Backpacking in Inyo National Forest
12 documented trips · 47,211 total feet of climbing across all routes
Inyo National Forest at a glance
CaliPeaks documents 12 backpacking routes in Inyo National Forest, covering 166.9 miles of trail and 47,211 feet of cumulative climbing. Routes range from 6 mi (Bishop Pass to Dusy Basin) to 47.2 mi (North Lake–South Lake Loop), between 7,274 and 14,505 feet of elevation. The gentlest climbing is on Little Lakes Valley at 1,242 feet of total gain.
The area is managed by Inyo National Forest (USFS). Wilderness permits are issued by Inyo National Forest (USFS) — check each trip page for quota and reservation windows. The most-recommended months across these routes are July, August, September.
Little Lakes Valley
Little Lakes Valley is a chain of emerald lakes threaded beneath the 13,000-foot granite spires of Bear Creek Spire and Mount Morgan, reache…
Piute Pass to Humphreys Basin
Piute Pass is Bishop's granite doorway: 3.5 miles to Lock Leven's camp and 2,000 feet of climbing over the 11,400-foot pass into Humphreys B…
Bishop Pass to Dusy Basin
Bishop Pass is the shortest route to Dusy Basin, a lake-dotted granite plateau at 11,000 feet beneath Mount Agassiz — 3 miles to Long Lake a…
Kearsarge Pass to Kearsarge Lakes
Kearsarge Pass is the eastern Sierra's most beautiful crossing: 3.5 miles from Onion Valley to Flower Lake's camp, then over the 11,700-foot…
Rush Creek to Thousand Island Lake
This out-and-back climbs the Rush Creek drainage from the June Lake Loop to Thousand Island Lake, a granite-bound alpine basin at the foot o…
Duck Pass to Duck Lake
Duck Lake is the easiest true backpacking destination in the Mammoth Lakes area: a 4.75-mile climb past Arrowhead and Barney Lakes and over …
Cottonwood Pass to Chicken Spring Lake
Cottonwood Pass is the gentle giant of the southern Sierra: a 10,000-foot trailhead, a mellow 3.5-mile climb to the 11,200-foot pass, and Ch…
Sabrina Basin
Sabrina Basin is Bishop's classic two-day trip: a 4.25-mile climb from Lake Sabrina past a chain of blue lakes to a high granite bench benea…
New Army Pass via Cottonwood Lakes
New Army Pass is the classic high route out of Horseshoe Meadow: 4.8 miles past the Cottonwood Lakes to a 12,300-foot saddle beneath Cirque …
Big Pine Lakes
Big Pine Lakes is the classic Palisades backpack: a steady 6.75-mile climb from Glacier Lodge past turquoise lakes to Sam Mack Meadow, in th…
Mount Whitney Trail
The Mount Whitney Trail climbs 6,140 feet in 10.7 miles from Whitney Portal to the summit of the highest peak in the contiguous United State…
North Lake–South Lake Loop
This five-to-seven-day traverse links two classic Bishop trailheads — North Lake and South Lake — into one of the finest big loops in the Si…