California's Most Scenic Paved Mountain Trail Is The Perfect Hike Or Ride Through Sierra Nevada Landscapes

There are plenty of contenders out there for the title of California's easiest and most scenic trail. Tahoe's legendary East Shore Trail is a paved 3-mile romp past boulder-dotted beaches washed by glass-clear water. The short yet astonishing Rockefeller Loop passes through a fairy-tale forest within Humboldt Redwoods State Park. And then there's the Lakes Basin Path, a way for hikers, bikers, strollers, and more to enjoy the jewels of the Mammoth Lakes area.

The 5.3-mile route is but a fraction of the greater 300 miles of marked trails that weave and wiggle around the year-round adventure town of Mammoth Lakes and its corner of the Eastern Sierra. While some of its sibling trails pass through great granite crags and high-alpine passes, the Lakes Basin Path bends a dogleg through the town, following the curves of Lake Mary Road. The journey tops out at Horseshoe Lake, a vision of alpine beauty with jagged mountains and volcano-scarred landscapes looming in the background. Along the way, you'll whiz by a true highlight reel of the Mammoth Lakes.

The starting point for this exceptional odyssey through the California peaks is the Village at Mammoth, specifically the intersection of Main Street and Minaret Road. To get there, you're looking at a drive of only 12 minutes or so from the Mammoth Yosemite Airport, which sits adjacent to the iconic mountain and desert highway of U.S. Route 395. It'll take a lot longer to come in from the larger air hubs of the West Coast — San Francisco International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport are both over 5 hours away.

Cycling and hiking the Lakes Basin Path

The Lakes Basin Path is a truly multiuse route. It's paved from tip to toe, and everything from e-bikes to baby strollers to classic walking boots will do fine on its surface. Although it's generally considered an easy route, traveling from the Village at Mammoth all the way to Horseshoe Lake and then back again adds up to more than 10 miles, with an elevation gain of around 1,000 feet. That's not to be underestimated.

The good news is that you can do the adventure on easy mode. Hop on the trolley at the base station near the Westin Monache Resort (yes, they take bikes!) and let it whisk you all the way up to Horseshoe Lake. From there, you can embark on a freewheeling descent back down, no thigh-busting hills required. The trolley service operates from May to October, and it's completely free.

Whichever way you choose to ride the Lakes Basin Path — up and down, just down, or just up — you can rest assured it will be a pinch-me sort of trip. The scenery is downright gorgeous, and there are countless observation points to boot. Stop at the Twin Lakes Vista to survey a deep-blue stretch of water below the legendary ski mecca of Mammoth Mountain. Or pause at Horseshoe Lake, where it's possible to spot the jagged top of the 11,400-foot Mammoth Crest cutting up the horizon.

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