Distance: 3.7 miles round trip on trail
Summit Elevation: 9630'
Elevation Gain: 892'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 0.7
Round trip time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Recommended water: 32 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free at Lake George
Difficulty: Easy
Our family went on vacation to Mammoth Lakes, first time for everyone. Most of the resort area had recently re-opened for business. With many beaches closed again, it was swarming with people. I can't imagine what it is like during peak winter season, but I understand the draw with so much beauty around.
The first hike on the agenda was Crystal Lake. It's short but has steady gain at elevations over 9000'. Due to crowds, we had to find parking along the side of the road, well before the trailhead. The stats are slightly inflated because we started a distance from the trailhead and I initially led us the wrong direction. It's a popular hike and there were many people on the trail from the start. Many were masked. This was also the first hike for our dog, Ripley. She handled the trail easily, but was sometimes distracted by squirrels and other dogs. The views were incredible as we climbed above Lake George. At Crystal Lake, Ripley filled up on water. I got a closer look at Crystal Crag as a possible future hike. The normal route is a multi-pitch 5.7 up the north face, but there is supposed to be a class 3-4 route on the east side.
Crystal Crag north side
Lake George (near) and Lake Mary
Ripley loves cold mountain lake water
East side of Crystal Crag
My wife and I did Crystal Lake one fall several years ago - it was a beautiful hike, and it looks and sounds like you really enjoyed it, too. Nice to have the dog along, too! Yay for Ripley!
ReplyDeleteMike,
DeleteThose small lakes are quite beautiful. Ripley had a great time and loves to be outdoors.