{"id":710,"date":"2015-07-20T01:53:12","date_gmt":"2015-07-20T06:53:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/?p=710"},"modified":"2015-07-20T01:53:12","modified_gmt":"2015-07-20T06:53:12","slug":"backpacking-to-emerald-lake-sequoia-national-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/backpacking-to-emerald-lake-sequoia-national-park\/","title":{"rendered":"Backpacking to Emerald Lake – Sequoia National Park"},"content":{"rendered":"

We set up our base camp at Dorst Creek and then hiked out all over the park.\u00a0 As a group, we got in over 30 miles in the four days we were in Sequoia National Park<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One of our most favorite trails was our backpacking trip to Emerald Lake on the Lakes Trail.<\/p>\n

\"Emerald<\/a>
Emerald Lake – Sequoia National Park<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step one, we went to Lodgepole Visitor Center and put in for a Wilderness Permit.\u00a0 Step two, we packed our packs and headed out on the trail.
\nThe Lakes Trail is about 15-17 miles depending how much wandering you do.\u00a0 We wandered all over and got in about 15 miles.
\nElevation change for Emerald lake is about 5000 feet.\u00a0 You start at 6800 and go up to 9200 or so.\u00a0 It is a tough hike to the lakes.\u00a0 The trail gets very steep at times and it is quite challenging.
\nOur group consisted of one old man [our dad], our mom, and us – 13, 11, and 5 years of age.
\nYes, a 5-year-old did backpack the entire trail with a pack.<\/p>\n

\"Loaded<\/a>
Loaded packs<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"IMG_7104\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Starting off was pretty easy.\u00a0\u00a0 The Wilverine had to stop for gummy bears quite a few times.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_7117\"<\/a><\/p>\n

We stopped for lunch on the way up at the watchtower.\u00a0 Take the watchtower trail; do not take the hump trail.\u00a0 The views on the watchtower trail were spectacular and the elevation was not nearly as extreme.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_7135\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"IMG_7138\"<\/a><\/p>\n

After the watchtower, the trail gets very rocky and narrow.\u00a0 If you look over the edge of the trail, the valley bottom is a long way down.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_7167\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"IMG_7163\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The first lake you encounter is Heather Lake.\u00a0 Next up is Aster Lake and then Emerald.\u00a0 The last lake is Pear Lake.<\/p>\n

\"Heather<\/a>
Heather Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"IMG_7243\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Getting<\/a>
Getting water from the stream<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We camped at Emerald Lake and were the only people in the camp.\u00a0\u00a0 We saw only a few people the entire time on the mountain and it was awesome.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_7202\"<\/a> \"IMG_7203\"<\/a> \"IMG_7233\"<\/a><\/p>\n

If you are in the area and have a chance to hike or backpack the Lakes Trail, we encourage you to do it.\u00a0 It was a really cool trip.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Sunset over Aster Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Emerald<\/a>
Emerald Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What a cool lake with spectacular views.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We set up our base camp at Dorst Creek and then hiked out all over the park.\u00a0 As a group, we got in over 30 miles in the four days we were in Sequoia National Park. One of our most favorite trails was our backpacking trip to Emerald Lake on the Lakes Trail. Step one, … Continue reading Backpacking to Emerald Lake – Sequoia National Park<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[7,14,37,4,30,24,31,23],"class_list":["post-710","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-backpacking","tag-epicsummerroadtrip2015","tag-high-sierra","tag-hiking","tag-kids-of-yonder","tag-natureboys","tag-sequoia-np","tag-yonderkids"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=710"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":731,"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710\/revisions\/731"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=710"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=710"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.roadtrippingforkids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=710"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}