to bring a hat, sunscreen, and water!

+ Short, beginner-friendly hike. About 1.25 mile, 30 minutes…read more + Fantastic photo ops with vantages of arches circumscribing Mt Whitney. + Free access and parking. . One or two porta-potties. . Moderately crowded. . Minimal shade. - No water.

This peak is just outside the town of Lone Pine…read more It's just shy of 13,000 ft but it's often mistaken for the tallest mountain in the lower 48: Mt Whitney, which lies behind and to the viewer's right of it. If you use an Apple computer, you've probably seen this mountain before. It's the default wallpaper for macOS Sierra. It's also a pretty fun mountain to climb. It's got numerous long 5th class (rock climbing) routes. And it's also got a handful of "walk-up" (hiking) routes (the most popular of which is by the Lake Meysan Trail). I've been up the Lake Meysan route in a day (about 8 hrs RT) and up the North Ridge (about 19 hrs RT) both were incredible days in the hills. The summit area is flat and MASSIVE. It would be easy to camp up here if one were properly prepared. The hiking route is a great option if you can't get a permit for Whitney, permits are much easier for Lone Pine!

Completed on 8.20.22 We stayed the night at Cottonwood Lakes trailhead campgrounds which sits at…read more10034 elevation, to acclimate ourselves to the altitude. Damn! This trail is GORGEOUS and offers amazing views of lakes, medows, and of course Mount Langley! Started at 5am and was back at the trail head by 6pm, spent 45 mins at the summit and 30 mins swimming at CW lake #4. Yes, it's a long, strenuous hike. 22 miles out and back, with an elevation gain of 4000ft+...If the altitude doesn't get you exhausted, the ascent will. I started to feel symptoms of AMS around 9000ft and then again at 13000ft, take your time, hydrate, and eat. Took the new army pass up, pretty and well maintained trail, as you pass "High Lake" you'll see what's to come... New army pass is almost vertical climb up to a flase summit. You have about another 1500ft of climbing to do, to reach the summit. Desecended down the "Army Pass", this trail is a bit sketchy and nerve-wracking, if you're afraid of heights. It's totally manageable and doable, just try to focus on the trail... I carried 5l of water and lots of healthy and not so healthy snacks. Also GU gels and Tylenol will help you on this hike. There's plenty of water source in the area, so you don't necessarily have to hike with a full pack, just bring water filtering system...you'll be alright. Weather was perfect for this hike...bugs were present, but wasn't too bad. I would definitely hike this trail again! Good luck, do research, and believe what you read. It's really important to listen to your body! Happy Trails!!

This is an often overlooked mountain that is overshadowed by its sister, Mount Whitney. However,…read morethis 14er is nothing to sneeze at. The beauty of this hike is that it is good training for Whitney and it does not require a permit for day hiking, which is what we did. Depending on the trail that you choose, the total mileage can range from 20-24 miles. New Army Pass is better maintained but will add 2 miles each way. We chose to go up New Army and down Old Army for 22 miles. The first 6-7 miles are pretty easy overall, with about 1,000 feet elevation gain. However, keep in mind that the trail starts at 10,000 feet, so acclimation is always recommended. Once you start the switchbacks on New Army Pass, the ascent becomes more difficult. I personally feel that the views on this hike are more picturesque than most along the Whitney trail. What makes this hike really difficult is the last 1-1.5 miles, in which you will gain just short of 2,000 feet elevation. The climb is very steep in loose sand/scree combined with boulder climbing. It reminded me a lot of Iron Mountain in SoCal but with boulders. Follow the rock cairns closely to lead you to the summit of 14,042 feet.

We hiked the Alabama Hills but didn't bring mountain bikes so we were looking for somewhere to bike…read morewith our folding street bikes. An evening ride was beautiful with the eastern hills lit by golden light reflected on the calm lake. Be sure to use mosquito repellent or cover yourself cause they are swarming in mid-October. Staying overnight costs $8 but day use is free.

For Father's Day, my brother-in-law and his husband reserved 3 spots for us and his husband's…read morecousin. My kids and I love tent camping and dry camping, but my wife is an RV girl (class A if you must know). This was her first tent experience so we wanted to make it memorable. Funny how things work out: careful what you wish for... I'll get to that later... The site we got was amazing. Level, flat with direct access to the lake. We had a tree next to us and a hose bib. Across the way was a fish cleaning sink that we used to wash dishes. The fire pit had a swing away grill which was nice. There were Porta-potties close by, but we brought our own portable toilet and privacy pop up shelter. The view was amazing. The sun set over the lake, and the mountains (the Eastern edge of the Sierra Nevadas) basked in hues of purple, deep red and blue. We called it the Disney mountains because it looked so amazing it must be fake. The night sky was simply awesome. My 8 year-old, who loves astronomy and science, couldn't stop looking up. Shame on me for not bringing our telescope or remembering I had binoculars in the truck. If you wanted to be amazed by the beauty of a star filled sky, just look up. The days brought high temps in the low to mid 90's, so we brought a portable generator and AC, I know, but it was my wife's first tent camping trip and we didn't want to make it her last. Early evening brought some gusts and our first night was windy. The tent held up well, but my wife and kids were cold. We didn't bring sleeping bags, only blankets, and had a large 4 room, 12 man tent, so staying warm was an issue. Luckily, I brought our Mr. Heater Buddy propane heater, so we stayed warm until the propane ran out. We explored the next day looking for a propane fill up station in nearby Lone Pine. The quaint town reminded my boys of Radiator Springs from Disney's "Cars." As is typical for small towns that rely on tourism, the propane was majorly expensive, but we had no choice. The town, though, was nice to explore. Early morning hours brought an almost glassy lake with no waves. Wait until late morning and you got the wake waves from the motor boats, wake boarders and jet skis. Wait until the late afternoon and you got wind and waves. We used a blow up canoe and oars, so the afternoon wind and waves were impossible for us to get through. The winds on our last night really picked up in the afternoon. A 60 mph gust or stronger blew through our site and ripped apart our tent, destroyed our Coleman canopy and blew our raft, life jackets, oars and other supplies at least 30 yards away. With our tent destroyed, we had to pack up everything in the wind. We threw away both our canopy and our tent. I'm spite of our surprise excitement of the wind gust and destroyed camp gear, it was an experience we'd never forget. A memorable one, for sure, that ended up landing me with a new tent for my birthday and shade canopy, something that I wished for for a long time. Careful what you wish for, eh?

If you do one thing in Sequoia & Kings Canyon make it a tour with Krista at Sequoia Guides!…read more We experienced a snow shoeing tour and had a party of 5 ranging in age from 9 to 53. Krista was fantastic at making us feel confident in our abilities. She showed interest in each of us and answered every question we had. This was my 3rd time visiting Sequoia & Kings Canyon and I learned things I never knew! She is exceptionally knowledgeable about Sequoia & Kings Canyon. This was the highlight of our trip! We will be back for a spring/summer tour before too long!

I was born in ND and lived near Redding, CA for 30 years. Now I live in Springville, CA and it's a…read moreshort 45 minute drive to the sequoia's. Beautiful drive...wonderful scenic area and my family will visit again and again!!