- Distance: 6 miles to Summit Pass (RT)
- Elevation range: 9800′ to 11,100′
The Virginia Lakes basin sits on the Eastern Sierra between Bridgeport and Lee Vining west of US Highway 395. The basin is popular with anglers, day hikers, and backpackers. The trail starts at 9800′ and winds through a series of scenic alpine lakes.
The trail crosses over Summit Pass (11,100′) and provides access to Hoover Wilderness and Yosemite National Park. It is a maintained trail, which is easy to follow when not covered in snow. However, because of the heavy snowfall this past winter, the trail was visible only up until Blue Lake. From there, sporadic snowfields still covered the trail all the way up to the pass.
Ken and I day hiked to Summit Pass. Travel involved crossing fields of cement-hard snow, suncups, knee-deep creeks, scree slopes, and an avalanche zone. Broken trees and other debris were visible where the avalanche had ripped through the landscape.
The switchbacks to Summit Pass were covered in snow, so we ascended a few hundred feet north of the pass over fields of snow and scree. The views from the summit ridge did not disappoint.
I hiked on this trail in November of 2016 during the Thanksgiving weekend. There was much less snow then, and I thought it was amazing. With snow, the landscape is no less impressive.
pacorios 