Sky Meadows Trail, a Gorgeous Hidden Gem in Mammoth Lakes, CA

You have to love it when one adventure leads you into another one and that was the case with Sky Meadows. We first heard about this trail a couple of years back when we hiked up to Duck Lake and we've been meaning to try it ever since. It actually shares the same parking lot with the Duck Lake hike but they do have different trailheads. To visit Sky Meadows you will be starting at the Emerald Lake trailhead. The hike has a fairly manageable distance of four miles round trip but you will be gaining a thousand feet of elevation on the way to Sky Meadows. When you mix that with the fact that this hike starts at 9,000 feet above sea level and goes up to 10,000 it could be a little tough for some people because of the elevation. The climb up to Sky Meadows has everything ranging from a slight incline all the way to really steep sections but one thing's for sure it was relentless and it was a little bit of a butt kicker for both of us. After climbing for about eight tenths of a mile you should reach this large pole that I believe used to be a directional sign. This is the start of one of these somewhat flatter sections where you'll be able to catch your breath. This break will last you all the way over to Emerald Lake. There are a couple of forks along this section but just stay left and make sure you keep heading towards Emerald Lake. Oh and watch out for the horse tours. One nice thing is that you should be able to hear the rushing water of the stream at this point in the hike and we did take a couple of detours along the way to head down and check it out. If there is something that this trail is definitely not lacking in it is tripping hazards. There are tons of rocks and roots that are just waiting to reach up and grab your shoes and we were both tripping pretty much all day. The first scenic stop that you'll be making along the hike is at Emerald Lake. On the morning we went the water was super still in the morning and it had a beautiful reflection. The only downside is that the lake doesn't get its iconic green shade until a little bit later in the afternoon. Just after passing Emerald Lake you will see the fork off to the right that will take you up to Sky Meadows. This is also where your break from climbing will come to an end and it's going to be pretty much uphill the rest of the way. It's not all bad news though because right around a mile into the hike you are going to be hiking alongside a stream that has a bunch of tiny waterfalls. There is quite a bit of shade on this part of the trail and it was definitely appreciated. This video was shot in the middle of July and it was pretty warm on this day. There are also quite a few wildflowers here. I'm sure if you did this hike in the spring it would be absolutely beautiful. Eventually you will be crossing over the stream and heading over to Gentian Meadows. You will get another tiny break from climbing at this point so take advantage of it and enjoy it. Gentian Meadows is another spot that is worth taking a break to admire. We took a quick break here to snack on some cereal bars and regain some energy and while we did that we got to enjoy the super lush forest and the beautiful view of the mountains in the background. I would highly recommend taking that break in Gentian Meadows because the climb kicks into overdrive as soon as you get past it. The good thing is that you are less than a mile from Sky Meadows at this point but you're gonna have to work your butt off to get there. At one point we found ourselves in the middle of a bunch of curved trees. They weren't as extreme as the crooked forest of Poland but they definitely had a bend to them. I'm not sure if this was caused by the weather or something else but it was interesting to see. This hike saved some of its steepest sections for the very end and not only that but there were no longer any signs or markers telling us that we were on the right trail. At this point we were just kind of blindly scrambling our way up the hills. Luckily I had my inReach so we weren't going to get lost and we eventually found a hiker who told us that we were going the right way. Once you see this large boulder that is sitting just off to the side of the trail you are almost there and not only that but there is a large waterfall that is just down the trail from it. The water from the falls was ice cold. I was standing in the water and taking pictures and soon I started to notice that my feet were getting a little bit numb because of how cold it was. This waterfall is definitely one of my favorite highlights of the trip. I might even like it more than Sky Meadows. Speaking of Sky Meadows, after you pass the waterfall you are one more short but steep climb up from it. After one heck of a workout we had reached our destination. We arrived at Sky Meadows at right around noon so unfortunately the lighting was kind of flat. I would love to see this area at sunset but that means you would probably be hiking back in the dark. One thing that I would definitely recommend bringing with you if you attempt this hike is bug spray. There was no shortage of bugs that were all over the place on this hike. I don't believe that there's any set finish line on this hike. You get to the meadows and you can explore as much as you want. If you're still feeling super fresh or you just want to hike some more there is a trail in the back of the meadows that continues on. I'm not sure where it goes though. We had a couple other spots that we wanted to hit this day so rather than continue on we decided to head back. One thing that was going to be nice though is that since it was all uphill on the way in we knew that it was going to be a nice downhill cruise all the way back to the car. As with most of the adventures that we do we highly recommend having shoes with great traction. They will make your life a lot easier on the way up and down. Some sections of this trail have a loose top layer of sand and it can get pretty slippery. After one last look at the beautiful 30 foot waterfall it was time to make our way back down the hill. This is an out and back trail so you will be heading out the same exact way that you came in unless you decide to take a detour and stretch the hike out a little bit more. There are a couple of sections on the way back that are slightly uphill but if you compare them to what you've already done they're pretty easy. Soon all the climbing will be over and it will be smooth sailing all the way down to Emerald Lake. It seemed like we were making really good time and before I knew it we were passing Genshin Meadows and rock hopping back across the stream. The hike down along the miniature waterfalls is really nice because you're staring out over the valley. The lower you get the more the view of Emerald Lake starts to open up as well. One great thing about how we timed our hike is that the second time we passed by Emerald Lake it was about noon so it was in full sun. This gave us a great opportunity to enjoy this lake in all of its green glory. The only downside is that the wind had kicked up a little bit and caused some ripples on the water so we didn't have that perfect reflection anymore but it was still really beautiful. We had the entire lake to ourselves for quite a while and just as we were about to leave a very nice couple and their adventure pup showed up. For some reason we have the best luck when it comes to meeting adorable animals out on the trail. After you pass Emerald Lake you are less than a mile from being back to the car. We had done an 18 mile long bike ride the day before we did this hike so the uphill really burned our legs out. We were definitely grateful that we were done climbing at this point. As soon as you see the water tower on the right you should know that you are pretty much home free and the next thing you should see is the parking lot. I think that this hike definitely deserves a spot on the must-do list if you're going to be up in the Mammoth area. Considering that it isn't that long and the climb is not insane you get to see some really cool things. If you enjoy our adventures be sure to subscribe and hit that bell icon so you get notified when we make new videos. Check us out on Instagram at thatadventurelife underscore official and for all the information about this hike and other awesome things to do in Mammoth head on over to thatadventurelife.com