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Overall Summary |
Submitted Reports |
Disclaimer
| WILDERNESS PERMITS 70% of the daily quota for overnight permits are RESERVABLE online from 6 months to 1 day in advance of your date of entry at www.recreation.gov. 30% of the daily quota for overnight permits will be available via WALK-IN/same day issuance (IN PERSON) at these locations: 7 days a week, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Placerville Ranger Station 4260 Eight Mile Road Camino, CA 95709 (Exit 54 on Highway 50) Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. LTBMU Supervisor's Office 35 College Drive South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150 |
| BEAR CANISTERS are REQUIRED in Desolation Wilderness. See Bear Canisters Information PDF. Bears are active in Desolation Wilderness, both in the backcountry and at trailheads. Do not leave food or scented items in your car. Lock your vehicle even if you are leaving it briefly. NOTE THAT FOOD STORAGE LOCKERS ARE NOT AVAILABLE AT ANY OF THE TRAILHEADS GOING INTO DESOLATION WILDERNESS. PLEASE remember to store your food and toiletries properly. Store your bear canister100-200 feet downwind from your tent. Never keep food or scented items of any kind in or near your tent. |
| BEAR CANISTERS ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE OR RENTAL AT SEVERAL FOREST SERVICE LOCATIONS. A nominal fee starting at $5 covers rental expenses. West side of Desolation Wilderness: * Placerville Ranger Station in Camino off US Hwy 50 East side of Desolation Wilderness: * Taylor Creek Visitor Center off CA Hwy 89 near South Lake Tahoe For Mokelumne Wilderness: * Carson Pass Information Station located on Hwy 88 * Amador Ranger District office in Pioneer off CA Hwy 88 (no fee) |
| BACKCOUNTRY SAFETY: Plan ahead and prepare. Create a safety net by informing someone of your itinerary, where you plan to park your car, and when you are planning to return. If you change your plans at the last minute, make sure that you inform your safety person. Thank you for being our partner in the preservation of Desolation Wilderness! |
Overall Summary: TOP
(To save space, all trail names are listed without the word "Trail" — e.g., Rockbound Trail is listed as Rockbound.)
Wilderness Trails| Trail Name | Number | Updated | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bayview | 17E04 | 07-06-2026 | Dry, dusty. Lots of blackflies. |
| Blakely | 16E07 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Eagle Falls | 17E03 | 07-16-2026 | Dry, clear to Eagle Lake. |
| Glen Alpine | 17E06 | 07-05-2026 | Dry with few obstacles, many mosquitoes. |
| Grass Lake | 17E06 | 07-16-2026 | Trail is dry and clear of obstructions; water crossings are easily traversed. |
| Grouse Lake | 16E01 | 07-07-2026 | Still some standing water and a bit of flowing water on the trail in places on the way to Grouse Lake. Wildflowers profuse! Marshy, overgrown trail hard to follow just above Grouse Lake toward Hemlock Lake. Trail to Smith Lake is hard to follow but dry. |
| Half Moon Lake | 17E31 | 07-16-2026 | Dry. |
| Lake Doris to Rubicon | 16E08 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Lake Lucille | 17E09 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Lake of the Woods to Lake Aloha | 17E40 | 07-15-2026 | Overall good, some brush encroaching. Reports of bear activity in the Lake of the Woods area, but they are leaving people alone. |
| Lake of the Woods to Ropi Lake | 17E11 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Lyons Creek Trail | 16E13 | 07-06-2026 | Mostly dry. Small biting flies abundant. |
| Lyons Lake | 16E13 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Mt Tallac | 17E33 | 07-16-2026 | Trail clear to Cathedral Lake. |
| Pacific Crest | N/A | 07-12-2026 | Trail is dry and in good shape. |
| PCT to Aloha | 17E39 | 07-16-2026 | Echo to Aloha trail clear and obvious. Signage in good condition. |
| Ralston | 17E41 | 07-10-2026 | Hot and exposed. |
| Ralston Peak | 17E42 | 07-10-2026 | Hot and exposed, overgrown with brush. |
| Red Peak | 15E08 | 07-11-2026 | Dry. North Fork Bassi Creek still trickles. Black biting flies abundant; many wildflowers. |
| Rockbound | 16E08 | 07-16-2026 | Dry from trailhead to Maude Lake. |
| Rubicon | 16E30 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Schmidell | 16E28 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Tahoe-Yosemite | 17E01 | 07-16-2026 | Dry conditions, trail in good shape. |
| Triangle Lake | N/A | 07-08-2026 | Trail is faint, sometimes hard to follow. |
| Twin Lakes | 16E12 | 07-15-2026 | Dry and clean. |
| Tyler | 16E09 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Velma Lakes | 17E34 | 07-16-2026 | Dry conditions, trail in good shape |
| Trail Name | Number | Updated | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| McConnell Lake | 16E06 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Red Peak Stock | 16E31 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Willow Flat Trail | N/A | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Trail Name | Number | Updated | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angora | 17E37 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Bassi Creek | 15E19/15E20 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Bloodsucker | 16E14 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Highland Lake | 15E21 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
| Loon Lake | 16E30 | 07-11-2026 | Overall trail from Loon Lake TH to Rockbound is in great shape, with one double tree across trail between Buck Island Lake and Rockbound. It is passable in the woods to the side with a pack on. Avoid camping at Buck Island because of the noise from the Rubicon Trail 4x4 traffic on the other side of lake. You can still hear the noise of trucks and helicopters at Rockbound, but it is distant. |
| Old Corral (Twin Lakes TH to Rockbound) | 16E16/16E18 | 07-16-2026 | Dry and clear. |
| Pyramid Creek | 17E25 | 07-08-2026 | The trail to the bottom of the falls is in good shape. The route up and over the falls is hazardous. |
| Shadow Lake | 15E22 | 07-16-2026 | Information not available. |
Click HERE to view the Zone Map at FULL SIZE
SUBMITTED REPORTS: TOP
Submit a Trail Conditions Report
| # | Date at LOC | Trail | Type of Issue | Full Description | Photo |
| 183 | 05-28-2023 | 17E25 | Other | Two backpackers with a valid overnight permit for the Avalanche area report that the trail and boulder-scramble to the top of Horsetail Falls is clear of snow. Lots of water on trails, especially in the area just into Desolation Wilderness. Snow beyond the crest of Horsetail Falls to Ropi Lake. | N/A |
| 182 | 05-28-2023 | 17E42 | Unstable Snow | Two dayhikers summitted Ralston Peak Sunday 5/28. Trail had spotty snow until about 2 3/4 to 3 miles from the trailhead, mostly clear in the lower section. Crampons are needed past that point. There are several downed trees in the trail. At times, the trail was hard to find. Note: Access to Ralston trailhead is by rough, boggy 4x4 road; most visitors park at Saylor's Flat and hike the 200 yds. to the trailhead sign. | N/A |
| 181 | 05-28-2023 | 17E39 | Unstable Snow | Overnight visitors to Lake of the Woods report the trail from Echo Chalet Lodge to the end of Upper Echo is about 50/50 on being clear. At the Deso boundary, snow covered about halfway up the signpost for Triangle Lake. Once in the trees above the switchback, 6-ft drifts are common, with lots of postholing for them. Signposts to Lake of the Woods were not visible due to snow, and neither were any designated site posts at Lake of the Woods. Note: Echo Lake Road is not open. These visitors parked at the SnoPark area on Johnson Pass Road. | N/A |
| 178 | 06-18-2022 | 17E06 | Other | There is no water on the Glen Alpine Trail until just past the resort. The trail is covered and/or very muddy from the resort to the first trail sign for Grass and Susie lakes. See photos in Media. Returning overnighters reported that the trails to Gilmore, Susie and Heather are easily passable and snow is no longer an issue. | N/A |
| 177 | 06-15-2022 | 17E04 | Tree Across Trail | A report from Darla Mazzoni: A very large old growth tree blocking trail at the top of bayview. Also a tree blocking PCT at north end of Fontanillis. River crossings both at Velma and Fontinallis tricky. River flowing fast and deep. Good trail conditions except for the two down trees over trail noted above in comments. Trails wet with streams running through them. Many small streams crossing trails. Snow on trail top Bayview and by Dicks, by PCT signpost. | N/A |
| 176 | 06-16-2022 | 16E13 | Other | Report from Wendy Wyels: Although the TH is in decent shape, the trail itself was heavily burned. The first 2.5 miles are ok because the burn wasn't too hot and there's green grass, flowers, birds, and butterflies. Even so, many sections of the trail are filled with water and you also have to bushwack around downed/burned timber. At times, it's hard to find the trail. The trail gets much worse after 2.5 miles. The burn was really hot here and there's nothing green. It's much harder to find the trail and if you get off it, you sink into muddy ash or holes where roots burned. I turned around at 3.3 miles because the wind was blowing and I didn't like being underneath all the hazard trees. | N/A |
| 175 | 06-14-2022 | 16E30 | Other | Rubicon Trail on the north side of Aloha from PCT junction to Mosquito Pass is free of snow. | N/A |
| 174 | 06-14-2022 | 17E11 | Other | Trail around Lake of the Woods is clear of snow. West side also snow-free. Trail from Lake of the Woods through Haypress Meadow is extremely wet but free of snow. No report for trail from Lake of the Woods down to Ropi Lake. | N/A |
| 173 | 06-14-2022 | 17E40 | Other | Konor Boland reports: Mostly clear of snow, with a couple thin patches toward the south end of the summit, water on trails near Aloha junction. | N/A |
| 172 | 06-14-2022 | 17E39 | Unstable Snow | Konor Boland reports: There are two significant snow crossings on the trail just before you see Lake Margery. The lower line on the first crossing is off trail and easy to posthole in. Take the upper traverse when crossing. | N/A |
| 171 | 06-15-2022 | 17E01 | Tree Across Trail | Visitor reports: Six trees down across trail before Lake Genevieve. Largest is about 48 inches. | N/A |
| 170 | 06-04-2022 | 17E39 | Unstable Snow | Backpackers report that the PCT around Lake Aloha is still covered with snow. Some combination of a map, compass, GPS and hiking poles is recommended for safe travel. | N/A |
| 169 | 06-04-2022 | 17E06 | Unstable Snow | The Glen Alpine Trail still has water on it about 100 yards from the TH. The trail to Gilmore, Susie and Heather is passable, with only patches of snow. | N/A |
| 168 | 05-30-2022 | 17E39 | Unstable Snow | One overnighter reported having to use GPS to navigate the snow-covered trail near Dick's Lake. They were able to camp at Dick's. | N/A |
| 167 | 05-30-2022 | 17E04 | Unstable Snow | Report from overnighter: Snow and ice on the steep parts of the trail near Maggie's Peaks. This sections was the worst of the trails they hiked on (From Eagle Lake to Upper Velma, Fontanillis, Dicks and down Bayview). Apparently a woman fell and dislocated her shoulder near Maggie's. First responders came and helped her out. | N/A |
| 166 | 05-30-2022 | 17E39 | Unstable Snow | Beyond Echo Lakes to Lake Aloha the trail is covered with snow. Hikers stepped through a cornice to nothing below. Very dangerous. Report from returning overnighter group. | N/A |
| 165 | 05-28-2022 | 17E06 | Unstable Snow | I was told by overnighters that snow covers the trail at the junction to Susie and Gilmore lakes. At a minimum, hiking poles are needed. Mini spikes would be good. Snow shoes would be even better. I was also told that the trail to Lake Aloha is impassable. Apparently two overnighters had to urn back to Susie Lake. | N/A |
| 164 | 05-28-2022 | 17E06 | Other | One set of hikers turned back at the large log crossing on the way to Grass Lake because of the water. | N/A |
| 163 | 05-28-2022 | 17E06 | Other | 100 yards out from the Glen Alpine Trailhead the trail is covered with moving water that is emptying into Lily Lake. The water continues for several hundred yards, as far as I walked. You can walk along the edge of the trail, crossing on improvised log crossings. The trail dries out toward Upper Glen Alpine Falls. The water did not deter any visitors from hiking. See photos for 5/28/22 in Media. | N/A |
| 162 | 05-25-2022 | 16E30 | Other | A visitor who hiked to Rubicon Lake reports that the trail to Rubicon is mostly snow-free. With warmer weather, the bugs are out. Another visitor noted that there was water on the trail at times. And of course, creek crossings might be a bit high. | N/A |
Trail Conditions Disclaimer: Desolation Wilderness Volunteers provides this information free of charge as a public service to users of Desolation Wilderness, California and its immediate surroundings. While we have read and screened the information provided here, neither we nor those submitting the information make any claims or guarantees as to its accuracy, and assume no responsibility for the safety of those using it as part of their trip planning process. Backcountry travel involves risks and potential dangers, all of which can be found in the area covered by this trails conditions page. It is the responsibility of the users of these reports to be aware of the risks involved in any backcountry activity and to assess for themselves whether they are up to the challenge of facing these risks. By providing this information we make no suggestion or representation, expressed or implied, that these trails will be in the same condition as described when you visit them or that they will be safe for your passage.