Crowley Lake Stone Columns
THese natural columns are located on the east side of crowley lake in bishop, ca. THis short hike (this actually depends if your’re able to drive to the columns or not), is totally worth stopping by, ESPECIALLY if you’re in the area exploring other natural beauties.
MY TRIP IN A NUTSHELL:
MONTH. Late august
TIME OF DAY. ~10:00AM
PERMIT REQUIRED. NO
TRAILHEAD ADDRESS. Click here for parking lot location.
PARKING. There is plenty of parking.
OUT-N-BACK. 4 MILES (it’s shorter if you can drive to the columns- see below)
Trailhead information
for Crowley Lake Stone Columns
There are two ways to access the columns. you can drive to the designated parking which is about 200 yards from the columns, or you have to park about 2 miles away and hike-in/hike-out. on the way to the parking lot there is a large bumpy hill (see below) that most cars cannot drive over- think very intense moguls. in order to drive close to the columns, you’ll need an all-wheel drive that is meant for off roading and doesn’t have a low bumper/overall frame. having a standard suv that’s all-wheel drive will not work. It needs to be lifted or have a high clearance. I can’t stress this enough.
Here’s the crazy moguls, they’re really intense in-person. I drove an all-wheel drive lexus SUV and still wasn’t able to make it up the mountain of doom. click here for the exact COORDINATES of the hill. if your car cannot make the uphill drive, then you have to park your car at the base of the hill and walk to the columns. just make sure you don’t get lost because there are several random turn outs. use your gps.
My Trip!
after camping at wild willy’s hot spring the night prior, we decided to go to crowley lake columns since it was only about 15 minutes away. Here’s some photos of the hike-in and top of the parking lot, you can see the columns in the distance:
these columns are massive up close and have a few hidden caves, but they aren’t very deep.
Seriously some of the coolest structures
anddd here’s some basic photos:
Overall, I’d highly recommend checking out these structures. you are allowed to camp on the forest service roads leading to the crowley lake parking lot, but there are way better campsites nearby than these forest service roads- like camping on lakes! i’ll explore these options soon :)
Enjoy!