Day 1

Drive Up

We had planned this one as a two-nighter, with Dani, Chris and I staying both nights and Koga and Dave leaving after the first night (Koga had trouble getting Monday off). We weren’t sure exactly where we were going to camp in the Cottonwood Lakes basin. There are a lot of lakes to choose from! I was feeling ambitious and wanted to summit Mt Langley, a nearby 14er, on the second day. I had actually managed to talk Dani and Chris into this as well. The one problem was that the two passes that can be used to access Mt Langley - New Army Pass and Old Army Pass - appeared to still be snow-bound. AllTrails reviews indicated that Old Army Pass was totally out of the question, and New Army Pass was topped with a 10-foot ice cornice that required an ice ax to climb, or boulder-scrambling to circumnavigate. So we were going to play it by ear and try to get some intel from other hikers.

We left home at around 5:30 am to get started on the 4 hour drive. We brought two cars this time for our staggered departure. Koga slept over again the night before so we could get an early start. He swooped up the Tuscany Boys and of course both cars independently visited the golden arches for the traditional ceremonial sausage egg mcmuffin meal.

We made pretty good time on the way up. 4 hours is really nice once you’ve done the 6 hours to Mammoth enough times. Once we neared Lone Pine, we exited Highway 395 West onto Lubken Canyon Road, which passed through Lubken Ranch. It is a gorgeous little slice of green pasture in the otherwise arid Owens Valley. There were many cattle and horses grazing, and a few had somehow escaped the fences and were right on the road as we drove past. After passing through the ranch, we turned South onto Horseshoe Meadow Road, which climbs precariously up the side of the eastern Sierra escarpment. There are many stretches of the road that drop off into thousand-foot cliffs with no guard rails, which makes for some white-knuckle driving. To add to the fun, I reached a hairpin turn just as a massive big rig with a horse trailer came around the bend. I had to reverse back down a hundred yards or so as this big boy rolled down towards me. Just a little nerve-wracking…

We reached Cottonwood Lakes Trailhead, which is at nearly 10,000 ft off the bat, at around 10 am. Dani and I took a wrong turn and ended up at a nearby campground, which was blanketed by these beautiful, tiny yellow flowers. The density and coverage was pretty wild. This entire campground was totally overrun.

The hike ahead was 5-6 miles or so, with about 1000 ft elevation gain, ending up at just over 11,000 ft in the lakes basin. The main trail follows Cottonwood Creek, fed by the Cottonwood Lakes up in the basin, as it winds its way first north and then west around a large, rectangular mesa aptly named “Flat Top.”

First Leg (1-2)

We crushed the first few miles, which were quite flat, and broke for lunch at (1) where the trail meandered close to the creek. We had packed sandwiches as usual for the first lunch.

After a while longer the creek opened up into some gorgeous meadows dotted with wildflowers (2). This was right around where the valley started to curve west around Flat Top. There is also an established camp here - we glimpsed some canvas tents across the meadow to the east.

Creek Crossing (3)

Crossings were extra tough because of the historic snowfall still melting away in late July. Right around (3), the trail crosses Cottonwood Creek. We took a break just before the crossing here and chatted with some hikers who were passing the other direction. The main crossing was maybe 15 ft wide and 1-2 ft deep - totally doable but annoyingly requiring boot removal. Alternatively, there was a spot maybe 20 ft upstream where one of the other hikers had crossed over some logs. I scouted this out first and was able to make it across, despite some of the logs being a bit soft. Dani went next, and then disaster struck - one of the logs broke underneath her and her right foot plunged into the fast-moving creek. Thankfully the rest of the crossing held up and she was able to catch herself by sitting on it, but her whole right leg up to the knee was trapped in a hole, and the bottom of her pack was dunked into the water. I dashed over and helped her up, and she was able to plant her other foot and extract her right foot from the water.

We all made it across and took a break to make sure Dani was ok. She had a few scrapes and bruises on her leg and her shoe was soaking wet, but in all we were pretty lucky. I helped dry out her shoe with her camp towel and she swapped out her sock, and we were back on the trail in a jiffy. I think she is now permanently terrified of creek crossings - for the rest of the trip she went on high alert every time one was mentioned.

Climbing to the Basin (4)

After a bit more trail, a huge meadow opened up to the left/south, reaching over to the foothills of Flat Top. There were beautiful patches of the same yellow flowers we had seen at the campground near the trailhead. We also spotted a huge, gushing waterfall spilling over the edge of the lake basin and into the valley. From here the trail took a series of switchbacks to climb the last couple hundred feet up to the lake basin itself.

Lake Basin (5-6)

Cresting the rim of the basin was exhilarating. Suddenly, the somewhat ordinary pine forest melted away and the sheer granite cliffs of the Sierra crest emerged, looming over pristine alpine lakes (5). The highest point on the horizon was Mt Langley itself, slouching northwards.

We circled Cottonwood Lake #1 to the south and headed towards Cottonwood Lake #2, which we had heard was a favorite from a passing hiker. The small hill directly southeast of Lake #2 was crammed with 3 or 4 different groups of backpackers already, so we dropped our packs and scouted around. Dani and I circled the lake, searching the south and west shores for a good spot. There were several tents set up even there, but we eventually found a good spot directly west of Lake #2, on a narrow but flat (enough) strip of land between the lake and the huge granite spur of Army Pass Point looming above it (6). The site was a decent distance off-trail, which gave us a bit of privacy, and our nearest neighbors were hidden behind a series of large boulders. Water (and fishing) was a short scramble down to the lakeshore.

Dani and I returned to fetch our comrades, and we worked our way over with our packs. On the way we spotted a little critter, later identified as a Yellow-bellied Marmot, perched on a rock. It looked like a small beaver or capybara with a bushy tail. We ended up spotting a few more of these guys throughout the trip, too.

Camp

After setting up camp and pumping some water, it was time for some fishing. Koga managed to pull in a huge (12 inches or so) Golden Trout right off the bat. It managed to escape just as he was pulling it out of the water, but we both got a good look at the beauty. We didn’t have much luck after that, so we took a quick jaunt around to the northern shore of Lake #2. This whole area was a huge, muddy swamp, but we made it over to the inlet of the creek coming down from Lake #3 and tossed a line in there for a bit. But alas, no bites, and the mosquitos were getting angry. There was a nice view of Cirque Peak and its kiddos to the southwest from here.

And looking northwest, Langley was visible again in the distance.

We headed back and whipped up dinner, which was a set of now-classic REI freeze-dried meals. A lot of these involved rice and beans, which re-hydrate nicely, but may have unintended effects later in the tents. You can also spot the obligatory Nalgene of Tang here. We had an astronaut ice cream sandwich for dessert - delicious.

Sunset over Lake #2 was stunning!

After dinner, we solved some riddles out of Dani’s new riddle book (“for Smart People”) which was actually quite a bit better than the last one. We even stayed up late enough to see a few stars come out, since it wasn’t as cold as Little Lake Valley.

Day 2

Cottonwood Lake #3

Since Dave and Koga were leaving, we wanted to get some quick fishing done in the morning. We got up around 6:30 am or so and headed over to Lake #3 before breakfast. Dave opted to stay in bed; he only had 4 hours of sleep the night before so I don’t blame him.

We stayed up high to the left to avoid the swamp, and quickly made it over to Lake #3. Langley and the Upper Cirque were majestic in the morning light.

Koga caught a Brookie! We saw 20-30 big old mommies hanging out in the creek between Lake #3 and a little pond off the south end, but they did not want to have anything to do with us. There were also a couple nice campsites here on the southwest side of Lake #3 - mental note for next time.

Just over the hump at the north end of Lake #3 is Lake #5, and Lake #4 is tucked away to the left around Army Pass Point. Lake #6 is set much farther back, nestled in a bowl directly below Langley and the Upper Cirque. We didn’t end up making it to any of these, but I definitely want to see them next time!

We headed back and ate breakfast. This time we had Pop-Tarts which really hit. As a bonus, they didn’t require messy bowl cleanup like oatmeal. Dani also brought her instant Korean coffee, which was really good! It was sweetened and came with milk. The trick is to make it pretty concentrated - only about half a mug’s worth of water. And of course some mandarins. Dave and Koga headed out around 9 am and then it was just the three of us. We decided to head over to the southern side of New Army Point and explore Long Lake and potentially High Lake. We could also at least look at New Army Pass, even though a ranger had confirmed on the way in that the ice cornice was indeed present.

Boulder Field (1)

The first segment of this day hike wound through a massive boulder field sitting in between Lake #2 and the South Fork Lakes. Near Lake #2 was a shallow pit with a small pool of crystal-clear water, paired with a handsome sandy beach. It was a bit too early in the morning to take a dip, but I bookmarked the spot for later.

Long Lake (2-4)

Next, the trail wound through a sparsely wooded area until we arrived at the outlet of Long Lake. Here the trail was totally flooded by the creek (which continues southeast to the South Fork Lakes, eventually turning into the South Fork Cottonwood Creek). There was still snow here and it had formed a tunnel over the trail on the other side. Neat.

From the east end of Long Lake, we could see up the valley to New Army Pass and the sheer cliffs surrounding High Lake, nestled behind the next ridge. New Army Pass did indeed appear to be covered in snow with a sharp cornice at the very top. So it looked like Mt Langley wasn’t going to happen on this trip. Well, it probably wasn’t going to happen anyways because Dani’s ankle was giving her trouble and I didn’t want to push it. Next time…

Instead, I set up my hammock along the north shore of Long Lake and we chilled out. Dani and I took a nice nap in the hammock and Chris took a nice nap on a rock, though he got spooked by the thought of rolling in his sleep into the frigid water. We unpacked lunch - little tins of tuna and chicken salad with butter crackers - and ate on a log facing out to the lake with a nice view of Cirque Peak.

I couldn’t resist dipping my little boys in this one, but it was icy cold and I couldn’t stay in for long.

After a nice rest and a nice meal, I cajoled Chris and Dani into exploring High Lake. This unfortunately involved a dreaded creek crossing at the outlet of Long Lake. The outlet spread out widely and there was a spot 15 ft or so across that we could cross through only about 1 ft of water (4). Dani was not happy about taking her boots off and dipping into the icy water. But we survived and headed up the trail towards High Lake.

High Lake (5-6)

The trail followed the south shore for most of the length of Long Lake before breaking off to head up the adjacent rocky hill. We had to navigate a few snow patches before popping out onto a beautiful plateau overlooking Long Lake to the west. The trail looped around this plateau, which was surprisingly lush and wooded, before climbing north across one final huge snowfield to the edge of High Lake at nearly 11,500 ft!

The view east was awesome, and we had a nice vantage of Flat Top’s rectangular bulk. We had hiked up along the left side of it, as viewed from here, the previous day. And we would hike out down along the right side of it the next day.

After a final push through another boulder field, with New Army Pass sitting far above, we made it to the beautiful but barren High Lake. It was surrounded by incredible sheer granite faces and huge snowfields. But we did see fish swimming around in there!

After admiring the stark scenery for a bit, we headed down, all the way back to Long Lake. I got this nice photo of High Lake’s bowl and the twisting trail on the plateau on the way out.

We had to cross the creek again, but I was able to find a spot where we made it over on rocks, shallow bits, and logs without needing to take our boots off. Dani was appreciative of this. And of course, I took a dip in that lagoon we had seen earlier on the way back. It was colder than I thought, but not as cold as the lakes, and it was a nice little bath. I washed my stinky shirt in there too.

After reaching camp, I had grandiose plans to go see Cottonwood Lakes #4 and #5, but instead took a fat nap in our tent. I hadn’t slept well the first night, and I was exhausted and had a headache. So I took some Advil and knocked out while Dani did some crosswords on her phone. By the time we roused ourselves, it was dinner time. More REI meals, but this time we had a mishap with the Bolognese - it wasn’t stirred fully and there was a gross dry patch full of crunchy bits at the bottom. Oops.

The sunset was again spectacular, but in a different way. This time it was a lot of wispy pinks that bathed the entire basin in a strange otherworldly glow. We did some more riddles atop our special riddle rock before turning in for the night.

Day 3

We slept in a bit on the second morning. After the first night of terrible sleep, I caved and asked Dani for some earplugs, and they did absolute wonders. I slept very well (by backpacking standards) and felt refreshed in the morning and ready to tackle some trail. We had oatmeal, left-over Pop-Tarts, and mandarins for breakfast before tossing a line in for a bit (unsuccessfully) and then packing up camp. We were on the move by 9 or 10 am, scampering our way back over to the trail along the south side of Lake #2.

Lake Basin (1-3)

On the way out, I noticed that the little hill on the southeast shore of Lake #2, which had been swarming with campers when we first arrived on Day 1, was now totally deserted (1). This made sense - it was Monday - and I took a little detour to take some amazing photos from there, capturing Mt Langley, the Upper Cirque and Lake #2 in a handsome stack.

I also got a nice shot of the huge granite face backing Lake #2 and our campsite. This is a spur of Army Pass Point, which sits between the two Army Passes and splits the watershed between the Cottonwood Lakes, which feed Cottonwood Creek, from the South Fork Lakes, Long Lake, and High Lake, which feed South Fork Cottonwood Creek. We had hiked up originally along the east and north sides of Flat Top, following Cottonwood Creek. On the way out, we decided to take the west and south sides, following South Fork Cottonwood Creek.

We retraced our steps down a few hundred feet of switchbacks, reaching the bottom (2) with a beautiful view of a large meadow on the north side of Flat Top. Here, we split off from our original route and headed south toward the South Fork Lakes. We emerged from the woods at a trail fork near their outlet. The spot provided a nice view of Cirque Peak and Trailmaster Peak across the burbling South Fork Cottonwood Creek and its expansive meadow (3).

Last Leg (4-7)

We had to turn away from the view to the left and head southeast. Here the trail follows the creek as it cascades down a steep valley (4), forming several waterfalls. Near the top, we enjoyed a nice view of this unnamed granite cliff overlooking a meadow farther down in the valley.

The trail in this segment was rough. In some places, it was inaccessible due to the creek’s robust flow, and in others it so faint as to be undetectable. We worked our way down the steep bouldered canyon, mostly off-trail, guided by my Garmin watch. As the terrain flattened out, we picked up the trail again and continued on a pleasant, extended stroll alongside South Fork Cottonwood Creek as it meandered east along the valley south of Flat Top. We eventually reached the north side of the meadow we had spotted from far above (5).

And here we somewhat shockingly got one last surprise glimpse of Mt Langley behind us, about 4 miles distant, rising above all else.

The rest of the hike went relatively smoothly. There was one tributary crossing (6) which involved some route finding, but we were able to cross without getting wet or taking boots off. And there was a final crossing over the creek proper (7) which required balancing while crossing a relatively high-set log. A fall from that would not have been fun, but luckily we all made it (Dani looked pretty nervous). In all we did about 21 miles in 3 days - not bad!