Alpenglow Expeditions
Hiking business nearby (~42 mi away) — hasn't claimed their Roamze page yet
Mud Lake Trail
California
California
Free — you'll pick up right here.
2.8 mi
Distance
1,249 ft
Gain
1h 34m
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 Plumas 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
Loop trail
Here's your day, mapped
Mud Lake Trail
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
- 2.8 mi
- Elevation gain
- 1,249 ft
- Elevation loss
- 1,249 ft
- Highest point
- 6,994 ft
- Lowest point
- 6,594 ft
More about this trail ↓
Photos
Directions & GPX
Permits & access
- Managing agency
- Forest Service
- Dogs
- unknown
- Bikes
- no
About this trail
Mud Lake Trail is a 2.81-mile loop in California with 1,249 feet of elevation gain and loss. The trail reaches a maximum elevation of 6,994 feet.
Facts about this trail
The climb
- Starts at
- 6,952 ft
- High point
- 6,994 ft
- Total climbing
- 1,249 ft
- Total descent
- 1,249 ft
- Steepest stretch
- 24% grade around mile 1.6 from the start
- Length
- 2.8 mi
- Shape
- Loop
Most of the climbing comes late, so save something for the end.
Source: Roamze elevation profile and trail geometry (DEM samples along the mapped route)
When to go
Typical monthly averages (not a forecast) from the Bowman Dam, CA weather station, 17 mi away. High / low in °F.
- Jan46° high29° low
- Feb47° high28° low
- Mar49° high30° low
- Apr55° high33° low
- May64° high40° low
- Jun73° high47° low
- Jul82° high54° low
- Aug81° high54° low
- Sep77° high51° low
- Oct66° high42° low
- Nov54° high34° low
- Dec45° high29° low
The station sits about 1,600 ft lower than this spot, so expect it to run cooler up here.
Where it is
- Beckwourth Ranger District · Ranger district
- Plumas National Forest · National forest
- Managed by
- Forest Service
Conditions
Active alerts for Plumas National Forest as of Oct 9, 2026:
Stage I Fire Restrictions - Plumas National Forest
fire-restriction · posted Sep 5, 2026
Plumas National Forest Camping Stay and Occupancy Limits
information · posted Aug 24, 2026
Source: USFS forest alerts
Nearby
- LONG LAKE CONNECT TRAILHiking0.6 mi
- Silver Lake TrailHiking0.6 mi
- Lakes Basin Family Cg.Camping1.3 mi
- Lakes Basin Group Cg.Camping1.6 mi
- Frazier CreekCanoeing3.7 mi
- Jamison CreekCanoeing5.3 mi
- Free For All ValleyRock climbing7.6 mi
- Warm Up BoulderRock climbing7.7 mi
Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)
Add to a trip & share
Keep exploring — more trails worth the drive
Photo: waterarchives, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)LONG LAKE CONNECT TRAIL
~1 min drive
1.86-mile out-and-back trail with 417 ft elevation gain and loss.
Photo: waterarchives, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)BEAR LAKES LOOP TRAIL
~2 min drive
7.64-mile out-and-back trail in California with 1,875 ft elevation gain/loss.
Photo: waterarchives, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)JAMISON CREEK TRAIL
~5 min drive
12.78-mile out-and-back trail in California with 3,969 ft elevation gain/loss.
MOUNT ELWELL PEAK TRAIL
~5 min drive
18.56-mile out-and-back trail in California with 5,307 ft gain/loss, max 7,730 ft.
Photo: waterarchives, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)Bear Lakes Loop
~1 min drive
0.66-mile out-and-back out-and-back with 271 ft elevation gain in California
Photo: waterarchives, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)Smith Lake Trail
~5 min drive
5.46-mile out-and-back hike in California with 2,683 ft gain and 6,376 ft max elevation.
Pacific Crest Trail
~3 min drive
11.12-mile out-and-back trail in California with 3,108 ft elevation gain
Pacific Crest Trail
~5 min drive
18.64-mile out-and-back trail in California with 3,343 ft elevation gain.
Photo: waterarchives, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)Long Lake Connector
~2 min drive
1.88-mile out-and-back trail in California with 426 ft gain/loss
Silver Lake Trail
~1 min drive
8.04-mile out-and-back trail in California with 2,297 ft elevation gain and loss.
Guided trips nearby
Local operatorsoffering guided trips. You book directly with them — Roamze doesn’t take a cut.
View operator
