Completed on 8.20.22 We stayed the night at Cottonwood Lakes trailhead campgrounds which sits at 10034 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!! read more

See all

This is an often overlooked mountain that is overshadowed by its sister, Mount Whitney. However, this 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. read more

See all

Mount Langley has an elevation of 14,042' and is a good training hike for Whitney. One of the trails that leads to the summit follows the Cottonwood Lakes Trail to Cottonwood Lake #4, and then continues on via Old Army Pass up out of the lake basin and to the summit. Alternatively, you can leave the Cottonwood Lakes Trail before reaching the lakes and take the New Army Pass to the summit. There will be a sign on the Cottonwood Lakes Trail pointing to New Army Pass, which is a maintained trail. Old Army Pass, however, is not currently maintained, but it is still in good shape and is frequently used by hikers. I brought my fishing pole and did some trout fishing at the Cottonwood Lakes before heading up Old Army Pass. There was still some snow on the trail (July 4, 2009), so be careful if you don't have an ice axe and crampons. Equipment wasn't necessary to cross some of the sections of snow, and sometimes an alternative route could be taken to go around the snow. This generally involved some class 3 rock climbing. Once you climb out of the lake basin, you'll see a bunch of trails leading to Langley's summit. Any of them will work, but depending on the snow coverage, some will be easier than others. It helps if you are comfortable with cross-country hiking and can use a map and compass or gps. If you take the most direct route, expect to do some class 3 climbing. Alternatively, you can approach the summit from the west, which is less steep, and less dangerous when there is snow. I ended up using an approach from the west, but there was still class 3 rock climbing involve, just not as steep as the direct route. It's a pretty long hike, about 20 miles with over 4000' elevation gain if you take Old Army Pass. If you take New Army Pass, add on a couple miles. I did this the day before hiking Whitney, but in retrospect, I think it's a bit too long for a warm up hike. Stopping at Cottonwood Lakes would have been ideal, but bagging another 14K peak was too irresistable. I started just before 8am and finished just after 9pm. If I cut out the trout fishing and if I didn't have to deal with the snow, I would have finished at an OK time, but 9pm was late. By the time I finished dinner, took a shower at the Whitney Portal Hostel, and drove to the Whitney Portal, it was midnight, way too late. read more

See all

First time doing a 14er/summiting!! However, due to my inexperience in backpacking/summiting, a majority of what I will be saying is supported by my cousin who along with summiting Langley with me has also summited Whitney and Shasta. For reference (or if anyone is curious) I have attached our ascent and descent times along with the other things in between below. (Be advised that as this is a review on Yelp what I will be saying is completely subjective so either bear with my complaints or move on to the next review.) Our main objective for leaving camp to summit when we did was to avoid hiking in the heat (unlike day 1) to get to our campsite (and because of our early journey we were also the first to summit that day!). My cousin said that compared to Whitney and Shasta for a majority of the hike this was a more pleasant hike with great views. And although I can't say much about the other two mountains I do agree that the trees, water, and rocks that we saw do make for many grade A Instagram posts! The reason I give Langley four stars isn't even really to the fault of the mountain but rather the conditions (remember, subjective!). By time we began our descent the heat began to kick in and when we reached those switchbacks which we were so happy to go down on the way to summiting Langley the heat was absolutely devastating as we began our way back up those switchbacks. Our other major complaint really goes to the park and that is the lack of signage. Even with the cairns that eventually came into view because we did a majority of the summit in the dark (with flashlights) we accidentally went of track (we took New Army Pass) or somehow ended up on another trail a couple of times. An example of this was when during our descent another hiker told us we didn't have to scramble through the mass of boulders but rather we would have had an easier time following the New Army Pass all the way up. But, the lack of signage really killed us the most on the way back to the car in the parking lot. It may also have been due to our lack of food and nonstop trekking but those last four hours felt longer than the time it our president to admit there were not in fact "very fine people on both sides." At least with some signage we would have been reassured that we were making even a bit of progress to get back to the car. After hour two we legitimately began hallucinating that almost every boulder, tree, log that we saw in the distant was a car only to be met with crushing devastation each time. By the time we got back to the car it felt like the beginning of that episode of Rick and Morty (do note that I am presuming that if you're reading a Yelp review for a mountain then you probably also watch Rick and Morty) "Rest and Ricklaxation" where Rick and Morty hyperbolically hardcore have a breakdown in Rick's Cruiser, at that point we weren't sure if we felt more accomplished by summiting or making it back to the car. It's not that there are no signs at the park just so very few that if those weren't there it wouldn't really matter all that much either. The hike and scenery were still great and although I will not be doing it again anytime in the near future I would definitely recommend it to those prepared. Start to campsite: Aug 4 - 12:30 Arrived at camp (around High Lake): 17:30 Sleep: 20:10 Wake up 23:00 Take photos 23:10 Start night hike to summit: Aug 5 - 00:45 Summit!! - 8:00 Begin descent - 8:45 Return to campsite - 12:12 Pack up then depart for parking lot - 12:50 FINALLY RETURN TO CAR - 16:47 read more

Where do you go after hiking Mt Whitney? To the next 14K footer, Mt Langley! So I did, and Oh... I like Mt Langley! It's a GREAT hike. Don't get me wrong, climbing that through that last mile of SCREE to the 14,042 foot summit was challenging and making this my second 14K mountain. I did this as a day hike, so no permit was needed. I started at the Horseshoe Meadow / Cottonwood Lake trailhead at 10,070 feet. I took the Old Army Pass up to the summit and went back down on the New Army Pass for a 23 mile round trip with an elevation gain of 4,372 feet. Taking the New Army Pass adds 400' of gain more than taking the Old Army Pass up and down. I heard some bad words about the Old Army Pass, that it is not maintained and has large boulders in the way. I feel Old Army Pass gets a bad rap! I found that the first 6.2 miles to Lake #5 was an easy trail to hike and follow, even in the dark before sunrise. There are sufficient amount of signs to keep you on the main trail that only gains 1,140 feet to Lake #5. After reaching the Lake #5 sign, you will pass in-between Lakes #4 & 5 and start the harder part of the hike up the rocky switchbacks of the Old Army Pass to the 12,024' ridge. There you will see a 'Entering Sequoia National Park' sign. Immediately after the sign, head North to the right towards the higher mountain. The trail is still easy to follow for another mile and a half where you start seeing 6 foot cairns to follow up the SCREE to the summit. There is only one very short section you have to scramble up and over some boulders. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/mount-langley-lone-pine?select=y_zkFdH3awf8ua8L9L3xog&utm_campaign=www_photo_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct) On the way down from the summit as I reached the 'Entering Sequoia' sign, I headed to the right to take the New Army Pass down. In just 0.3 mile from that sign is an easy to miss hairpin turn to the left. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/mount-langley-lone-pine?select=POeV04ModxbWUinUQGVSTA&utm_campaign=www_photo_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct) This will take you UP over the 400' hill to the ridge and down the rocky switchbacks towards High & Long Lakes. I thought this section was beautiful. Long Lake was my favorite. This New Army Pass trail will take you back to the very first 'New Army Pass / Cottonwood Lakes' sign you saw on the way up, 3.5 miles from the trailhead... what seemed like such a long time ago! http://www.summitpost.org/army-pass-normal-route/156296 This has a couple of good pictures showing the route up to the summit from the Cottonwood Lake basin. My landmarks: * Cottonwood Lakes Trailhead - 10,070' (3,972' Gain - 23 Miles) (add another 400' gain if you return New Army Pass) * 1.4 miles - Cross log on the right over creek. * 2.8 - Golden Trout Camp to the right. GO STRAIGHT * 3.0 - 'John Muir Wilderness' sign * 3.5 - 'New Army Pass Trail' junction sign (10,437') Go STRAIGHT towards Cottonwood Lakes & Old Army Pass. (Lt / West - goes to New Army Pass Trail) * 4.5 - Muir Lake junction to the right, Go LEFT (11,000') * 4.8 - 'Trail' sign. Go STRAIGHT (left goes to New Army Pass Trail) * 5.7 - Lake #3 to the left. (11,082') The lake is at the foot of the mountain. Trail goes around to the right & up the rocky switchbacks. * 6.0 - At the 'Y', go to the Left towards Lake #4 * 6.2 - 'Lake #5' sign. Go between Lakes #4 & 5 (11,210') Trail starts up the rocky SBs towards the top ridge. This is the Old Army Pass Trail. * 7.4 - 'Entering Sequoia National Park' sign at the top of the ridge. (12,024') Immediately after this sign, GO RIGHT (N). If you go straight, this will take you to the New Army Pass Trail. * 9.0 - 'Cairns' sign (12,633') Follow 6 foot Cairns. * 10.5 - Summit (14,042') * 13.5 - Back at the 'Entering Sequoia National Park' sign. To return the same way, Old Army Pass, go left. Or: I went to the Right, to go down the scenic New Army Pass. * This adds 2.0 miles & 400' of elev gain. * 13.8 - GO LEFT (SE) at the faint hairpin junction at a small cairn that takes you up the 400' hill to the top ridge. If you go straight, you would head down to the lower valley. * 14.5 - 'New Army Pass. Sequoia/Kings Canyon' sign at the top of the ridge. Head towards the large cairn & head down the rocky switchbacks to the left towards the High & Long Lakes. * 17.9 - 'Horseshoe Meadow, New Army Pass' sign. * 18.1 - 'South Fork Lakes' sign junction. GO LEFT * 19.3 - Back at the lower 'New Army Pass / Cottonwood Lake' sign. * 22.8 - read more

See all

Been up here a few times now and really like this place. Way less crowded than Whitney and easier to get a permit. Dont try to do it in a day - it takes the enjoyment out of it when you have to hustle up above 14,000 feet. Take your time, go with New Army Pass (way better chance of it being clear of snow and maintained a bit better so you dont have to turn around after those miserable switchbacks), and enjoy this one. Also, make sure you prepare for all weather. It can be windy, cold, and lightning comes so fast. Prepare the right way with a good water filter and layered clothing and you will enjoy this one. read more

Sitting hidden in the Eastern Sierras Mt. Langley is Mt. Whitney's kid sister that gets ignored in the shadow of the much cooler kid on the block. At 14,026 it comes in just under 500 feet shorter than Mt. Whitney. We opted to hike Langley when we weren't able to get permits for the more popular Whitney. Langley is touted as one of the easiest of the 14-teeners to hike, but in my opinion she was a little bit of a b*@$% to climb. Here's the scoop. You do need permits for this hike, but there is no lottery system like there is for Whitney. Once you get to Lone Pine, you pick up your permits at the Eastern Sierra Interagency Visitor Center. Here you can also rent bear canisters and buy some post cards. Once we got our permits we headed up to Horseshoe Meadows camp grounds, no reservations required. We camped there over night. The camp site has full amenities: bear lockers, water, bathrooms, and you can build a fire at the site - there are pits for that. We camped there overnight and headed out at 8:30 am the next morning up to Cottonwood Lakes. This took us about 4 hours to do with our packs. We set up camp near Lake #4, ate a quick lunch, and hit the road again at 1:30pm up to Langley. Apparently, it's about 3 miles from Lake 5 to Langley, but you gain over 2,000 feet within those 3 miles. It took us about 6 hours to summit and come back to camp. You'll start with some tough switch backs up the valley floor. Once you get to the top of that, you'll feel like you're in Mars. The terrain is pretty gravely, which makes the hiking up part difficult. Hikers will tell you to follow the cairns as there is no well marked trail up the mountain's summit. We went up Old Army Pass and we came upon a fork in the road when we hit the foot of the summit, the one going left avoids the level 3 rock scrambling and the one going right takes you on a more direct route up the summit, but you'll have to do some bouldering. Once up top you'll see a couple of bigger cairns, the summit is past the absolute last one visible. You'll get amazing views of the Sierra's and Whitney. Bring a windbreaker, it's chilly up there. Details: Elevation Gain: ~4,000 feet Miles: ~22 Route: From Horseshoe meadows we headed up the Cottonwood Lakes trail to Old Army Pass Pack: I carried about a 21 lbs. pack Water: You can load up on some fresh water on your way up - bring a filter. This was probably one of the most scenic hikes I've ever done. In my opinion, this hike was definitely not easy. The fact that there is no well marked trail up the summit gives you a false sense of where the summit is ... which mentally ... doesn't really help when you've been hiking for 8 hours. Enjoy! read more

I can rate hikes? Well I have to go with 5 stars. Here's my justification: Cons: terrible service, extremely limited menu, no parking Pros: great views, ample seating, dedicated clientele I did this as a 2-night trip, but it could be easily done as an overnight, or not so easily as a day hike. I highly recommend taking Old Army pass at the far end of Cottonwood Lake 6 - the pass is easily navigable and you shave maybe .5 miles and 500ft elevation gain off New Army pass. read more

mount Langley. chris Langley lives in Lone Pine, next to mount Langley. but mount whitney is the tallest. Burt and Donna read more