Shirley Lake–Granite Chief Trail, 5 sights is a 14.1-mile out-and-back in Chickering American River Reserve near Alpine Meadows, CA. The route reaches Shirley Lake at the turnaround, 6.9 miles in. It climbs 4,074 ft, with sections as steep as 21% grade. It scores 89/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: genuinely wild.
Elevation
0 mi6,254 – 8,695 ft · steepest grade: 21%14.6 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Granite Chief Trail 39.20030, -120.23701
Nearest town Alpine Meadows, CA
Directions
AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com
Shirley Lake–Granite Chief Trail, 5 sights
14.1 mi · ▲ 4,074 ft · 6 hr 44 min
Elevation 6,255–8,695 ft
Out & Back · Chickering American River Reserve
Trailhead: Granite Chief Trail · 39.20030, -120.23701
Weather Aug 3: Clear, high 86°F / low 50° · precip 0% · wind 2 mph · sunrise 6:04 AM · sunset 8:12 PM
Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start at the trailhead, heading NW.
- 150 ftContinue straight onto Granite Chief Trail, heading NW.
- 3.5 miContinue straight onto Pacific Crest Trail, heading S.
- 1.5 miTurn left, heading SE.
- 0.2 miTurn left onto Western States Trail, heading SE.
- 0.3 miContinue straight onto High Camp to Emigrant Ridge, heading S.
- 0.3 miTurn left, heading E.
- 300 ftBear left, heading E.
- 500 ftBear left, heading NE.
- 250 ftTurn left onto Shirley Canyon Trail, heading NE.
- 0.6 miTurn right, heading N.
- 50 ftContinue straight onto Solitude Trail, heading N.
- 0.3 miPass Shirley Lake.
- 200 ftBear left, heading NE.
- 250 ftContinue straight onto Shirley Canyon Trail, heading E.
- 300 ftTurn left, heading NE.
- 400 ftReach Shirley Lake, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 0.2 miBear right onto Solitude Trail, heading W.
- 0.3 miTurn left onto Shirley Canyon Trail, heading SW.
- 0.6 miTurn right, heading SE.
- 250 ftBear right, heading E.
- 500 ftBear right, heading E.
- 300 ftTurn right, heading E.
- 0.2 miContinue straight onto High Camp to Emigrant Ridge, heading SW.
- 500 ftContinue straight onto Western States Trail, heading SW.
- 0.3 miTurn right, heading SW.
- 0.2 miTurn right onto Pacific Crest Trail, heading N.
- 1.5 miContinue straight onto Granite Chief Trail, heading NE.
- 3.4 miArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
12% dirt2% gravel86% unspecified
Weather
ClearTemperature 86°F50°
Precip0%Wind2 mphUV8Humidity24%
Hourly temperature
90°50°
Sunrise 6:04 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PM6 PMSunset 8:12 PM
Tue
86°61°
Wed
85°58°
Thu
88°58°
Fri
88°59°
Sat
89°59°
Sun
89°57°
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 3.3 mi in (~135 min). Leave by 5:37 PM for the 8:12 PM sunset. Back at your car by 9:47 PM, after dark — bring a headlamp.
Good to know
- Parking lot at the trailhead
Other ways to reach this destination
More from Granite Chief Trail Trailhead
- Granite Chief Trail 3.1 mi · ▲ 764 ft
- Granite Chief & Granite Chief Trail via Pacific Crest Trail 10.7 mi · ▲ 3,046 ft
- Granite Chief Trail–Siberai Basin Loop Trail, 4 sights 12.1 mi · ▲ 3,453 ft
- Washeshu Peak–Granite Chief Trail, 4 sights 12.6 mi · ▲ 3,431 ft
- Polar Bear Lake–Granite Chief Trail, 4 sights 13.4 mi · ▲ 3,632 ft
- Tinker Knob & Granite Chief Trail via Pacific Crest Trail 14.9 mi · ▲ 3,978 ft
Get outside more
A wild hike near Alpine Meadows, emailed to you once a week.
Hikes near Alpine Meadows, California