Johnson - Baker Lakes Loop, Great Basin National Park

Johnson-Baker Lake Loop in Great Basin National Park, Nevada. Blue is lowest elevation, red is highest.

One of the favorite backpacking loops in the area is the 13.1-mile long Johnson-Baker Lakes loop in Great Basin National Park. It's also possible to do it in one day as a long day hike or a trail run. The loop has about 3,600 feet elevation gain (some bonus elevation gain because of the Shoshone Trail). It starts about 8,000 feet elevation, and the highest point is on the ridge above Johnson Lake at about 11,300 feet.

I went up South Fork Baker Trail, then down the Shoshone Trail (yes, down!) to meet up with the Johnson Lake Trail. Then it's very steep up to Johnson Lake and even steeper to the ridge above. Then it's nearly all downhill from there to Baker Lake and back to the trailhead. The Johnson Lake side is steeper, so if you want the steeper part first, go clockwise. If you want a more gradual ascent and a steeper downhill (and that uphill Shoshone Trail), go counter-clockwise.

I love this meadow up on the South Fork Baker trail. With no rain in months, the colors were a little muted.

The view from the Snake Divide between Baker Creek and Snake Creek drainages was gorgeous, with aspens brightening up the landscape. It was a very smoky day due to the copious wildfires in California, so that's why the photo isn't so crisp.

The colors were great heading down the trail.

Next it was up the steep trail past the Johnson Mill site to Johnson Lake.

The rust was taking an interesting shape.

As I started climbing up from Johnson lake, I could see more of the lake.

Stopping to take photos is a good excuse to breathe! I should mention that it's not a great trail above the lake. It's very steep and in places hard to follow. Consider it more of a route. And in early summer, it can be snow covered and require special skills to go up or down.

At the top of the ridge is one of the best views around--lots of rock! There are nice views of Baker Peak to the north and Pyramid Peak to the east.

To my great surprise, I saw a couple backpackers. Wheeler Peak and Doso Doyabi were in the background.

Baker Lake is smaller in the fall due to evaporation.

As I headed down the Baker Lake trail, I saw some beautiful aspen trees. I also encountered 13 more backpackers and 5 day hikers. That's a lot! Some were from Utah, and some from California, escaping the smokier conditions.

Moving fast and light, I did the loop in about 6.5 hours. It's nice to be able to do it fast, but the backpackers sure get a beautiful view in the morning!

If you have the time, I definitely recommend this loop. It's gorgeous and a lot of fun.