NorCal Dog Trails: Wrights Lake to the Desolation Wilderness

Near: Kyburz
Trip Type: Hike
Distance: up to 7 miles
Elevation: 7,000 - 8,000/8,700 feet (Lowest/Highest Lakes)
Surface: Rocky
Vegetation: Forested around Wright's Lake, sparse trees in the Desolation Wilderness

Last Hiked: September 2014

Sunset on the Crystal Range from Wright's Lake

Wright's lake sits just outside the western border of Desolation Wilderness. It's easy to access with a low-clearance vehicle, but remote enough from major highways to be great destination in and of itself. A drive in campground sits at the southern end of the lake and makes a great jumping off point for hikes into the Desolation Wilderness. Backpacking in Desolation requires a permit and they can be hard to get on short notice, so camping at Wrights makes a good relaxing way to spend a bit more time in the woods than just a day hike. There are several scenic alpine lakes nearby and reaching them isn't too physically strenuous. I have used Wrights Lake as a basecamp to get novice hikers into dramatic scenery on a couple of occasions. The trails are easy to follow for experience route finders, but some novices may find it easy to lose the trail on the open, bouldery terrain. So take care to pay attention and not get lost. When you finish your hike, the lake is fairly shallow, so it makes for a much less frigid dip than the higher lakes.

Permits

Free day-use permits are required in the Desolation Wilderness. Use the permit station at the trailhead at the north east end of the lake to sign in. If you want to camp, you'll need an overnight permit. The Desolation Wilderness is sectioned off into several zones with entry quotas, so these permits can be difficult to get a hold of on summer weekends. 70% of the permits are available for reservation on Recreation.gov. The remainder can be claimed on the day of entry at the Pacific Ranger District (near Pollock Pines on Hwy 50) or the Lake Tahoe Visitor Center (South Lake Tahoe).

El Dorado National Forest

Trailhead

Wright's Lake campground or Twin Lakes trailhead. Take Wright's Lake Road north from CA-50 just east of Kyburz. It's long and windy, but fine for passenger cars, though the last bit before the campsite was quite potholed last time I was there. Take it slow. If you're camping start at the south end of the lake and take the flat access trail up along the east side of the lake. If you just drive out for a day hike, you can continue up the east side of the lake to small trailhead at the north end of the lake.

Routes

I've mapped here the two routes I've done to Island Lake and to Smith Lake, but additional routes to the north are possible. Both gradually climb to the northeast as the forest thins to open bouldery terrain with long views to the west, pass multiple alpine lakes and end at a lake in the shadow of Mt. Price. If you opt for Smith Lake, and you're feeling ambitious you can continue off trail on the open ridges above it. I haven't gone farther than the minor peak south of the lake, but some friends made it to Mt. Price, apparently without any technical climbing, just some light scrambling. I recommend looping around the north side of Smith Lake if you're going to do this, the slope to the south is a bit of a maze of large boulders.