Hwy 395 has a plethora of beautiful lakes along it and the Virginia Lakes are no expectation. The easy to access location and multiple hikes from one location make for a perfect pit stop or an extended hike to stretch your legs!
By Bekah Whitney
The Virginia Lakes area is a wonderful place to stop by for a quick pit stop or an extended hike. The road is paved most of the way, there are a variety of hikes and, if anyone does not want to hike, the parking lot is right next to Big Virginia Lake!
If you are unfamiliar with hiking in Wilderness areas, you may be wondering why there are so many hikes that start from the Virginia Lakes Trailhead. In efforts to preserve and protect Wilderness areas, there is often only one designated hiking trail that serves as passage to multiple locations. Hiking at Virginia Lakes is a great activity to do with all age groups as the first lake is at the parking lot.
Distance from Town of Bridgeport: 19.1 miles, about a 30 minute drive
Trailhead GPS Coordinates: 38.04893, -119.26545
Or Type in: Virginia Lakes
Getting there: Conveniently, the drive to Virginia Lakes Trailhead is mostly paved and on the highway. Head south on US-395 S for 13.2 miles. Close to the top of the pass, turn right onto Virginia Lakes Rd and follow this for 5.8 miles. You can either park at the trailhead or park at Big Virginia Lake.
Main hikes from Virginia Lakes Trailhead:
Big Virginia Lake is a hot spot for fishing, paddling, and plain old sight seeing. This picturesque lake is a hot spot for visitors because of its easy access, but still feels empty due to the high volume of crowds flocking to other locations in this area. Complete with benches and picnic tables, there is a little of something for everyone in your party. We happened to be there when the fish truck arrived to dump a bunch of trout into their new home and it was fun to watch them branch out and explore.
Red Lake is the perfect small hike for new hikers or someone just wanting to stretch their legs. Not even a mile hike and just a tiny bit above Big Virginia Lake, it can give you a new perspective of the area while you wait for the rest of your party to finish their longer hikes.
Length: 0.59 mile out-and-back
Elevation Gain: 102 ft
Difficultly: easy
Blue Lake is a little less of an adventure than Red Lake, milage wise, but it is “around the corner” from Big Virginia Lake, instead of right in sight. There is a really neat marshy area at the tailwaters of the lake that is full of trout and wildflowers in the summer.
Length: 0.4 miles out-and-back
Elevation Gain: 50 ft
Difficultly: easy
Cooney Lake is my favorite lake to hike to from Virginia Lakes Trailhead. It’s a short enough hike that you won’t feel like you’re dying, but long enough to get your heart pumping! Plus the lake is absolutely stunning!
Length: 2.4-mile out-and-back
Elevation Gain: 325 ft
Difficultly: moderate
The hike: You can start this hike from the Virginia Lakes Trailhead or Big Virginia Lake. Once you come to Blue Lake, you will start the steady climb up. On the way up you will come across an old log cabin that you can go inside of and look around. I like to use this as a little break to catch my breath. After the cabin, keep on heading up until you reach Cooney Lake!
The lake: Cooney Lake is one of those lakes that you can just sit at for hours. It has a waterfall feeding it, beautiful cliffs, and stunning mountains surrounding it. It’s also a hot spot for wild flowers and fishing! The view from the cliffs at the headwaters of the lake is hard to beat as well.
A lot of people like to hike to the Frog Lakes because they are just a little bit further than Cooney Lake. Although they are beautiful, Cooney Lake is much prettier in my opinion. I would suggest only hiking to them if you aren’t satisfied with the length of the hike to Cooney.
Length: 3.3-mile out-and-back
Elevation Gain: 544 ft
Difficultly: moderate
The hike: Just a bit past Cooney Lake sit the Frog Lakes. You will cross the creek that feeds Cooney, head up a little bit of switchbacks and pop out right next to them!
The lakes: The Frog Lakes, although shallow, offer a lot of wildflowers viewing. Although nothing as beautiful as Cooney, I did enjoy having more lakes to extend my time on this hike!
If you choose to make it all the way to Summit Lake, plan for a long day hike. The lake is stunning and very much worth it, but it is a climb without much shade cover. This lake can also be reached by starting at Green Lake Trailhead, but starting at this trailhead will make it shorter.
Length: 11.6-mile out-and-back
Elevation Gain: 2,700 ft
Difficultly: Difficult
The hike: Once past the Frog Lakes you will keep climbing for about 4 miles. Plan on taking many breaks as there is a lot of elevation gain in that 4 miles. When you are almost there you will come to a sign that points the way to Summit Lake. You will have one more climb, until you reach the lake!
The lake: Summit Lake is a long beautiful lake with towering mountains to one side and wonderful lakeshore on the other. One fun thing to note is that on the opposite side of the lake is the start of Yosemite National Park. There is a large sign that states all the regulations of entering the park so don’t worry about it too much.
The best thing about this lake for me was seeing big horned sheep playing in the snow on the opposite side of the lake. We unfortunately didn’t bring binoculars, but it was still fun to see the little dots running around on the steep mountain above. We honestly wouldn’t have even figured out they were up there unless they weren’t disturbing rocks that fell down into the lake, so if you hear a lot of rocks rolling for what seems to be no good reason, make sure to study the mountain side to potentially see some big horned sheep!
Wearing:
In my pack:
If you are planning on driving California’s Hwy 395, the Virginia lakes basin is a great place to take a pit stop for your whole group. From Big Virginia Lake all the way to Cooney Lake everyone will be able to stretch their legs and get a break from the car.
Leave a comment below and let us know if hiking around the Virgina Lakes basin made it on your bucket list! Remember to share with your friends and family who love hiking and want to explore the Eastern Sierra of California!
Hi! I’m Bekah, but you can call me Beks, all my friends do! I travel full-time in a tiny home on wheels that my partner, Sawyer, and I built from a cargo trailer shell in 2019. We started out in beautiful Colorado and have been all over the United States over the years. This space is designed to inspire and guide the nature obsessed nomad, weekend warrior, and future roadlifer. I’m so excited you’re here!
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One Comment on Exploring Hwy 395’s Beautiful Hidden Gems: Hiking The Virginia Lakes
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