Telephone Lake Trail #5576

Dogs Leashed

Features Commonly Backpacked · Fall Colors · Lake · Views · Wildflowers · Wildlife

This area is open to grazing during the summer months (a compromise necessary to allow establishment of the wilderness) and you may encounter cows on the trail. Just proceed cautiously and don't spook them. This is one reason why you should keep your dog(s) on a leash.

This area is also popular with hunters starting in late September. It's advisable to wear "hunter orange" or other bright colors if planning a late-fall hike in this area.

The #5576 leaves the Middle Boulder Trail #5577 about 1.3 miles in from the Middle Boulder Trailhead on Forest Road 40N17 and continues a steady climb up the valley. The trail can be wider than expected for its first mile due to the passage of cattle—they are usually heading for summer grazing in the big meadow at 6,200 feet. After the cows turn off for the meadow, the trail reverts to a singletrack and continues its steady climb up to delightful little Telephone Lake in the shadow of Point 7577. There are a few good campsites around the lake.

Beyond the lake, the trail continues a steady, easy climb through a big meadow and then makes a short, steeper climb up to the crest of the Scott Mountains. The trail continues downhill from the crest through some forest, then skirts two meadows before arriving at a signed junction with the Pacific Crest Trail. The Telephone Lake Trail (now the #8W25 because you crossed from the Klamath National Forest to the Shasta-Trinity National Forest at the crest) continues downhill for about another 0.5 miles to end at a junction with the Tangle Blue Trail #8W01.