Agnew Pass #2642

Dogs Leashed

Features Lake · Swimming · Views · Wildflowers · Wildlife

If you arrive before 7 AM, you can drive to the trailhead in Agnew Meadows. You'll be charged $10 on exit, assuming you leave when the Minaret Road entrance station is open. If you arrive after 7 AM, you must take the shuttle bus. If you have exact change, tickets can be purchase from the driver for $7. Otherwise, they can be obtained from the Mammoth Mountain Visitor Center. The first bus leaves at 7:30 AM.

It would be difficult to overstate the beauty of the Agnew Pass Trail. There are continuous fields of flowers and open views of the Ritter Range. The trail climbs only 140 feet in 0.9 miles. Summit Lake, near the end, is relatively small and the water can get stagnant in the late fall, but it has a great large campsite on the rocks above the southern end.

The campsite has a remarkable view of the San Joaquin River canyon, ridges on both sides, and on to the mountain ranges to the south. From Agnew Pass, it is only a short distance and a 100-foot drop to Clark Lakes. There is about 1,600 feet of climbing from Agnew Meadows to Clark Lakes, but this is far less than if you hike there from June Lakes.

I was on my way to Thousand Island Lake, but I detoured this way just because I couldn't miss it. It is farther and a little more climbing, but not that much because there are also ups and downs if you go via the PCT.

This can also be a great day hike from Agnew Meadows. It is a little over 12 miles round trip. You could return via the River Trail.