20 Lakes Basin and the Conness Lakes

Overview

Here’s an absolute treat for fans of alpine lakes and glacial basin: A long loop that gains a reasonable amount of elevation while stopping at over a dozen different lakes. This route, informally known as the “20 Lakes Basin” samples lakes on both sides of Lundy Pass, which divides the Lundy Creek and Lee Vining Creek watersheds. Along the way, you will sample lakes of all shapes, sizes, and characters set against the backdrop of the Sierra Crest on the Yosemite National Park border. The third Conness Lake In this write-up, I’ve combined the traditional 20 Lakes Basin route with the semi-cross-country route to the Conness Lakes. You can take the entire route as a full-day odyssey, or you can approach 20 Lakes and Conness Lakes as separate hikes. Either method of exploring this area will yield satisfying results as there aren’t a lot of lake basins that are this easy to access and this relatively easy to explore.  Red Tape for the 20 Lakes Basin   If you are interested in backpacking, you will need to obtain a permit from Inyo National Forest in advance of your hike. Permits for the Inyo are available through this website on Recreation.gov, which allows you to select your start point, your dates, and the length of your trip while paying for the permit online. The only other step after that is to pick up your permit on the day of your trip from the nearest Inyo N.F. visitor center, which for reference is the Mono Basin National Forest Scenic Area Visitor Center in Lee Vining. There’s currently no quota for the 20 Lakes Basin, but it’s still a sensible strategy to plan ahead.  All of your backpacking will need to occur within the Hoover Wilderness. The Hoover Wilderness abuts the Harvey Monroe Hall Natural Area, which operates as a sort of living research lab studying that contains the Conness Glacier and the Conness Lakes. Hall Natural Area is open for day-use only, which means you won’t be able to camp at any of the Conness Lakes.    Trail Description: Saddlebag Lake and 20 Lakes Basin Saddlebag Lake and North P

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