Tree, Poison Flat, Carson Iceberg Lake Tahoe to Mount Whitney: Your Backpacking Guide to the High Sierras Yellow Flower
The Crystal Range is Heather Lake's Western backdrop in Desolation Wilderness on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.
The Crystal Range is Heather Lake's Western backdrop in Desolation Wilderness on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.

 

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Backpacking
Susie Lake to Heather Lake

Hiking
Pacific Crest Trail and Tahoe to Yosemite Trail through Desolation Wilderness

 

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North

3
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South

Lake
Aloha

NORTH
Topo Map


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Video
Susie Lake backpacking
past the
North Shore of Heather Lake

Susie Lake

A third of a mile South of our last Glen Alpine trail junction the trail comes to the East shore of Susie Lake. A nice shady pool has formed on the backside of Susie Lake's check dam.

 

Phipps Pass to Heather Lake
15 minute topographic backpacking MAP
South Desolation Wilderness
30 minute backpacking Trail MAP

 

Meeks Bay to Echo Summit
Backpacking Trail Miles and Elevations

 

After the 1590 foot drop in elevation over the 2.93 mile descent from Dicks Pass, I looked to this pool for more than its quiet beauty.

 

Refreshing Soak in the Pool below the Check Dam at Susie Lake

Backpacking Susie and Heather Lakes in the Desolation Wilderness

North: 3 Trail Junctions                                                                          South: Aloha Lake
Susie and Heather Lakes
Desolation Wilderness

Desolation Wilderness

Meeks Bay
to
Susie Lake

Backpacking South from Dicks Pass to Susie and Heather Lakes

 

Elevation
7800 feet.
The trail from Dicks Pass to Susie Lake drops 1590 feet of elevation in 2.93 miles.

Susie Lake marks the bottom of our descent from Dicks Pass. Now we have a brief climb up to Heather Lake, then another low hike up to Lake Aloha, where the trail runs mostly down mountain all the way to the Echo Lake trailhead.

Mileage
Susie Lake is
19.76 miles South of Meeks Bay trail head.
8.95 miles South to the Echo Lake trail head
10.95 miles South to Echo Summit.

The West side of Heather Lake is .56 of a mile South of the West side of Susie Lake, moving South down the trail towards Lake Aloha.

mileage and elevations

Question, comments, or experiences?

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Backpacking around the South Side of Susie Lake to Heather Lake

Suzie Lake

The trail winds around to the West along the Southern shore of Susie Lake, then follows an easy channel up to Heather Lake between massive mountain shoulders descending off of Jacks Peak and Cracked Crag.

Check out the topo map for details

Trail Passing South of Susie Lake.

Southwest Side of Susie Lake, looking North, Desolation Wilderness.

Dicks Peak is the high point of the red mountain with a low shoulder in the distant middle-Left, just off the center of the above image. Dicks Pass is near the low point to the Right of the low dark ridgetop in the distant center-Right of the image.

We observed the other side of that low dark ridge as we hiked South past Fontanillis and Dicks Lake.

The red peak closest to us on the near extreme Left of the image is a subordinate peak to the Southeast of Jacks Peak on the same ridgeline holding Jacks and Dicks Peaks.

Phipps Pass to Heather Lake
15 minute topographic backpacking MAP

View North-Northeast Across Susie Lake
Mount Tallac

looking back at Susie, southbound.

Southwest Side of Susie Lake, climbing South towards Heather Lake, looking back to the N-NE across Susie Lake at Mount Tallac.

Lake Tahoe is on the other side of the mountain.

Dicks Pass to Echo Lakes
15 minute backpacking MAP

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Heather Lake

Bending around the Southern shore of Susie Lake we hike a short ways Northwest up around Susie Lake's Western Shore until the trail bends hard Left, to the West through an incredibly cool cut in the terrain between the massive mountains shoulders descending off of Jacks Peak to our North and Cracked Crag to our South up to Heather Lake.

Check out the topo map for details

Approaching Heather Lake from Susie Lake, heading West.
First Peek climbing through the gap to Heather Lake, Desolation Wilderness.

Heather Lake
Desolation Wilderness

Heather Lake from South on the Pacific Crest Trail, Southbound.
Heather Lake, Desolation Wilderness.

Heather Lake and Crystal Range

The Western expanse of Heather Lake.
The Western expanse of Heather Lake.

North: 3 Trail Junctions                                                                            South: Aloha Lake

 

Passing around the North Shore of Heather Lake

Hiking Around the North side of  Heather Lake.
Hiking the thin trail along the North Shore of Heather Lake.

Climbing West away from Heather Lake

Climbing away from Heather Lake.
Passing out of Heather Lake's little basin between the mountains.

Crystal Range

Rounding the formation in the foreground brings to the final little climb before reaching Lake Aloha. The precipitous Pyramid Peak of the Crystal Range decorates the background.

Rounding the formation in the foreground brings to the final little climb before reaching Lake Aloha. The precipitous Pyramid Peak of the Crystal Range decorates the background.

This section of trail is breathtakingly beautiful.

 

Above, and South of Heather Lake

Rock drain for creek.
Great Trail work winding through the ponds West of Heather Lake.

 

View East

Looking back on Heather Lake
Heather Lake in background, pond in foreground, Looking NE from our brief climb South of Heather Lake towards Lake Aloha, Desolation Wilderness.

 

Our last steps up to the North shore of Lake Aloha

Last rise before Aloha Lake, Southbound on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.
The last steps of our small climb up to Lake Aloha from Heather Lake. The great granite vault of the Desolation Valley will open up before us at the top of this rise.

North: 3 Trail Junctions                                                                    South: North Lake Aloha

Backpacking Desolation Wilderness past Susie lake and Heather Lake

After giving my aching feet and knees a nice soak in the cold water pool below Susie Lake's check dam, I quickly passed by and around Susie and Heather Lakes.

Though this looked like an awesome place to set up camp, my high-mileage plan required that I push to exit the Desolation Wilderness this day and camp near Echo Summit.

That would require that I add another 11.35 miles to the 5.23 miles I had already hiked. As this was my first time carrying a camera through here to shoot the trail guide, I figured this would be a tough objective.

So I saddled up and hit the trail.

 

comments?

 

Topo Hiking Map
Dicks Pass to Echo Summit Trailhead



Topo Hiking Map
Phipps Pass to Lake Aloha

 

Topo Hiking Map
Lake Aloha to Echo Lake Trailhead

 

Trail Miles and Elevations

 

 

 

High Sierra Weather Information


Always Check
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Local Temp and Snow Reporting Stations
Click the Big Red Dots.

 

Tahoe Basin Weather All High Sierra Weather

 

Lake Tahoe Basin 7-Day Weather Forecast

 

 

 

Next page
Aloha Lake

Backpacking North

Trail Guide

 

3 Trail Junctions

The good old compass and its friend the topo map.

Backpacking South

Trail Guide

 

North Lake Aloha

Backpacker Forum
Desolation Wilderness

Share your knowledge of scrambling around Susie and Heather Lakes.

Post it on
TahoetoWhitney.Org
The Backpacker's Forum.

Add your experiences, comments, or pictures about this little piece of backpacker's heaven:
Section
Meeks Bay to Echo Summit
Segment
Susie and Heather Lakes

North: 3 Trail Junctions                                                                         South: Aloha Lake

Trailhead

Contact
Alex Wierbinski

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Frosted Backpack

Backpacking Lake Tahoe to Mount Whitney

Your guide to the High Sierra Crest, including the Tahoe to Yosemite, Pacific Crest, and John Muir Trails

Snug tent after Snow Storm
© Lake Tahoe to Mount Whitney: Crown Jewel of the Pacific Crest Trail