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Jean and I parked at the Long Lakes trailhead, where the lot was almost full with
about a dozen cars. Facing west, there are two trailheads from the parking area --
one heading to the right toward Silver and Long Lake, and one toward the left
toward Cub Lake. We were going to do a loop, so we had our pick of the two. Noting
that the Cub Lake route has more lakes, I figured we'd save that for last.
It was 3:30pm by the time we started off toward Long Lake. The trail starts climbing
immediately. It's not very steep, but since this was our first day at altitude
(a modest 6500 feet), we had to huff and puff a bit to get up. The hiking book I
had said the loop would be 5.6 miles, but looking at the Gold Lake USGS map, it looked
like a lot less. So I wasn't really worried. Perhaps the book (California Hiking)
was including a side trip to Round Lake. Even so, it wouldn't be 5.6 miles.
Long Lake
After three quarters of a mile, we reached a trail intersection. The trails are
well-signed at all intersections, including mileage. We took the spur trail to the right;
a quarter mile later, we reached beautiful Long Lake. This is by far the largest
of the lakes on the loop. The lake sits at 6555 feet, backed by 7818 foot high Mt.
Elwell rising from its northwest shore. To our right was a couple checking out the
small boat dock. There are a half dozen small fishing boats scattered around. Must
take a fair amount of work to carry them to the lake, as I don't believe there are
any roads to the lake.
Mount Elwell over Long Lake
We enjoyed the late afternoon sun and the peaceful lake. Soon we had the whole lake
to ourselves, though we could hear voices just over the southwestern ridge. We would
run into a few people a bit later, but for the most part it was a quiet hike with few
people and we hiked the last mile or two in solitude.
Jean skipping rocks on Long Lake
Jean skipping rocks on Long Lake
One of the nice features of the lake is that its shores are full of small rocks perfect
for skipping. We spent a good 10 or 15 minutes skipping rocks before heading back to the
trail intersection. From there, we continued south for a quarter mile to another trail
intersection. Turning right, we took the spur trail to Silver Lake. The trail continues
on past the lake and loops around behind Long Lake up to the top of Mt. Elwell. We'll
have to save that for another day. Instead, we glanced at Silver Lake, which is tiny
compared to Long Lake, and quickly scrambled back the way we came after spying thousands
of tiny bugs glistening in the sun, swarming around the trees.
Mount Elwell over Long Lake
Bugs at Silver Lake
Our trip now consisted of going a quarter to a half mile between lakes on the way back
to the trailhead. First up, there was Cub Lake. The sun was at just the right angle
now such that the reflections in the lake were almost perfect. The lake is very small,
but it has a lot of what I would consider character. The kind of character that makes
you feel at ease standing on its shore, away from civilization, looking at the beautiful
reflections of the trees in the late afternoon Sierra sun.
Cub Lake
Eventually we moved on to Little Bear Lake, which is just as nice. Finally, there was Big Bear
Lake, bigger than all the rest except for Long Lake. We caught the last rays of the sun
shining on the trees here. Tiny waves rippled in the setting sun like fish (the lake is
stocked with rainbow trout).
Cub Lake
Big Bear Lake
Soon the sun set and we made our way down the trail and back to the now-empty parking lot.
It's no wonder they call this the Lakes Basin. One downside (or upside, depending on
your point of view) is that camping is not allowed in the areas closest to the trailhead.
This beckons for a backpacking trip further in, and a trip to the top of Mount Elwell to
view all these sparkling jewels.
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