Crystal Lake Recreation Area - Hiking and Nature Trails

Hiking and Nature Trails

As a recreation area the campground had many nature trails for visitors which provided scenic and educational walks through various parts of the canyon: Pinion Ridge, Soldier Creek, Knob Hill, Golden Cup, Tototgna to name a few. The Lake Trail provides a one mile (1.6 km) walk to the lake. The Windy Gap Trail ascends the south slope of Mount Hawkins to the saddle between Hawkins and Mount Islip, known as "Windy Gap", where it connects to the Pacific Crest Trail.

• Half Knob Trail—This is a short hike trail which begins and ends at points along the main paved roadway leading to the Visitor Center. The trailhead is located at North 34 degrees, 19.444 by West 117 degrees, 50.210 at 5,717 feet (1,743 m).

• Lake Trail—The trail cuts across the camp grounds and joins the main road that heads up to the Visit Center to Lake Road. The start of the trail head from the main road end is located at North 34 degrees, 19.410 by West 117 degrees, 50.261 at 5,744 feet (1,751 m).

• Golden Cup Nature Trail—This is a short hike with four or five information boards placed along the trail. The trail itself forms a loop such that the start and end of the hike is near a main paved road. The trail head is located at North 34 degrees, 19.630 by West 117 degrees, 50.108 at 5,865 feet (1,788 m).

• Big Cieneca Trail—This trail is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) long and has its start at a paved road.

• Windy Gap—This trail is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long and has its start at a paved road. The trailhead is located at North 34 degrees, 19.890 by West 117 degrees, 50.021 at 6,099 feet (1,859 m).

• Pacific Crest Trail—This trail is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long and has its start at a paved road.

• Little Jimmy Trail Camp—This trail is 2.8 miles (4.5 km) long and has its start at a paved road.

• Mount Hawkins Trail—This trail is 4.8 miles (7.7 km) long and has its start at a paved road. The trail actually swings around the camp grounds and passes through a heliport (condition unknown) and then ends at Souyj Mt. Hawkins lookout (which burned to the ground.)

• Pinyon Ridge—This is a moderately long trail which forms a loop that takes hikers up the side of the mountain ridge, along the ridge, and then back down again, curving around to form the loop. There is water present at three places along the trail all year, and the start of the trail requires about an hour's worth of effort to remove new growth. The trail head location is the same as the start of Soldier Creek: North 34 degrees, 19.354 by West 117 degrees, 49.976 at 5,656 feet (1,724 m).

• Soldier Creek Trail—Fire damage and flooding has effectively destroyed this trail and it is currently extremely dangerous to hike along. This is a long hiking trail and without a doubt the best hiking trail in the Crystal Lake Recreation Area. It follows Soldier Creek which contains good, high-volume water, sporting rare vegetation such as Catalina Cherries. This trail may or may not be restored prior to the Crystal Lake Camp Grounds being opened. The trail head location is the same as the start of Pinyon Ridge trail: North 34 degrees, 19.354 by West 117 degrees, 49.976 at 5,656 feet (1,724 m).

• Lost Ridge Trail—This trail is a long one with one end of the trail head up near Deer Flats and the other end on Lake Road. To increase safety, the Trailbuilder crew installed steps in a number of places and the volunteers may decide to install more steps in moderately steep places in the future. The lake road trail head is located at North 34 degrees, 19.452 by West 117 degrees, 50.463 at 5,728 feet (1,746 m). The other end of the trail is in the Deer Flats Campgrounds and it's located at North 34 degrees, 19.977 by West 117 degrees, 50.365 at 6,344 feet (1,934 m).

• Tototngna Nature Trail—This trail requires a considerable amount of effort to make the trail safe and usable. This is a moderately long trail which forms a loop and can be accessed from a paved road. The trail head is located at North 34 degrees, 19.538 by West 117 degrees, 49.767 at 5,929 feet (1,807 m).

• Cedar Canyon Trail—This trail has its start on the main road leading up to the Visitor Center. It's a moderately long trail that leads to a good volume of water. The trail actually meets up with Soldier Creek Trail which requires extensive repairs before the trail is safe and usable. The trail head for this end of the trail is located at North 34 degrees, 19.366 by West 117 degrees, 50.280 at 5,820 feet (1,770 m).

• Sunset Ridge Nature Trail—This trail is located inside of the Deer Flats Campgrounds. It's a short trail which forms a loop that ends about 30 feet (9.1 m) from where it begins. The trail is currently being restored and about 20% of the trail has been completed. The location of this trail is at North 34 degrees, 20.002 by West 117 degrees, 50.249 at 6,423 feet (1,958 m).

• Islip Ridge Trail—This trail is located at the parking lot for the lake itself with a trailhead sign located approximately 100 feet (30 m) from the actual parking lot. The trail climbs an additional 2,200 feet (670 m) through approximately 7.2 miles (11.6 km) eventually reaching Angeles Crest Highway with access to Windy Gap, Little Jimmy, and other trails. Mile 1.65 is located approximately at North 34 degrees 19.292 by West 117 degrees, 51.066 at 6,293 feet (1,918 m).