Baker Creek Loop is a wonderful, easy trail inside the Great Basin National Park. It is one of the few trails that remains accessible year-round, making it a great alternative when roads are closed. This trail is especially beautiful during the wildflower season, usually in mid-June. Only 3.3 miles, Baker Creek Loop is perfect for beginners and those who want to get acclimated to the higher altitude. And if you’re up for it, you can continue your way to the much longer Baker Lake Trail.
Baker Creek Loop Trailhead:
38.976811, -114.245775
Parking along the side of the end of the road
Free. There is no fee to enter the Great Basin National Park.
Vault toilet at the trailhead.
Leave your pet at home. They are not allowed on the trail!
3.8 miles R.T.
935 ft
Easy/Moderate. The trail is simple but there’s a lot of elevation gain in higher altitude.
Takes average 2-3 hours
This trail is beautiful year-round
The Baker Creek Loop trailhead starts at the end of Baker Creek Road, inside the Great Basin National Park. Baker Creek Road is a graded, gravel road. There are parking spaces on the side of the road and some pull-in spaces.
We visited the Great Basin National Park at the end of May, hoping to have more access to the trails. Unfortunately, half of the Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive was closed. So, we decided to try our luck at the Baker Creek Loop. Since this trail is a loop, you can start in either direction. We opted to go counterclockwise, just because. By the way, the trailhead starts at 8,000 ft in elevation, so if you’re not used to the high altitude, it can be challenging.
After leaving the trailhead, the Baker Creek Loop Trail climbs steadily. It weaves in and out of the trees and traces along Baker Creek. We did this hike at the end of May, and there were already some wildflowers. It would be so beautiful to see it when all the wildflowers are blooming. Along the way, the trail also crosses over multiple wooden bridges. Once we crossed over our first bridge, the Baker Creek Loop Trail continued to gain elevation. Make sure to keep your eyes out for wildlife. We’ve run into a flock of turkeys here. Besides turkeys, you can also see deer.
After about 1.6 miles, we came to our first junction. Here, if you go straight, you’ll continue on the much longer and more challenging hike to Baker Lake. We went left to cross over the second bridge to continue our loop for Baker Creek Loop. If you’re tired, there is a bench right next to the directional signs for a quick break.
The creek section here is quite beautiful. We can see many little waterfalls and rapids rushing through under the wooden bridge. We stopped here for a bit to listen to the soothing sound of the water. After leaving the creek, we continue our climb. This part of the trail is rocky with some fallen trees. You could either go around, under, or climb over it. Soon, the trail starts to descend. It is nothing too significant, but we were happy that we weren’t breathing too heavy anymore.
Not too long after, we reached our second junction. At this junction, we went left to follow the sign for Baker Creek Trailhead. This section of the Baker Creek Loop Trail runs along a big meadow. The meadow wasn’t as spectacular as it would have been if we were here during the wildflower season, but it was beautiful nonetheless. It reminds us of the Zumwalt Meadows in Kings Canyon. Although our favorite is still the Sky Meadow in Mammoth Lakes. If you’re lucky, you can even see some marmots!
After leaving the meadow, the Baker Creek Loop Trail once again runs along the side of the creek. At this point, the trail is mostly downhill. Even at the end of May, we found many patches of snow on the trail. We took our time to admire the rushing creek and some really cool trees on the Baker Creek Loop Trail.
Eventually, we found ourselves at another wooden bridge, crossing over Baker Creek. Once we crossed over this bridge, we had to find our way around a few fallen trees. It wasn’t too difficult, though. One more bridge and we found ourselves at the third junction. Once again, we went left to Baker Creek Trailhead. At this point, it’s 0.1 mile to the trailhead. This means 3 more bridge crossings over some beautiful sections of the Baker Creek.
Baker Creek Loop Trail is a fun trail, perfect for acclimating to the high altitude. If you’re looking for more things to do around this area, we recommend checking out Goshute Cave. It is such a fun spot to explore. If you’re driving up from Las Vegas, don’t forget to check out Cathedral Gorge. That place is super cool!
Happy Adventuring. Don’t forget to check out the related posts below for more inspiration on your upcoming adventures. While at it, follow us on Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube channel! We’ll love you forever!
These are the gear that we personally use and find helpful for this particular adventure. Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.
Our favorite biodegradable, eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen!
This is Vy's favorite hiking bag! It has tons of room for snacks and water!
It's always good to bring a GPS tracker with you. We use the Garmin inReach.
This jacket is packable into a super small and light little ball. Perfect for when you just need a little…
This jacket is packable into a super small and light little ball. Perfect for when you just need a little…
Our favorite hiking/travel jacket. It's warm and packable, perfect to bring on a hike or a road trip.
Our favorite hiking/travel jacket. It's warm and packable, perfect to bring on a hike or a road trip.
If you tend to have foot blisters on hikes, get this! We use this all the time.
These hiking poles are sturdy, and great to help keep your balance on short or longer hikes
Compact GoPro pole that extends to 25", perfect to bring on your adventure.
This is our go-to camera for all of our adventures. It comes with us everywhere!
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Hi! We are Dustin & Vy, the proud creators of Live That Adventure. We created this website because we wanted to inspire others to live their lives to the fullest. On here, you’ll find everything from hiking, canyoneering, kayaking, and snorkeling to adventure and travel tips, gear reviews, and bucket list items such as bungee jumping or wing walking. We’ll show you the ropes so you can do them too!
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