Great Basin National Park: Spectacular Alpine and Cave Gem

Welcome to our series featuring various national parks and public lands around the country. In addition to Great Basin, you can also find features on the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, Walnut Canyon National Monument, and El Morro National Monument.

Somewhere in east-central Nevada, a mountain range towers above the basins surrounding it. The second highest peak in the state is its crown, while one of the southernmost glaciers in North America sits alongside. A sky island forest, containing both some of the world’s oldest trees and largest organisms, drapes its sides. Beneath sits one of the most decorated cave systems in North America. This spectacular place is Great Basin National Park.

Great Basin National Park Basics

ESTABLISHED: 1922 as Lehman Caves National Monument; redesignated 1980 as Great Basin National Park

• Opportunities
  • Astronomy/Stargazing
  • Hiking
  • Scenic Drives
  • Geology
  • Mountain views
  • Cave tours
  • Indigenous history
  • Fall Colors
  • Did I mention astronomy?

Where is Great Basin?

Somewhere in the middle of nowhere, in many ways. It’s more than 200 miles to the closest city, Salt Lake City. As one book puts it, it’s “not really on the way to anywhere,” either. It’s about 5 hours north of Las Vegas and 4 hours from Salt Lake City. It’s just off US-50, so if you are planning on driving the Loneliest Road, it’s a natural stop along the way.

Weather at Great Basin

Fitting it’s location in the Great Basin Desert, the park is a place of extremes. The lowest point in the park is 6195 ft at Snake Creek, while the highest is the summit of Wheeler Peak at 13063, substantially above treeline. The ecology ranges from near bare rock and scree on the Wheeler summit, entirely exposed to the elements, to subterranean caves and desert sagebrush. In winter, the road to the summit of Wheeler is often closed due to snow and ice. It’s open to foot traffic. The road typically melts out by May or so, as activity picks up and more tours of the caves start to be offered. Summer has warm days and cool nights regardless of elevation, but is overall cooler the higher one goes. All major cave tours are offered. Fall brings great color to the aspen and alpenglow to the mountainsides. Weather underground in the cave is consistent year round due to its natural insulation. In summer it will probably feel cool; bring a jacket. At other times of year it may feel refreshing due to the escape it provides from heat on the surface. The monsoon arrives early/mid summer, requiring thunderstorm precautions for summit attempts at Wheeler Peak into the fall. More information regarding weather at Great Basin can be found here.

Great Basin Itinerary

Of immediate note: Great Basin is at least a one night park. Check the lunar calendar before going and try and be there within about 5 days on either side of a new moon for the best stargazing. The night can be before or after your day in the park, but at the darkest park in the lower 48, staying a night to see the sky is a must.

One Day

If you just have a day, especially in the summer, make sure that you reserve your cave tour tickets ahead of time, or plan on arriving before the visitor center opens as tour sizes are limited. You’ll likely be planning the rest of your day around the tour of Lehman Caves.

Outside of Lehman Caves, plan on driving to the top of the Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive for the views of the Snake Range and surrounding Great Basin. The mountains soar over the basins around them and the alternating ranges and valleys seem to go on and on into the distance. In fall, the aspens burst into color on the drive, adding another dimension to the experience.

From the end of the road at Upper Wheeler Peak Campground, two spectacular trails are options, with a third spurring off of one. A fourth trail option, the climb to the summit of Wheeler Peak, the second highest peak in the state of Nevada and highest independent peak located entirely within Nevada (Boundary Peak, the highest point, is technically a subsidiary peak of Montgomery Peak in California), starts just down the road from the end at the campground.

Two Days

With two days, additional hiking options are possible. If you didn’t do the climb to Wheeler Peak on the first day due to time constraints, it is highly recommended for a second (barring physical limitations, of course). Another possibility is the trek to Lexington Arch. Lexington Arch is a spectacular sight on the south end of the range as well, though the road requires decent clearance and one should check with the park regarding road conditions before traveling to it.

Lehman Caves

550 million years ago, the Pole Canyon Limestone formed at the bottom of a warm shallow sea near the Equator. As the sea dried up and was flooded again repeatedly over time, layers of the limestone were deposited. Migrating northward, the rock was transformed into marble and was fractured by heat and pressure during the formation of the Basin and Range geologic province.

These cracks in the rock later allowed water to penetrate the layer and begin to dissolve chambers within it. Following the formation of the chambers and passages of the cave, carbonate-rich water began depositing the features of the cave, called speleothems. While major features such as stalactites, stagmites, columns, and cave bacon can all be found at Lehman, the signature formation of Lehman are cave shields. Great Basin National Park has a great description of the formation of cave shields here. Essentially, calcium-rich water flowing along joints and cracks in the rocks precipitates calcium as it exits the joints. The larger the shield, the more calcium has been deposited in its formation and the older the formation is.

Most recently, corrosion of some cave features has occurred. This may have been a product of a drying climate within the past 10,000 years.

Cave Tours

Reservations are highly recommended for tours of Lehman Caves. Reservations can be made on recreation.gov, or it is advisable to be present at the opening of the visitor center to get tickets before they sell out. White Nose screening is mandatory on all tours. Several tour options are available:

Grand Palace Tour (Not offered in winter)

Duration: 90 minutes
Length: 0.6 miles
Age Limit: 5 years old (except November-February)

Featuring stops in the Gothic Palace, Music Room, Lodge Room, Inscription Room, and Grand Palace, this is the most comprehensive tour offered of the caves. This tour includes the opportunity to see the most famous feature of Lehman, the Parachute Shield.

Lodge Room Tour

Time: 60 minutes
Length: 0.5 miles
Size limit: 20 visitors
Age: When Gothic Palace tours unavailable, no limit

This tour visits the Gothic Palace, Music Room, and Lodge Room as it winds its way through cave passages. This is the only year-round tour offered at Lehman Caves.

Gothic Palace Tour (Not Offered Winters)

Time length: 30 min
Length: 0.25 miles, geared to kids
Size limit: 20 visitors

This tour will show off the many cave formations and unique history in the highly decorated Gothic Palace. It’s geared to families with younger kids.

Parachute Shield Tour (Not Offered Winters)

Time length: 60 minutes
Distance: 0.5 miles
Tour restriction: 20 visitors

Traveling through mostly large rooms with steep ramps and smaller connecting passages, this route visits the Lodge Room, Inscription Room, and Grand Palace as well as the most famous feature of the caves, the Parachute Shield.

Hiking at Great Basin

Wheeler Peak

Climb to the top of the second highest point in Nevada on the trail to Wheeler Peak. The trail ascends from about a mile before Wheeler Peak Campground on the Scenic Drive through alpine meadows and aspen to treeline on the ridgeline. From here the wind can pick up substantially, so bring a jacket. 360 degree views unfold from there to the summit with spectacular views of the Snake Range and Great Basin. One of my favorite hikes I’ve done in a national park.

Alpine Lakes Loop

This loop will certainly have you amazed that you are in Nevada. Leaving from the campground parking area at the end of the drive, the trail climbs through aspen forest to views of Wheeler Peak. A spur link to the summit trail to Wheeler is available. The trail continues on to Stella Lake, an alpine tarn sitting below the east arm of Wheeler, then to Teresa Lake before linking to either the combined Bristlecone & Glacier trails or returning to the campground parking.

Bristlecone Loop

Bristlecone pines are some of the oldest trees in the world, capable of surviving extended periods of drought by essentially hibernating portions of the tree to save resources. Consequently, they survive on high, dry mountain ridges in the Mountain West, ranging from the Sierra Nevada into Utah, an icon of the Sierra Nevada and Great Basin. This grove and trail is one of the most accessible places to see them.

Departing the campground parking area, the trail is shared with a short segment of the Alpine Lakes Loop before diverging. It starts on dirt but as it approaches the bristlecone grove it breaks into a rocky area. The Bristlecone Loop itself is a side loop off of the combined Bristlecone/Glacier Trail, featuring some of the oldest and most photogenic trees in North America as well as interpretive signage regarding the trees.

Glacier Trail

One of the southernmost glaciers in the country lies against the shaded northeast headwall of Wheeler Peak. The length and difficulty of this trail depends somewhat on how far you go. There are three primary turnaround points: the glacier overlook; the end of the trail in the moraine; or the glacier itself, against the headwall of Wheeler Peak. To the glacier overlook is relatively simply. A beaten path follows partway through the moraine. From the end of the beaten path, it is a rock scramble to get to the headwall and the glacier itself, far more strenuous than either preceding section.

Camping

There are numerous campgrounds available in the park. Developed campgrounds can be found at:

• Baker Creek on an unpaved road off of the main entrance road;
• Upper and Lower Lehman Creek near the lower portion of the Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive
• Wheeler Peak Campground at the end of the Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive

Dispersed camping options can be found along Snake Creek Road in the southern portion of the park and along Strawberry Creek Road in the far northern portion of the park. There are no facilities available with these campgrounds.

Backpacking

Great Basin is an underrated backpacking park. The southern portion of the park – south of Wheeler Peak – offers a number of shorter or longer routes than can be put together from various other trails. Among the more prominent is the route to Baker Lake around Pyramid Peak. Those with more experience can ascend to the ridgeline and follow it south through the crest of the Snake Range past additional bristlecone groves on Mt Washington.

Current Conditions

For the most up to date conditions at Great Basin, such as the status of the Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive, please make sure to check out the NPS website before visiting.