Emerald Lake

A quick hike to Emerald Lake with the option to continue on to Skelton Lake

Hiking Easy

Distance: 2.5 km
Ascent: 113 m
Descent: 113 m
Duration: 0-1 hrs

Low Point: 2.8 km
High Point: 2.9 km
Gradient: 7˚

This quick hike to Emerald Lake is easy to access and it leads to a gorgeous alpine lake, yet somehow it still stays a bit off the beaten track.

Photo from Emerald Lake — Photo: Jim's Photos1

Description

"The trail to Emerald Lake winds uphill along a beautiful creek with only about 450 feet of elevation gain,” writes MonoCounty.org. "Emerald Lake pops into view just after the trail levels out, with a fork in the trail going left or right towards the lake.”

If you haven’t had enough, take the other fork in the trail and continue on to Skelton Lake. Hiking all the way to Skelton Lake and back adds up to a 2.4-mile roundtrip hike.

Sources: https://www.visitmammoth.com/blogs/3-trailheads-hikes-amazing-alpine-lakes-mammoth-lakes-basin https://www.mammothtrails.org/trail/39/emerald-lake-skelton-lake-trail/ https://www.monocounty.org/listing/emerald-lake-trail/1279/

Difficulty

Easy

Walking along a well-kept trail that’s mostly flat. No obstacles are present.

Low Exposure

The path is on completely flat land and potential injury is limited to falling over.

Remoteness

Close to help in case of emergency.

Best time to visit

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