Hidden Lakes Loop

We managed to sneak in one last camping trip before winter by heading up to the Lassen Volcanic Park area for the Canadian Thanksgiving/Columbus Day long-weekend. We had a wonderful, albeit slightly chilly, time!

The Hidden Lakes Loop in Caribou Wilderness proved to be a super easy and relaxing one-night backpacking trip. This would be a great route to do with kids, or a first-time backpacker, as the distances are reasonable, the trail is mellow without being flat and boring, and there are spacious, well established campsites around many of the lakes.

One of the Hidden Lakes

And did I mention that it was really pretty and serene? The pin-drop silence in the middle of the night was amazing; just what we needed after a busy few weeks at work!

	Posey Lake	Hidden Lakes Loop
Distance	5.3km one way from the Hay Meadow Trailhead	12.3km loop from the Hay Meadow Trailhead
Difficulty	Easy	Easy
Scenery	Nice, 6/10	Nicer, 7/10
Elevation	~1900m	~2100m
Elevation Gain	~50m	~200m

Before You Go

Permits	Permits are not required here, even for overnight camping. But if you plan on making a fire or taking a portable stove with you, you do need a campfire permit. You can get one online from here
Bear Boxes	No bear boxes at the trailhead, just a pit toilet
Directions	The trailhead is at the very end of Forest Rd 30N25, which is off of Forest Rd 10. The intersection of Route 10 and Highway 36 is surprisingly well marked and impossible to miss. However, it gets a little more dicey after that. Some kind soul had stuck hand-drawn, paper-plate signs on several trees along the way. These were greatly appreciated as it assured us that we were still on Forest Rd. 10 at some key junctures. But the snow will probably destroy those. So if in doubt, continue straight. The turn off for 30N25/Hay Meadow does have a sign. It is partially hidden by some bushes, so be sure to keep an eye out for it.

Posey Lake and Long Lake

Our campsite at Posey Lake

This trail made me a little homesick, as the pines and smattering of little lakes reminded me a lot of Northern Ontario. Lake Evelyn in particular, with its rocky backdrop, had me waxing lyrical about the Canadian Shield. I'm sure Nick was relieved when our arrival at Posey Lake put an end to my geographical exposition!

Since we got such a late start (only arrived at the trailhead at 4pm), we decided to just camp at the first nice site we came across. This happened to be at Posey Lake. But it turned out to be a fortuitous choice.

Bear prints at Long Lake

The next day, we discovered that although Long Lake had some equally nice sites, it was a lot more windy over there! It also seemed to be something of a local watering hole for the bears; we saw a lot of paw prints of all different sizes in the mud, but sadly, no bear sightings.

Completing the Loop

There are actually two, maybe even three, different ways you could loop back to the trailhead. The direct route doesn't take you past any other big lakes other than Long Lake, but it is about 2km shorter. The longer loop takes you through the Hidden Lakes. If you have the time and energy, they're definitely worth checking out.

Overall, I think this is a really nice trail, and worth doing. But I'm a little mystified by the rating that our usually spot-on guidebook gives it. They rate it a 10 for the views, which is the same level as other, far more spectacular (albeit more challenging), hikes in the Lassen area. Here's hoping it was just a typo!