Mammoth Lakes

I have no idea why the Mammoth Lakes area isn't as world famous as Yosemite. The scenery is just as stunning and it's only an hour or so from Tioga Pass. I have been there four times now, and I feel like I've only scratched the surface of what the region has to offer!

Perhaps I should be thankful for its "girl next door" status, as it means that we can actually find campsites here without booking a year in advance!

Site 7, Lake George Campground

The crystal clear waters of Lake George

My favourite campground is at Lake George where sites 6 - 10 are so beautiful that you don't even need to leave your tent to get envious views! But if you do, you have dozens of world-class hikes within a 30km radius.

On this particular trip we took it easy and only did a few,

	TJ Lake	Ruby Lake	Mono Pass
Distance	1.2km one way from the Lake George Campground	3km one way from the Mosquito Flat trailhead	3.5km one way from the Ruby Lake/Mono Pass junction
Difficulty	Easy	Moderate	Strenuous
Scenery	Amazing, 8/10	Awesome, 9/10	Top of the pass, 5/10 Partway up, 9/10
Elevation	~2800m	~3400m	3648m
Elevation Gain	~80m	~300m	714m

TJ Lake

I think the hardest part of this hike is finding the trail! There's a sign right next to the Crystal Lake trailhead, but it doesn't actually tell you where to go from there. You need to head east along the path by shores of Lake George. When you get past all the picnic tables and day-use bear boxes, there is a small sign for Barrett Lake and TJ Lake.

TJ Lake

TJ Lake isn't as spectacular as Crystal Lake, but you can get 80% of the beauty with about 10% of the effort! And if the high return on investment isn't enough to tempt you, I should also mention that since Crystal Lake attracts the bigger crowds, you are more likely to find solitude here. We enjoyed our visit a lot. Next time, we'll continue on to Emerald Lake to see what that one's like!

Ruby Lake

Little Lakes Valley from the trail to Ruby Lake

Okay, so I may have lied a little when I said this hike was within 30km of Mammoth Lakes. Rock Creek Rd is indeed within 30km, but you need to drive an additional 15km or so to get to the trailhead at Mosquito Flat. But I figure that's close enough!

Ruby Lake is a side trail off the main trail to Mono Pass. The switchbacks are gentle and you get great, birds eye views of Little Lakes Valley and Morgan Pass with every twist and turn of the trail!

Mono Pass

The best views are from half-way up the switchbacks as you look down on Ruby Lake

I have mixed feelings about this hike. I've done it twice now, and each time, I felt a great sense of achievement when I got to the top. But unless you are a hike-bagger (like a peak bagger, but for any trail, not just summits), or a backpacker who needs to get to the other side, there isn't much to see at the top of the pass.

The summit is pretty bleak, especially when all the snow is gone. There's a tiny lake in the middle of a moonscape and the pass is so long that you don't even get good views of the terrain on the other side. To get to any other point of interest, you'd have to hike an additional 3-4km (one way).

Unfortunately, it had been so long since the last time I hiked this that I forgot this little detail, and ended up hiking it again with Nick. Doh!

Here's hoping I don't make that mistake a third time! That said, one day I'd like to backpack on the other side, as everything I've seen and read about Mono Creek makes me think it deserves a spot on ye olde bucket list!