Our journey kicks off at the Cottonwood Lakes trailhead and concludes at the Cottonwood Pass trailhead. These trailheads are conveniently positioned side by side. The beauty of this loop is that it doesn’t necessitate any car shuttle arrangements, and what’s even better, there’s no redundancy in our trail experience! We camp our first night at Cottonwood Lake, before heading over New Army Pass. From there we meet the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) as we head towards Big Whitney Meadows. On the final day, we head over Cottonwood Pass, and back to the trailhead.
Inclusions
Price includes guiding, permits, group camping gear, tents, kitchen gear, and all meals. Our meals are healthy and prepared by your guide before the trip. We use good quality dehydrated ingredients to make a variety of delicious, protein-packed meals. We rarely serve pre-packaged dehydrated meals.
Prerequisites
No prior backpacking experience required, but you should be in good physical shape. For proper acclimatization, we suggest spending at least one night at a moderate altitude, higher than 8,000 feet, just prior to the start of the journey. See our detailed tips on acclimatizing an physical training in the “Resources” tab.
Day 1
We meet at the end of the Cottonwood Road at the trailhead to Cottonwood Lakes. This is one of the highest trailheads in the Sierra Nevada at 10,000 feet. We will check gear and head out on the gradual climb to Cottonwood Lakes where we choose our campsite from the countless sandy sites adjacent to crystal clear blue lakes.
Day 2
We head off early and over New Army Pass. This takes us to the high point of our trip at 12,300 feet and fantastic views out over the southern Sierra, far to the southern mountain ranges surrounding the Los Angeles Basin and out to the desert ranges of Nevada. We drop steadily back into the trees of upper Rock Creek drainage. We take lunch here and then head back along the PCT to a small unnamed lake and meadow above Big Whitney Meadows.
Day 3
We rise early for the last part of the trip and hit the trail back over Cottonwood Pass to the trailhead, planning to get back there early afternoon giving you time to reluctantly head home, happy and fulfilled.
Distances and elevations
Day 1: Trailhead Cottonwood Lakes, 5.5 miles, 1300 feet of gain, 300 feet of down
Day 2: Cottonwood Lakes to un-named lake, 7.1 miles, 190 feet of gain, 1600 feet of down
Day 3: Un-named lake to Trailhead, 6.3 miles, 699 feet of gain, 2000 feet of down
★ Please Read before you go ★
We feel the following information is essential... (links open as PDF in new window)
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Equipment List
- Fitness, Training and Acclimatization Tips
- Leave No Trace
PDF Maps:
Cottonwood Loop Map
Rental Equipment:
Need to rent equipment for your trip? We can help.