RATING |
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 |
DISTANCE |
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1.5 miles round-trip |
HIKING TIME |
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1 hour |
ELEVATION GAIN |
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200 feet |
HIGH POINT |
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8,250 feet |
EFFORT |
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Easy Walk |
BEST SEASON |
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June to October |
PERMITS/CONTACT |
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Yosemite National Park fee required ($20 per vehicle, valid for seven days), (209) 372-0200, www.nps.gov/yose |
MAPS |
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Yosemite National Park (download at |
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NOTES |
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Dogs and bikes prohibited |
This peaceful subalpine lake is often bypassed by Yosemite hikers, but it’s an excellent destination for summer wildflowers and a tranquil spot for a picnic.
From Yosemite’s Big Oak Flat entrance station on Highway 120, drive southeast 7.7 miles to Crane Flat, then turn left to stay on Highway 120. Drive 16.2 miles to the Lukens Lake trailhead parking area on the south side of the road. The trail begins across the road.
The Lukens Lake Trail is the perfect lake hike for hikers seeking to take it easy in Yosemite National Park. It has all the best features of a long backpacking trip to a remote subalpine area, without the long miles, steep hills, and heavy weight to carry.
As you drive out of Yosemite Valley and up Tioga Pass Road, the trailhead for Lukens Lake is one of the first you’ll reach. If you’ve been hiking around the Valley, your body has become accustomed to its 4,000-foot elevation, but Lukens Lake is at 8,250 feet. This may take some getting used to—don’t be surprised if you’re huffing and puffing a little more than you’d expect.
After parking at the Lukens Lake pullout, cross the highway to reach the trailhead. The wide trail climbs gently through a magnificent red fir forest for 0.5 mile. The red firs, with their red-brown, deeply engrained bark, prefer areas of heavy winter snowfall, usually between 7,000 and 8,000 feet in elevation, where the soil is well drained. They grow to be very large (more than 150 feet tall) and cluster in thick stands, making it nearly impossible for other trees or plants to grow near or around them.
After a brief climb, the trail descends to Lukens Lake in another 0.25 mile. The trail winds around the lake’s south side, skirting a verdant meadow on its east end. Pink shooting stars are the most prevalent flower here, and if you time your trip for mid- to late July, you may catch the peak of the bloom. Earlier in the summer, patches of snow linger along the trail and in the shady forest. Tioga Pass Road usually opens for travel in early June, but that doesn’t mean that all the snow has vanished from the trails. Soon after snowmelt, huge emerald green corn lilies grow in the standing water of the flooded meadow.
The best picnic spots are found on the lake’s far (west) end. In late summer, many hikers are tempted to swim. Because spring-fed Lukens Lake is quite shallow, the water is surprisingly warm, but don’t let your feet expect a smooth granite bottom. Lukens Lake is grassy and muddy underneath its blue waters.
The trail continues from the west side of Lukens Lake to White Wolf Campground (an additional 2.3 miles) and then all the way to Ten Lakes and the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River. You can hike as far as you please.
