30 1 Day Treks to Explore in Inyo County

Checkout places to visit in Inyo County

Inyo County

Almost one-half of Inyo Country is within Death Valley National Park. With a population density of 1.8 people per square mile, it also has the second-lowest population density in California, after Alpine County.

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1 Day Treks to Explore in Inyo County

Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest

The Methuselah Grove in the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest is the location of the "Methuselah", a Great Basin bristlecone pine that is 4,851 years old. It is considered to be the world's oldest known and confirmed living non-clonal organism. The Methuselah Grove trail includes the side valley of the Methuselah Grove where the oldest tree lives

Artists Drive

Artists Drive is a scenic viewpoint in Inyo County. It crosses a sloping mountainside composed of vibrant soil colored by rich metals. The drive passes an area dubbed the Artist’s Palette, which is among the unique landmarks in Death Valley National Park that must be seen to believe. Artist’s Drive is a one-way road traveling from south to north. For those coming from Badwater Basin, this is an ideal side trek en route to Furnace Creek.

Bear Creek Spire

Bear Creek Spire is an amazing high peak on the Sierra Crest, located at the head of the Rock Creek drainage. It is striking from all sides and has two classic routes that every Sierra mountaineer should experience, all the way to the top of an exciting summit block. It is the 46th highest mountain in California and the 225th highest mountain in the United States. The first ascent of Bear Creek Spire was a solo climb by Hermann Ulrichs in 1923 up its west face.

Bishop Pass Trailhead

This Trailhead offers fantastic views nearly all the way, six lakes together with many ponds, streams and floral meadows, and ending by traversing a rocky slope above the final lake and climbing steeply to a saddle along the Sierra Crest at 11,972 feet. The hike begins at South Lake, reached by a paved road off Hwy 168, so the easy access, the relatively gentle elevation gain and the route to the Kings Canyon backcountry with the incredible scenery make the route often relatively busy.

Cloudripper

Cloudripper is a 13,525-foot-elevation mountain summit located two miles east of the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in Inyo County of northern California. It is approximately 14 miles west of the community of Big Pine, 1.1 miles north-northeast of Picture Puzzle, and 2.1 miles south of parent Mount Agassiz. Cloudripper ranks as the 58th highest summit in California, and the highest point of the Inconsolable Range.

Golden Canyon Trail

The Golden Canyon in Death Valley National Park is probably the most famous hike in the park. It is easily accessible and you can enjoy the view from manly Beacon and explore the golden mudstone hills . It is one of the iconic location for trekkers and also there are so many things to expore.

Golden Canyon Trailhead

Golden Canyon Trailhead is a locality in Inyo County. Golden Canyon Trailhead is situated west of Red Cathedral Junction, and west of Zabriskie Point Junction.This route features tons of geologic and human history – you’ll pass through layers of strata defining the different ages of Death Valley’s past, see canyons painted in dozens of different colors, and pass old mining shafts and claims from the area’s industrial heyday.

Lone Pine Lake

Lone Pine Lake is located in the Inyo National Forest in Southern California and makes for a perfect day hike to explore the Eastern Sierra's. This lake sits on a ridge above Whitney Portal. Once you get there, take your time and enjoy the lake and its majestic surrounding, which includes huge boulders, sheer granite cliffs, and evergreens.

Lone Pine Peak

Lone Pine Peak is located on the east side of the Sierra Nevada range just west of the town of Lone Pine, California in Inyo County, in eastern California in the southwestern United States. The summit marks the eastern boundary of the John Muir Wilderness in the Inyo National Forest. Lone Pine Peak is the mountain in the photo for the default desktop of macOS Sierra.

Manly Beacon

Manly Beacon is a towering spire that rises above the Death Valley badlands. The peak stands out in stark contrast to the backdrop of the Red Cathedral formation and the surrounding mud hills. To many people, the peak may look unclimbable, but there is a narrow ridge that accesses the small summit, where there are unforgettable views of the surrounding badlands, the Death Valley salt pan, and Telescope Peak, the often-snowcapped highpoint of the Panamint Range.

Middle Palisade

Middle Palisade is a peak in the Palisades group, part of the central Sierra Nevada mountain range in the U.S. state of California. It is the twelfth highest peak in the state.Several routes involving exposed scrambling class 3 and/or easy technical rock climbing exist on the various flanks of Middle Palisade. Some routes involve travel on the Middle Palisade Glacier.

Mosaic Canyon Trail

Mosaic Canyon is a 4 mile hike in Death Valley with short sections of rock scrambling.The trailhead begins at the end of Mosaic Canyon Road, a 2.3 mile dirt road that begins just across the street from Stovepipe Wells Campground. The road is usually passable for most passenger cars, but you may want to check with the rangers if there’s been rain recently. Although there are some nice, shady sections of the trail here.

Mount Agassiz

Mount Agassiz is located in the western portion of the Unita Mountains, Wasatch National Forest and High Unitas Wilderness. It is the northernmost and easiest to climb of the major Palisades summits. There are three major routes to Agassiz's summit. The easiest is the west slope, both for its non-technical ascent and proximity to the Bishop Pass Trail. From South Lake, the trail climbs gently to Bishop Pass, and the summit route begins there.

Mount Humphreys

Mount Humphreys is a mountain peak in the Sierra Nevada on the Fresno-Inyo county line in the U.S. It is the highest of a group of dormant volcanic peaks known as the San Francisco Peaks. The summit can be most easily reached by hiking the 4.8 miles long Humphreys Summit Trail that begins at the Arizona Snowbowl ski resort in the Coconino National Forest.

Mount Muir

Mount Muir is a peak in the Sierra Nevada of California, 0.95 miles south of Mount Whitney. This 14,018-foot peak is named in honor of Scottish-born John Muir, a famous geologist, conservationist and founder of the Sierra Club. Among mountain climbers, a peak needs to meet certain criteria in order to be included in some lists. To be listed as an independent peak a summit must have 300 feet of clean prominence.

Mount Tyndall

Mount Tyndall is a peak in the Mount Whitney region of the Sierra Nevada in the U.S. state of California. At 14,025 feet, it is the tenth highest peak in the state. The easiest route on Mount Tyndall in terms of access and climbing is the Northwest Ridge, which involves an easy scramble. It begins about one half mile west of Shepherd Pass and about 1 mile north of the peak. The mountain was named in honor of the Irish scientist and mountaineer, John Tyndall.

Mount Williamson

Mount Williamson is one of the great peaks of the Sierra Nevada. It is truly awe-inspiring: rising 9,000 ft from the Owens Valley. It is the second-highest mountain in both the Sierra Nevada range and the state of California, and the sixth-highest peak in the contiguous United States. The standard ascent route is the West Side Route, accessed from Shepherd's Pass. From the pass, one travels across the Williamson Bowl, which lies between Mount Williamson and Mount Tyndall.

Palisade Glacier

Palisades Glacier is one of the southernmost glaciers in North America, and it sits right around 12,4000 feet. The glacier descends from the flanks of four fourteeners, or mountain peaks over 14,000 ft in elevation, including North Palisade , the highest peak of the Palisades group and the third highest peak in the Sierra Nevada overall.

Palisades

These are a group of peaks in the central part of the Sierra Nevada in the U.S. state of California. The peaks in the group are particularly steep, rugged peaks and "contain the finest alpine climbing in California. It spans from Taboose Pass south of Cardinal Mountain to Bishop Pass north of Mount Agassiz. Much of the west side of the range is only accessible by cross-country hiking.

Map of 1 Day Treks to explore in Inyo County