Crater Lake

California

California

Free — you'll pick up right here.

6.4 mi

Distance

2,392 ft

Gain

3h 4m

Time

No verdict for this trail

We won't guess. Here is exactly what we do and don't know.

What we do know

  • Inside Lassen National Forest

    2 managing-area boundaries mapped — agency alerts for them feed this page automatically.

    Boundary data

What's missing

  • No access route mapped

    We don't yet know which road reaches this trailhead, so we can't tell you if it's gated.

Nobody's filed a report here yet — be the first.

Why you'll love it

Through-trail
Big climb
Out & back

Here's your day, mapped

Crater Lake

Suggested plan · check conditions before you go

Building your full AI plan…

Meals

Building your meal plan…

Gear for the day

Building your gear list…

Elevation & route

Distance
6.4 mi
Elevation gain
2,392 ft
Elevation loss
2,392 ft
Highest point
7,266 ft
Lowest point
5,653 ft
More about this trail ↓

Photos

Directions & GPX

Get Directions

Permits & access

Managing agency
Forest Service

About this trail

Crater Lake is a 12.76-mile out-and-back trail in California with 2,392 feet of elevation gain and loss. The route reaches a maximum elevation of 7,266 feet.

Facts about this trail

The climb

Starts at
5,653 ft
High point
7,266 ft
Total climbing
2,392 ft
Total descent
2,392 ft
Steepest stretch
21% grade around mile 3.7 on the way out
Length (round trip)
13 mi
Shape
Out and back

Most of the climbing comes early, so the second half is easier.

Source: Roamze elevation profile and trail geometry (DEM samples along the mapped route)

When to go

Typical monthly averages (not a forecast) from the Manzanita Lake, CA weather station, 27 mi away. High / low in °F.

  1. Jan41° high22° low
  2. Feb42° high22° low
  3. Mar46° high24° low
  4. Apr50° high27° low
  5. May61° high35° low
  6. Jun70° high41° low
  7. Jul79° high46° low
  8. Aug78° high45° low
  9. Sep72° high41° low
  10. Oct59° high33° low
  11. Nov47° high26° low
  12. Dec39° high22° low

The station sits about 1,500 ft lower than this spot, so expect it to run cooler up here.

Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020

Where it is

Managed by
Forest Service

Source: USFS EDW boundaries; USGS PAD-US 4.1

Conditions

Active alerts for Lassen National Forest as of Oct 10, 2026:

Source: USFS forest alerts

Nearby

Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)

Add to a trip & share

Keep exploring — more trails worth the drive

Caribou-N. Divide CaribouPhoto: Seth Tisue, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)

Caribou-N. Divide Caribou

~14 min drive

6.58-mile out-and-back trail in California with 430 ft elevation gain.

Jewel LakePhoto: Seth Tisue, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)

Jewel Lake

~15 min drive

5.37-mile out-and-back trail to Jewel Lake in California with 541 ft of elevation gain.

Butte Lake To Snag Lake TrailPhoto: Vlad & Marina Butsky on Flickr, CC BY 2.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

Butte Lake To Snag Lake Trail

~21 min drive

17.56-mile out-and-back hike in California with 2,255 ft elevation gain and loss.

Bathtub Lake TrailPhoto: Vlad & Marina Butsky on Flickr, CC BY 2.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

Bathtub Lake Trail

~21 min drive

2.66-mile out-and-back trail in California with 661 ft elevation gain.

BUTTE LAKE

~15 min drive

36.96-mile out-and-back trail in California with 2900 ft elevation gain.

Cone-Hay Mdws Caribou

~14 min drive

1.64-mile out-and-back trail in California with 131 ft elevation gain.

Emerald-Cypress CaribouPhoto: Seth Tisue, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)

Emerald-Cypress Caribou

~16 min drive

4.12-mile out-and-back trail in California with 456 ft gain.

Cone-Hay Mdws Caribou

~15 min drive

7.48-mile out-and-back trail in California with 543 ft elevation gain.

Cinder Cone Trail

~22 min drive

Start: Butte Lake parking area Round-Trip Distance to Base: 2.4 miles Round Trip Distance to Summit: 4 miles Round-Trip Time: 3 hours Elevation Change: 846 ft Elevation: 6,061 - 6,907 feet Trail Surface: Cinders (similar to course sand) Season: Approximately June through…

Trail Lake

~19 min drive

9.16-mile out-and-back trail to Trail Lake in California.