Graveyard Lakes 2015
Google earth KML – Graveyard Lakes
Wilderness: Ansel Adams Wilderness
Trail System: Goodale Pass Trail
Latitude: 37.2654
Longitude: -118.5833
Elevation: 10,036 feet
Day 1 – Hike in
Lower graveyard lake is located approximately 7.4 miles in from Lake Thomas A. Edison. The Lower Graveyard Lake is where we will be base camping all four nights. The hike is pretty straight forward and is well maintained. Once we arrive at the lower graveyard lake, we locate a nice spot on the west side of the lake to drop packs and dig in. Contrary to what we expected for September, the wind is blowing really hard and has a chill on it that wasn’t too comfortable. As darkness approached, the wind let up and we were able to enjoy our meal and get some rest.
Day 2 – Acclimate
On day two, we just stayed local to lower graveyard lake. We took this chance to acclimate and recover from the hike in. Fishing was good throughout the day with decent brook trout up to 12 inches long. The weather stayed cool throughout the day with gusts of wind that prevented us from dressing down. Other than that, it was a nice relaxing day by the beach.
Day 3 – Lake Fishing
Another chilly morning with frost on the ground. We stay local for the first half of the morning and once it started to warm up around 10:00 am, we headed out to fish the remaining lakes in the area. It was slightly warmer on this day with minimal wind. Our first stop was the first middle lake. We spend about an hour here and the fishing was OK. After having our fill here, we head up to the upper graveyard lake. It’s about .5 miles up the mountain. After arriving, the guys fished the lake but didn’t catch anything. Disappointed, we decided to eat lunch and then gross country to the third middle lake and then to the second middle lake. Fishing wasn’t very good in these lakes as either, but the scenery was awesome with a great look at graveyard peak and the cliffs surrounding it. As the day ended, we headed back to camp for dinner and drinks.
Day 4 – Peak Day
Graveyard peak is approximately 11,094 feet high. This will be our destination today. We head out about 10:00 am and follow the ridge that leads out of the first middle graveyard lake. It’s a steep climb but we make good progress and reach the top in about 2.5 hours. Due to the rough fire, visibility is lacking which is a bummer because the distant peaks in this area are beautiful. After hanging out for about 30 minutes, we eat lunch and then head back to camp.
Day 5 – Hike out
We had a safe travel back to the trail head and then back to Fresno. I’d have to say that this is one of my top 5 trips. I’m glad that we got to experience it again.
DAY 1: GaiaGPS Info From Aaron
DAY 2 : GaiaGPS Info From Aaron
Friday
Morning – 36.3 F
Shade – 50 F
Sun – 65 F
* Very windy
Saturday
Morning – 29 F
Shade – 53 F
Sun – 67 F
Sunday
Morning – 35.5 F
Shade – 59.5 F
Sun – 72.2 F
Water temperature was 60.4 F at 3 feet
