AMBLEWAY Wildest hikes
Watson Creek headwaters meadow and Tahoe Rim Trail.jpg
Dicklyon · CC BY-SA 4.0
Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit

Pickupsticks–Watson Creek East Trail, 3 sights

15.8 mi · ▲ 1,990 ft · 6 hr 16 min

Pickupsticks–Watson Creek East Trail, 3 sights is a 15.8-mile out-and-back in Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit near Ponderosa Palisades, CA. It climbs 1,990 ft and is mostly dirt. It scores 75/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: genuinely wild.

Elevation

0 mi6,926 – 7,865 ft16.3 mi

Getting there

Trailhead: Unnamed 39.24975, -120.19060
Nearest town Ponderosa Palisades, CA
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Directions

AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com

Pickupsticks–Watson Creek East Trail, 3 sights

15.8 mi · ▲ 1,990 ft · 6 hr 16 min

Elevation 6,925–7,865 ft

Out & Back · Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit

Trailhead: 39.24975, -120.19060

Weather Sep 22: sunrise 6:49 AM · sunset 6:59 PM

Parking lot at the trailhead

  1. Start at the trailhead, heading W.
  2. 0.4 miTurn left, heading SE.
  3. 0.3 miTurn left onto Big Chief Trail (Middle), heading E.
  4. 3.5 miBear right onto Big Chief Trail (Upper), heading E.
  5. 1.3 miContinue straight onto Tahoe Rim Trail, heading E.
  6. 2.2 miSharp right, heading NE.
  7. 150 ftSharp left onto Hanes Flat, heading E.
  8. 100 ftTurn right onto Watson Creek East Trail, heading NE.
  9. 500 ftTurn left onto Pickupsticks, heading NE.
  10. 0.2 miReach Watson Lake Trail, then turn around and head back the way you came.
  11. 0.2 miTurn right onto Watson Creek East Trail, heading W.
  12. 0.1 miTurn left onto Hanes Flat, heading W.
  13. 50 ftSharp right, heading W.
  14. 150 ftSharp left onto Tahoe Rim Trail, heading NW.
  15. 2.2 miContinue straight onto Big Chief Trail (Upper), heading W.
  16. 4.8 miTurn right, heading SW.
  17. 0.3 miTurn right, heading NW.
  18. 0.2 miArrive back at the trailhead.

Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.

Trail map, photos and weather for this hike: www.ambleway.com/hikes/watson-peak-viewpoint-watson-lake-out-back-3-lakes-21-km-cc3c

Trail surface

100% dirt

Weather

Sunrise 6:49 AMSunset 6:59 PM

Good to know

  • Parking lot at the trailhead

Other ways to reach this destination

More from this trailhead

Hikes near Ponderosa Palisades, California