An Unexpected Hike in Great Basin National Park

Tuesday was a travel day for us. Having spent a day in Capitol Reef National Park, it was time to move on. Our next and final stop was Great Basin National Park in Nevada. The drive there was over three hours long. I figured we would be tired when we arrived in Nevada so I didn’t plan any activity for the day.

The drive indeed was long. There were no real places of interest requiring a stop so we drove straight through until we reached the town of Delta in Utah. We stopped there to have lunch as we figured we wouldn’t have dinner out as our motel was literally in the middle of nowhere.

We arrived at our motel about 3:00. After we checked in, Silvette decided she didn’t want to stay in the motel for the rest of the day. We decided we would go ahead and visit Great Basin National Park and see a few things.

Our first stop was the Visitor’s Center. The center is not actually within the boundary of the national park, but out on a nearby road. It’s a small center. However, it has the usual gift shop area and information displays. We stayed and watched a movie about the Great Basin. What struck me the most was the fact that the water in this area never makes it to any sea. It stays within the basin.

It was still early so we thought we would go ahead and drive into the park. We stopped to take a picture of the understated sign and then turned into the park.

We accidentally took a road I had not intended to take. It is the main drive through the park. It is a fairly long drive with quite an elevation increase. The next thing I knew we were at the Mather Overlook halfway through the park. The overlook revealed a meadow below and views of the main mountain range in the park with its various peaks. We would see these peaks frequently during our visit to the park.

We continued our drive up and came to the Wheeler Peak Overlook. This viewpoint was again of the mountains, but we were now closer to the peaks.

We continued on up the road to its end. After we parked, we walked around some. We saw a short trail we thought we would walk so we headed in that direction. We came across information about a nearly three mile hike to two alpine lakes. After some discussion we decided we could do the Alpine Lakes Loop before it got dark.

Because it was a spur of the moment decision, we weren’t really as prepared as we might have been. While we had water bottles in the car, and my walking sticks, we didn’t go back for them. We just forged ahead.

A few minutes later we almost turned back. The trail did not seem well marked, and we had trouble figuring out where to go. We finally realized that orange markers placed high in the trees marked the trail. Unfortunately we lost sight of the next marker. We finally saw it after realizing a tree had fallen across the trail which threw us off. The orange markers became our security blanket. When I would glance up and see the next marker, I was secure in the knowledge that we were on the right trail.

The first part of the trail was through a forested area. The trees were thin in some places. We also encountered a few streams flowing down the mountain side from the melting snow. Along with the forests we would walk by green meadows which would also open up the views of the surrounding mountains.

AT one point we passed a meadow with a herd of deer quietly grazing. They didn’t seem bothered by our passing, and generally ignored us.

As we continued hiking, we kept an eye out for the first of the lakes we were supposed to see. It seemed to be farther than we anticipated. The hike was definitely going uphill, but it wasn’t too strenuous or difficult. We continued to alternate between forest and meadows with mountain peak views.

We finally came to the first lake, Stella Lake. It was a beautiful green, reflective lake with Wheeler Peak in the background. The trail went along one side of the lake and then continued on.

We then came to probably the hardest part of the hike, the trail between the two lakes. We were up pretty high, and snow was definitely a factor. Because the trail itself was usually fairly flat, the snow would pile up on the trail. We weren’t really prepared for snow with our shoes so we tried to walk around the snowy sections which often proved just as difficult. We also lost sight of the orange markers a few times, but eventually we made it through the trail.

The Alpine Lakes Loop trail passed along a small stream which we realized was flowing into the second lake, Teresa Lake. It too had mountain peaks and ridges along the far side which made for a picturesque scene. I used my phone to take a panoramic shot as I couldn’t get everything into my photo with my main camera as I was too close.

After passing Teresa Lake we were definitely in a downward mode. We were starting to get a little nervous about the time as we wanted to be finished before dark, and the shadows were starting to get long. Snow continued to be a challenge on the trail in some places. We also had a moment of panic when we lost sight of our orange marker. It turned out to be right above us.

Considering the time, it surprised us when a young couple passed us going in the opposite direction. It seemed a little late to us to be starting the hike. Meanwhile we were relieved when we came to a connecting trail, and the subsequent trail seemed a little easier. Finally we could see the parking lot, and we felt good to have finished. The hike had been quite scenic, but it had also been more of a challenge than we had so carelessly expected.

Have you had a chance to visit Great Basin National Park? Since it’s the 10th least visited national park in the United States, I’d love to hear about your experience in the comment box below. Next week I’ll share about our second day in Great Basin as we finish our trip. Be sure to check it out.