Gem Lake (Rush Creek)
Silver Lake, June Lake Loop · near June Lake · Eastern Sierra
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- strenuous
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 7 miles
- Elevation gain
- 1,800 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- June–October; aspen along Rush Creek early–mid October
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- None for day hikes; overnight into Ansel Adams Wilderness = Inyo NF permit (a popular quota trailhead toward Thousand Island Lake).
- How hard the permit is to get
- 0 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Historic narrow-gauge tram tracks · Agnew & Gem reservoirs · Big aspen stands · Ansel Adams Wilderness gateway
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Allowed
- Good for a first timer
- No
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- The relentless climb starts immediately with little shade — carry plenty of water and start early. The aspen-framed views open up within the first 1.5 miles.
The guide
A steep, sustained climb up the Rush Creek drainage — paralleling a century-old hydro tramway — delivers you to Agnew and then …
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Gem Lake (Rush Creek) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.7845, -119.1385