Granite Lake-Horseshoe Lake Loop Hike

Seven Up Pass, above the head of Granite Creek (Jerry Adams)

Looking up towards Deer Lake (Jerry Adams)

The pass above Mumford Basin (Jerry Adams)

Map of trail loop

Start point: Swift Creek Trailhead
End point: Horseshoe Lake
Hike type: Lollipop loop
Distance: 27.1 miles
Elevation gain: 7000 feet
High point: 7,470 feet
Difficulty: Difficult
Seasons: Summer, fall
Family Friendly: No
Backpackable: Yes
Crowded: Yes, during the summer

The Trinity Alps is one of the priemier hiking areas in the galaxy. It's not as famous as the Sierras, but everyone should do a hike in this area at least once. There are large areas of alpine granite. The trails here are a little more rugged than typical Columbia Gorge or Cascades trails. There are many spectacular peaks and ridges and little alpine lakes. It is a long drive from Portland though, but at least it's not as far away as the Sierras. The Trinities have a fairly narrow spine of alpine granite compared to the Sierras, which are really incomparable.

This is quite a bit south of Portland so somewhat warmer. Sometimes, the weather systems firehose is pointed at Portland and Northern California has nice weather, but sometimes it's vice versa; sometimes it's nice or bad both places simultaneously, so you just have to check the weather report. This is a nice area to have in your repertoire

For a longer trip, you could combine some of this hike with the Long Canyon to Emerald Lake Hike. For example, when you go up to Seven Up Pass and then down to Deer Creek, do the Four Lakes Loop and go over to Siligo Meadows, Echo Lake, and beyond.

The hike up to Granite Lake is through trees. Above there you get into alpine granite - up a ridge, down into Deer Creek Valley, and up to Deer Lake. I went back down a ways to camp in a more sheltered location. Then I hiked back up through the alpine Black Basin and Mumford Basin on an unmaintained trail and back down to Swift Creek to camp at a more sheltered location. Then I went up to Horseshoe Lake, with more alpine granite, before returning down Swift Creek to the trailhead.

Horses use all of these trails; at least I saw plenty of manure. I think in the summer it's fairly crowded, but in mid-October there were few other people but the weather was still pretty good.

There is ample drinking water everywhere you go. The exception would be at the passes between river valleys, like between Granite Lake and Deer Creek, or Black Basin/Mumford Basin.

Detailed Description

Start at the Swift Creek Trailhead at 4000 feet elevation.

After about 0.1 miles, the trail merges with a trail from the alternate trailhead - remember this on your way back, or you'll walk an extra 0.1 miles to get back to your car: it can be very confusing.

In 0.4 miles, there's a nice campsite near the river in case you get a late start and want to camp right away.

At 1.1 miles from the trailhead is the junction for the trail up to Granite Lake. There's a substantial bridge across Swift Creek.

It's another 4.1 miles up the Granite Creek Trail to Granite Lake at almost 6000 feet elevation (5.2 miles from the trailhead). There are several decent campsites along the way, with good drinking water from Granite Creek. This section is forested for its entire length.

Right before Granite Lake is a large camp area to the left of the trail. You can get drinking water from Granite Creek. You could probably have several groups camped here, or a large group with many people. Then, adjacent to Granite Lake, is another large camp area. Your drinking water would be from the lake. There are nice views of the lake, but it could be windy with not a lot of protection.

From here, it's all alpine granite. The trail runs 1.8 miles up to Seven Up Pass, a.k.a. Granite Pass, at almost 7,500 feet. There are alpine meadows and lots of granite boulders to negotiate on the trail.

From the pass, there are rough trails going right and left. If you go right (north), a trail goes over to Black Basin and the head of Bear Creek. This would be a shortcut that avoids going down to Deer Creek and back up. I think that's a rough, primitive trail, more like going cross country, but it's pretty obvious where to go: traverse the side of Seven Up Peak, and then down a little to the Bear Creek pass.

This loop takes you down the other side of Seven Up Pass to Deer Creek. It's 1.6 miles down to the creek at 6,500 feet (8.6 miles from the trailhead). This is where you can connect to the Long Canyon to Emerald Lake Hike. There's a trail going either direction, up and down Deer Creek, the Deer Creek Trail. There's also a trail going up the other side.

I went up Deer Creek 0.6 miles to Deer Lake at 7,150 feet. I didn't see any good campsites at Deer Lake - the slopes were pretty steep. It was a windy and cold October when I was here, so I turned around, but it's about another five miles through alpine granite to Granite Peak. On the way back, you can circle around Summit Lake and Luella Lake and back down to Deer Creek where the Granite Creek Trail junction is.

Then I went 0.8 miles down Deer Creek to Deer Creek Camp at 5,900 feet, 9.4 miles from the trailhead. There are spots to camp between Deer Lake and here, but farther down seemed better to be in a more protected location. You'll find good water all the way from Deer Creek. The Long Canyon to Emerald Lake Hike continues down Deer Creek.

From here, hike up the ridge 1.9 miles to a high point at 7,000 feet. There's a junction with the Bear Creek Trail that goes up a little higher and then down Bear Creek about four miles to Swift Creek. This would be a good shorter alternate or add-on hike. On the topo map there's a "Longs Cabin Site" and mine, but I didn't see anything.

I went down a little from the junction through Black Basin. There's a sign saying "Black Basin", "Mumford Basin", and "Trail not Maintained". Walking through Black Basin, I noticed pitcher plants. How cool!

It's about 1.6 miles through Black Basin up to Mumford Pass at 7,200 feet (12.9 miles from the trailhead). Occasionally the "trail" would go through a meadow area, and there was no obvious track. I just walked along in the right direction. Then, on the other side of the meadow, it wasn't obvious where the trail was so I had to search around or backtrack.

From Mumford Pass, the descent trail was more obvious although there were still a few places where I had to search around a little. This is Mumford Basin. There's an obvious stream, and the trail is routed a little west of it. It's 1.8 miles down to Swift Creek at 5,800 feet (14.7 miles from the trailhead). There's a nice campsite just before Swift Creek and good drinking water from the creek.

All the way from Deer Creek Camp to here there's no drinking water, although I probably could have found some down Bear Creek. This was October, so earlier in the season there probably are some water sources. The whole route was alpine granite and meadows except right at the beginning and end, where it was forested.

I then walked up Swift Creek to Horseshoe Lake. The trail reaches the lake at 6,800 feet in 1.6 miles. There are nice places to camp there, with drinking water from the lake or outlet stream. You could also camp at Ward Lake which is about a mile to the north. There are places to wander off trail above both Horseshoe and Ward lakes.

I then walked down Swift Creek back to the trailhead, 9.2 miles from Horseshoe Lake. There are campsites every mile or two. Swift Creek provides good water.

The trail proceeds through Mumford Meadow, where there's a trail junction. Then it passes a short distance from Fosters Cabin, a somewhat dilapidated structure with a metal roof. I suspect the roof leaks rain a little, but it would provide some protection if it was raining. There's a dirt floor. There are some boards against the walls on the outside that keep it from falling over. Below the old cabin, you'll pass through Parker Meadow.

Fees, Regulations, etc.

Information kiosk, pit toilet
Self-issued wilderness permit; California Campfire Permit needed for overnight stays
Share trails with horses
Wilderness regulations apply

Maps

Maps: Hike Finder
My Topo Explorer Series: Trinity Alps
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: Trinity Alps Wilderness
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: Shasta-Trinity National Forest

Trip Reports

Search Trip Reports for Granite Lake-Horseshoe Lake Loop Hike

Related Discussions / Q&A

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Guidebooks that cover this hike

Hiking California's Trinity Alps Wilderness by Dennis Lewon
Trinity Alps & Vicinity by Mike White
Day Hiking Mount Shasta, Lassen & Trinity Alps Regions by John Soares
100 Classic Hikes in Northern California by John R. Soares & Marc J. Soares
Marin to Crescent City to Mt. Shasta: Northern California's Best Day Hikes by Art Bernstein
The Trinity Alps: A Hiking and Backpacking Guide by Luther Linkhart with Michael White
100 Northern California Hiking Trails by Don & Roberta Lowe

Contributors

retiredjerry (creator)

Granite Lake-Horseshoe Lake Loop Hike

Granite Lake-Horseshoe Lake Loop Hike

From Oregon Hikers Field Guide

Contents

Hike Description

Detailed Description

Fees, Regulations, etc.

Maps

Trip Reports

Related Discussions / Q&A

Guidebooks that cover this hike

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