Lots of Lakes in the High Sierra - El Dorado BDT

[OTG_1]

Last month I had planned to spend 5 or so days exploring the Mendocino National Forest. Unfortunately, the Park Fire ignited near Lassen National Forest was growing at a rate of 100k acres per day during a Red Flag event. Learning from year's past, I looked at the wind patterns, and decided my best bet for a smoke free adventure would be to divert south, and eventually I settled upon the central Sierra. My plan was to spend time poking around the various lakes along the El Dorado Backcountry Discovery Trail. I'd explored the vast majority of the El Dorado BDT back 2021 with my Lexus Land Cruiser (LX570), but this time around, I wanted to explore off the the main route near Blue Lakes/Hope Valley, where there are a number of smaller mountain lakes-- and some astounding views of the High Sierra.

This trip was a bit of a last minute idea, or at least hammering down the specific dates turned out to be a last minute endeavor. I'd contacted a couple of buddies, but one ended up with food poisning, while the other planned to meet me on day 2 of my explorations, being this was going to be 3-4 days out on the trail. I made the ascent up highway 50 from the Sacramento Valley flatlands to South Lake Tahoe, where I'd jump on the 89 towards the Hope Valley Area. First up would be exploring the Burnside Lake, Pickett Peak, and Hawkins Peak area. I did the loop around Pickett Peak, which wasn't anything special, and definitely tight in a few spots. The only real technical section is the last bit out that takes you closer to Hawkins Peak. The terrain becomes loose and steep, and with few tight sections weaving between the trees (at least in a full size truck with a camper!). I nearly got myself in another pickle trying to squeeze Big Blue under a recently downed branch. The first track bar made it under no problem, but no so with the rear track bar! Sheesh-- here we go again! After about 30 minutes of delay, I managed to figure a way to cut the giant downed branch without the larger branch falling onto my camper. From there, with a few minutes I was down at Burnside lake, and pleasantly surprised there were still a few campsites left. But I'd been told by a friend there was a nice sit atop Hawkins Peak if I followed one of the spur roads to the end.

After a brief stop at Hawkins Peak, a nice snack, up Hawkins Peak we went. As you make your way up the steep and loose track, views of the High Sierra abound. The highest peaks to the south of us still retained some of the snow from a healthy winter, but man was the wind blowing. My plans to launch the drone were thwarted by constant 30+ mph winds. I followed my buddy's directions to the end of the track, and sure enough, there was a campsite. And while it had fantastic views, it was completely exposed, rather off camber (and I'm far from the princess and the pea type that need totally level ground), and the wind was in full force. I stood outside for 3-4 minutes contemplating what it would be like to cook dinner and camp at this spot. I decided I'd rather take my chances going back down the mountain to see if I could snag one of those sites at the lake. That way, I could get up early, drive up to Hawkins Peak and launch the drone before the winds typically pick up in the early afternoon. Trudging down the mountain, we (that'd be me and Shasta the adventure Shepsky) took in the views the High Sierra in front of us. We could see Red Lake, and the mountains where the Forestdale Divide winds through.

Last month I had planned to spend 5 or so days exploring the Mendocino National Forest. Unfortunately, the Park Fire ignited near Lassen National Forest was growing at a rate of 100k acres per day during a Red Flag event. Learning from year's past, I looked at the wind patterns, and decided my best bet for a smoke free adventure would be to divert south, and eventually I settled upon the central Sierra. My plan was to spend time poking around the various lakes along the El Dorado Backcountry Discovery Trail. I'd explored the vast majority of the El Dorado BDT back 2021 with my Lexus Land Cruiser (LX570), but this time around, I wanted to explore off the the main route near Blue Lakes/Hope Valley, where there are a number of smaller mountain lakes-- and some astounding views of the High Sierra.

This trip was a bit of a last minute idea, or at least hammering down the specific dates turned out to be a last minute endeavor. I'd contacted a couple of buddies, but one ended up with food poisning, while the other planned to meet me on day 2 of my explorations, being this was going to be 3-4 days out on the trail. I made the ascent up highway 50 from the Sacramento Valley flatlands to South Lake Tahoe, where I'd jump on the 89 towards the Hope Valley Area. First up would be exploring the Burnside Lake, Pickett Peak, and Hawkins Peak area. I did the loop around Pickett Peak, which wasn't anything special, and definitely tight in a few spots. The only real technical section is the last bit out that takes you closer to Hawkins Peak. The terrain becomes loose and steep, and with few tight sections weaving between the trees (at least in a full size truck with a camper!). I nearly got myself in another pickle trying to squeeze Big Blue under a recently downed branch. The first track bar made it under no problem, but no so with the rear track bar! Sheesh-- here we go again! After about 30 minutes of delay, I managed to figure a way to cut the giant downed branch without the larger branch falling onto my camper. From there, with a few minutes I was down at Burnside lake, and pleasantly surprised there were still a few campsites left. But I'd been told by a friend there was a nice sit atop Hawkins Peak if I followed one of the spur roads to the end.

After a brief stop at Hawkins Peak, a nice snack, up Hawkins Peak we went. As you make your way up the steep and loose track, views of the High Sierra abound. The highest peaks to the south of us still retained some of the snow from a healthy winter, but man was the wind blowing. My plans to launch the drone were thwarted by constant 30+ mph winds. I followed my buddy's directions to the end of the track, and sure enough, there was a campsite. And while it had fantastic views, it was completely exposed, rather off camber (and I'm far from the princess and the pea type that need totally level ground), and the wind was in full force. I stood outside for 3-4 minutes contemplating what it would be like to cook dinner and camp at this spot. I decided I'd rather take my chances going back down the mountain to see if I could snag one of those sites at the lake. That way, I could get up early, drive up to Hawkins Peak and launch the drone before the winds typically pick up in the early afternoon. Trudging down the mountain, we (that'd be me and Shasta the adventure Shepsky) took in the views the High Sierra in front of us. We could see Red Lake, and the mountains where the Forestdale Divide winds through.

We finally reached Burnside Lake, and what do ya know-- THE PRIME SPOT, right next to the lake had been vacated by the family that'd been using it for fishing just a couple of hours ago. And so camp was made, dinner was cooked, and I had some nice conversation with my neighbor down the way who had driven up from his home the Napa Valley. A few cervezas later, I was taking a quick dip in the cool waters of Burnside Lake. The next day we'd head out for the lakes scattered around Lower Blue Lake to see what we could find. Spoiler alert-- LOTS OF FOLKS CAMPING at any half decent site near a lake. Man, we were lucky to snag this spot. About half a dozen or so vehicles drove out to Burnside Lake in hopes of snagging a spot, but with it being a Friday evening, there hopes of an epic lakeside campsite was dashed, as one might expect. I was still amazed we'd managed to get our spot, pulling in around 3:30 pm on a Friday! But I would've happily set up down the road in the forest, so long we were out of the wind!





The road to burnside lake does get bumpy in a few sections, but a 2wd vehicle can easily make it as long as they take it slow.


Here we go again. I think I need to take a pre-emptive approach to trying to squeeze under deadfall and downed branches!


Gettin' it done!



Views, view, views up by Hawkins Peak.


Somewhere near Hawkins Peak.


It's easy to see why John Muir fell in love with the High Sierra.


Not a bad campsite for pulling in mid-afternoon on a Friday!


Another look at camp.

 

[SDDiver5]

I have so much exploring to do up there. Been once and loved it. Have not been back since other than snowboarding at Mammoth.

 

[OTG_1]

I have so much exploring to do up there. Been once and loved it. Have not been back since other than snowboarding at Mammoth.

This is closer to Kirkwood, in the Central Sierra. Despite what most people from SoCal believe, there's A LOT more to the Sierra than the 395 corridor

 

[OTG_1]

Day 2, here we come!

I'd noted the high winds blowing over Hawkins Peak from my previous day's explorations. True to my word, I got up bright and early and was on the trail before the rising sun. I quietly packed camp, dropped the camp topper, loaded the dog up and fired up that 6.7L diesel cummins and scurried away quickly as possible to minimize the disturbance with the folks tent camping 20 yards away. And up we went, dropping the Ram into 4low with that low end torque pulling us up the mountain like a tow cable. The temps dropped dramatically as Burnside lake came into view below, somewhere in the high 30s with a slight 5-10 mph wind-- perfect for launching the drone! I've gotta say, upgrading from a Mavic 2 Zoom to a Mavic 3 Pro is a total game changer, especially with a decent wind (I'd hardly call this a decent wind, but I was unconcerned flying it higher up where the wind was likely pushing twice as fast). Those drone shots with the long shadows, soft light and rising sun-- pretty awesome stuff!

After getting all the drone shots I wanted, I packed the drone away and we headed up towards the radar installation atop Hawkins Peak. The trail narrowed as we wrapped our way around the mountain entering a forest of gnarled, windswept pines. Hawkins Peak loomed high above us to our right, and an impressive solar installation came into view. Clearly, the A-frame installation was to power whatever sits atop Hawkins Peak. There's an old ski road that's more appropriate for something like a Rubicon on 40s that leads to the top, but no way was I about to take my 5 ton beast up that trail that looked better suited for a side by side! The trail eventually departed the forest, leading us to a rocky viewpoint looking east to the Great Basin. The rain shadow the Sierra casts is rather dramatic. Many of the hills and mountains to the east are nearly void of trees, unlike the pine cloaked slopes that surrounded us.

We turned around and headed back down towards Burnside Lake. I had a rather loose itinerary for the day, with plans to explore many lakes in the area, and at some point meet up with my buddy Jonathon who was driving up from Sacramento sometime that afternoon. And so Big Blue (that's my Ram), Shasta, and I headed towards the various lakes scattered around a network of dirt roads near Blue Lakes. Some of these lakes are rather accessible and easy to reach, so when I came across dozens of campers, I wasn't surprised. But as I pushed on to some of the lakes further back, like Wet Meadows, I was surprised at the number of folks I'd come across way back here! Everywhere I looked, it seemed another car, or small group had set up camp, and certainly any half-way decent site near a like was occupied. I really was lucky to snag that spot at Burnside Lake the night before! This had me a bit worried about camp for the night, as we planned to camp at Lost Lakes, above upper Blue Lake.

Content with our explorations of the lakes in the area, we pushed onto Indian Valley. Indian Valley is a rather expansive valley in the High Sierra. It may not be as large, or as beautiful as the nearby Hope Valley, but unlike Hope Valley, there's barely anyone out here and you'll need a 4x4 as well. The wind had picked up again, and it seemed like it was funneling straight through Indian Valley. Despite its beauty, there weren't that many nice campsites, which I found to be a bit disappointing. As we pushed deeper into the valley we came upon a stream that had a couple options to continue on the dirt road, and the main one went through a rather elongated puddle as the water. I took the main path and the Ram quickly began to sink in what turned to be deep mud. Immediately, I pushed on the throttle hard kicking up mud everywhere but Big Blue lurched forward as the truck's rear began swinging side to side. The puddle was maybe 25 yards long, but if it had been another 50' or so, I'm not sure we would've made it out! Lesson learned! Eventually, the trees began to creep as we neared the end of the valley, and I sensed there wasn't much else to see back here. So we turned around and headed back out, except this time we skipped that puddle that nearly got us stuck!

Pushing on, we made at stop at one of the day use areas at Lower Blue Lake, A nice sandwich, a cold drink, and some water for Shasta had us all feeling refreshed. The last time I'd been up this way was back in 2021, when I still had my Land Cruiser. I remember Forestdale Divide having a few bumps along the way, but when you're in a 5 ton rig, you feel them a lot more! And so we bounced along, occasionally throwing Big Blue into 4low on some of the steeper pitches. Forestdale was a lot rockier than I'd remembered. Eventually, we made it to Lost Lakes, and holy cow, the place was crawling with campers and overlanders. Mind you, I typically try to visit places like this during the week to avoid these sort of $***shows, but sometimes you gotta roll with the punches. I surveyed the lake, and nope, not a single available site, or at least not something suitable for a couple of rigs. I pushed onto the second Lost Lake, which has a bit of a small gatekeeper with a small step down before crossing the creek spilling across the dam. There's only a few sites at the second lost lake, and as I was driving in, a group of three rigs was pulling out, stating there was space at the site they'd just left. Perfect! We pulled around the lake to find one small group of 3-4 rigs parked in the best site, and then some sites were scattered in the trees about 20 yards above the lake. Except, the wind was coming in Strong across Blue Lakes.

Earlier in the day I'd been communicating with Jonathon via my Zoleo, and he indicated he was about an hour away when we were watching lunch at Lower Blue Lake. I decided to jump on my GMRS radio and see if he was nearby, and what do ya know, he answered saying he was tracking around the first lake and would be at camp in 5-10 minutes. Upon his arrival at camp, I showed him some potential sites to set up his camp, but that wind kept whipping. After about 10 minutes of non-stop wind, the conversation changed to finding a new camp, and it didn't take long before we decided to vacate Lost Lakes, head up and over Forestdale Divide, and out past Caples Lake in search of another camp. The good news is that both of us are pretty familiar with the area, and we agreed to give a much lesser known lake a crack.

Forestdale Divide is one of my favorite tracks in the High Sierra, and it's a bit of a shame we don't have access to more roads/trails like they do through the high country in Colorado. Being a Saturday, there was a lot of traffic coming up Forestdale Divide, and quite a few Side by Sides wailing and kicking up dust and rocks as they passed us. Which makes me think, why are we always pulling over for them, only to eat all of their dust. I swear, they rarely slow down and I'm glad that California is not as liberal as states like Arizona and Utah where they let them roam freely (at least it seems that way!). Enough with the griping, it was a beautiful day, and Forestdale Divide was just as pretty as I'd remembered. Even the drive along Upper Blue Lake that precedes reaching Lost Lakes is pretty damn gorgeous as well. Upon cresting the divide, I promptly shifted Big Blue into 4 low and let the transmission do the majority of the breaking. Jonathon was nowhere to be found. He'd zoomed off ins his much more nimble gen 2 Taco. And speaking of bumps and rocks, Forestdale Divide descending down to Red Lake was waaaaay rockier than I'd remembered, but still a lot of fun!

Forestdale Divide spits out at Red Lake and onto the pavement of Highway 88. Since we were aired down, we gingerly made our way up and over Carson Pass, and to the next dirt road. We pulled onto the dirt, with our next potential campsite being around 7 miles or so down the road. We passed one vehicle on the way, which seemed to indicate a lot less folks were out this way, which is what we expected. After half an hour of bouncing along, the forest gave way to a small meadow, and a lake that filled the meadow. As expected, the local herd of cows would be camping with us as well. We split off the main trail and followed the dead end spur road that led to a small number of lakeside camps- and score, not a single person out this way! ___ Lake is nowhere near as serene as some of the other lakes scattered about the Blue Lakes area, and there aren't any fish (seriously, not even minnows), and it's shallow depth tends to keep swimmers away. In fact ___ Lake is much more like a large pond than a lake! But it's still pretty, especially with granite slabs next to camp, and the rocky bluffs which sit on the opposite side of shore. And best of all, there was nary any wind! In fact, the noisiest thing we had to deal with were the cow bells as the herd moved from one spot to another. We'd found our peaceful mountain camp, so we settled in, made supper, and enjoyed the billions of stars painted across the night sky.

The soft glow of the early morning sun on Hawkins Peak.


This solar installation was rather impressive!


Upper Blue Lake-- I love the High Sierra!


Wet Meadows Reservoir was becoming a muddy mess, but still lots of people camping out this way!


Exploring Indian Valley. I'd love to do some stargazing here.


Getting near the end of Indian Valley.


Made it to the top of Forestdale Divide!


View from camp at ___ Lake.


Our neighbors for the night.

 

[SDDiver5]

This is closer to Kirkwood, in the Central Sierra. Despite what most people from SoCal believe, there's A LOT more to the Sierra than the 395 corridor

Lol, I understand. But with 2 young kids, that's as far as I can/could go for a quick get away.

 

[slomatt]

@OTG_1, great trip write up!

I've been to Blue Lakes many times and have explored the other lakes in that area, but have never been to Burnside Lake or Hawkins Peak, and after seeing your photos I'm motivated to go.

There's a promising looking campsite at the very end of the road in Indian Valley (38.58213606837129, -119.877438390003). The only time I've driven out there someone was already in the spot, but perhaps next time.

 

[Travler229]

Thanks for the great write up! I especially appreciate your comments about the level of challenge, we will be switching to a towed Kimberley from our Terranova so have to pay more attention to conditions.

 

[OTG_1]

Even though I had a few more days to work with, I'd decided I'd head home early and sleep in my own bad. But I did want to do a bit of exploring that would entail heading up to what I called the High Sierra Viewpoint on Hungalelti Ridge. From what I could recall, there were a few bumps along the way, but nothing like one encounters along Pardoe's trail, which I definitely would not be attempting in my full size Ram!
I said my goodbyes to Jonathon and his friend Connie who had accompanied him on the trip, and just as I was backing out of camp, I backed the truck into a tree! I often turn off my parking sensors when off road, as encroaching brush seems to constantly set the sensors off, but I could've used it this time. I ended up breaking the plastic shell of my passenger side tail light. I didn't think it was a big deal at first, but upon reaching home, I discovered it was a $400+ part?!?! Apparently, you can't buy just the plastic shell, but you've gotta buy all of the LED lights as well. I've been kicking the can down the road on this one... but once the rains arrive, I'll probably force myself to buy the new one but I'm going to see if I can source one from a salvage yard first.

After a brief inspection and some cussing, we were back on the road for real this time. Holy crap, I don't remember the trail up to Hungalelti ridge being this friggin bumpy and tight! Funny how your memory plays tricks on you, especially when you the last time you hit a specific trail it was in a much more nimble mid-sized rig, like a land cruiser! I threw Big Blue in 4 low, and we slowly made our way up the mountain. The trail gets more moderate the higher you climb, with some tighter sections for Big Blue that definitely required picking the right line.

Finally we made it to Pardoe's trail, and the views were just as good as I'd remembered. Other than driving across about 75 yards of solid rock, it was smooth sailing on the way up to the High Sierra Viewpoint. Last time I'd been up here, the visibility was maybe 7-10 miles due to a heavy haze from wildfire smoke, but this time, the visibility was fantastic, at least 25 miles looking north and south. You couldn't even tell the Park Fire was raging up near Chico (chalk that up to the winds blowing smoke to the northeast). I launched the drone on the way up and got some fantastic shots. I happily parked Big Blue atop the viewpoint and took numerous photos. Shasta and I would bounce our way back down the mountain, and 90 minutes or so later, we were back on the highway and burning the pavement home.


I do love the T-markers denoting the various emigrant trails across the West! I I hear there's another one towards the top of Pardoe's trail before it hits the wilderness boundary but I've yet to make it that far.


One of the easy sections on the way up to Hungalelti Ridge. It gets a lot bumpier, but it would be a cakewalk for a lifted 4Runner or Rubicon-- not so in a 5 ton rig!


Hungalelti Ridge, the High Sierra viewpiont is in the upper left foreground.


Getting closer!


Made it!


I do love the High Sierra.




Looking back at Pardoe's Trail and the road down the mountain.

 

[slomatt]

Great pictures!

Those T-markers (is that what they are called) are really fun to run into out in the middle of nowhere. It's incredible to think about the wagon trains making their way through that area 170 years ago.

Here are two more farther East on the trail.

And the sign at the end of the drivable part of the trail, just below Melissa Coray Peak.

I was wondering where CR-50 is (numbers in bottom right of markers) and found a list of all of them. I think it is near the junction to the Plasse Trading Post.

 

[OTG_1]

@slomatt Definitely on my to-do list to make it to the top of Hungalelti Ridge, but probably not til I get a used Toyota that'll fit through those tighter trails!