Category: Water Activities

Mid-Elevation Lakes (6,000 – 6,500 ft)

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Lakes between ~6,000 – 6,500 ft elevation:

Trinity Alps Wilderness Lakes

  1. Fish Lake (6,000 ft)
  2. Granite Lake (6,000 ft)
  3. Union Lake (6,050 ft)
  4. Log Lake (6,100 ft)
  5. Sapphire Lake (6,100 ft)
  6. Big Boulder Lake (6,100 ft)
  7. McDonald Lake (6,100 ft)
  8. Alpine Lake (6,150 ft)

Russian Wilderness Lakes

  1. Sugar Lake (5,800 ft)
  2. Hogan Lake (5,950 ft)
  3. Lipstick Lake (6,350 ft)
  4. Big Duck Lake (6,400 ft)
  5. Upper Ruffey Lake (6,400 ft)
  6. Paynes Lake (6,450 ft)
  7. Taylor Lake (6500 ft)
  8. Lower Russian Lake (6500 ft) – XC

 

Low Elevation Lakes (Under 6,000 ft)

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Low elevation drive-up lakes (under 6,000 ft):

Trinity Alps Wilderness Lakes

  1. Ruth Lake – Shasta-Trinity National Forest

Low elevation hike-in lakes (under 6,000 ft):

Trinity Alps Wilderness

  1. Lake Eleanor (4,950 ft)
  2. Emerald Lake
  3. Canyon Creek Lake
  4. Upper Canyon Creek Lake (5,690 ft)
  5. Boulder Creek Lake (5,750 ft)
  6. Tangle Blue Lake (5,800 ft)
  7. Big Bear Lake (5,800 ft)
  8. Stoddard Lake (5,900 ft)
  9. East Fork Lake (5,900 ft)

Russian Wilderness

  1. Sugar Lake (5,850 ft)
  2. Hogan Lake (5,950 ft)

Red Buttes Wilderness

Siskiyou Wilderness

Marble Mountain Wilderness

Alpine, Smith and Morris Lakes

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Alpine & Smith Lakes – Trinity Alps Wilderness

  • Distance = ~22 miles
    • Stuart Fork Trailhead to Alpine Lake = 8 miles one-way
    • Stuart Fork Trailhead to Smith Lake – 10 miles one-way
    • Stuart Fork Trailhead to Alpine Lake = 17.4 miles roundtrip
    • Alpine Lake to Smith Lake = 4 miles roundtrip
    • Smith Lake to Morris Lake = ? miles roundtrip
  • Season: Mid July – Late September
  • Recommended Route: Stuart Fork Trailhead to?
  • Difficult Trail – Steep Climb
  • Stuart Fork Trailhead
    • Highway 3, Stuart Fork Arm of Trinity Lake
    • 3.5 miles to Stuart Fork Trailhead
    • Bridge Campground nearby
  • Cross Stuart Fork @ 5 miles in from Stuart Fork Trailhead – Dangerous in high water or after rain
  • 2,600 foot climb from Oak Flat to Alpine Lake over 2.5 miles = 4 hours
    • Last 2 miles are steep and exposed
    • Water at 1.75 miles from Oak Flat where trail meets outlet
  • Alpine Lake (14 acres) – Brook Trout3 campsites at lower end of Alpine Lake. Fishing is better in Stuart Fork than Alpine Lake
  • Trail to Smith & Morris Lakes – 2 miles
    • Easier to day-hike due to steep terrain and bushwhacking
      • 1/2 day for 2 miles with backpacking bag
    • Trinity Alps Photo Blog – Smith and Morris Lakes
    • Avoid during lightening storm
    • Smith Lake @ 6,950 feet (24 acres) – Rainbow and Brook Trout
      • Camping on east shore, north of outlet crossing
        • Camping better up at Morris
    • Morris Lake (? acres) – ? miles
      • Camping on west shore near inlet
  • There is an alternative route to Smith & Morris from Canyon Creek Trail or Morris Meadows

Graph of Climb from Oak Flat to Alpine Lake – from Jan’s Jaunts Blog

Graph of Climb from Alpine Lake to Smith Lake- from Jan’s Jaunts Blog

 

 

Popular Driveup Lakes 

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Popular drive-up lakes:

  1. Trinity Lake – Shasta-Trinity National Forest
  2. Lake Shasta – Shasta-Trinity National Forest
  3. Whiskeytown Lake – Shasta-Trinity National Forest
  4. Ruth Lake – Six Rivers National Forest
  5. Castle Lake – Shasta-Trinity National Forest
  6. Fish Lake – Six Rivers National Forest

Popular drive-up brackish water bodies:

  1. Big Lagoon
  2. Freshwater Lagoon
  3. Stone Lagoon
  4. Lake Earl

 

Hikes to lakes within one mile of the parking area:

  1. Kangaroo Lake – Klamath National Forest
  2. Kelly Lake – Siskiyou Wilderness ().25 miles)
  3. Taylor Lake – Russian Wilderness
  4. Buck lake – Siskiyou Wilderness

Short Hikes to Lakes in Northern California

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Short hikes to lakes:

  1. Eleanor Lake – Trinity Alps (0.1 miles)
  2. Hidden Lake – Trinity Alps (0.8 miles)
  3. East Weaver Lake – Trinity Alps (1.5 miles)
  4. Fish Lake – Trinity Alps (1.8 miles)
  5. Boulder Lakes – Trinity Alps (2 miles)
  6. Buck Lake – Siskiyou Wilderness (1.25 miles)
  7. Kelly Lake – Siskiyou Wilderness (0.25 miles)
  8. Taylor Lake – Russian Wilderness (0.5 miles)
  9. Bingham Lake – Russian Wilderness (1.25 miles)
  10. Paradise Lake – Marbles (1.5 miles)

Difficult or Cross-Country short hikes to lakes:

  1. Cecil Lake – Trinity Alps Wilderness