Donner Lake from Johnson Canyon Overlook
5/19/2022: The infamous Donner Pass (at least in that region). You will view Donner Lake and walk along the Donner Lake Rim trail. You will also see I-80 nearly the entire hike. Still, it is worth doing. I would go back in the winter for snowshoeing, as it is nice and flat-ish. The smell in the alpine air, full of pine, fir and other forest scents, is wonderful. It is a nice hike to take the kids on and turn around when they start whining. You will hike to a hut used by skiers and others wanting to get warm in the winter months.
Key: Kid Friendly | Scenic Views | Forest | Ponderosa Pine | Jeffrey Pine | Douglas-fir | Wild Flowers | Fox Sparrow | Yellow Warbler | Mountain Chickadee | California
Marg’s Notes: To Winnemucca, NV. Town House Motel. Started listening to The Witch Elm. Left the house [in Chico] ~8:30. Gassed up at Costco & hit the road to Tahoe/Donner area. Windy, but uneventful drive. In Truckee we left the road to take a hike! We went to the Glacier Way Trailhead. Started at noon. It was 62o and windy, but warm with the sun. walked out ~2 miles to “The Hut”. Not an overly exciting hike but BEAUTIFUL views! Had lunch at the picnic area there and then on to Winnemucca!
Dinner at The Pig!
Rod’s Ramblings from the Trail: There is still snow in the mountains. The temperature is 61° and very pleasant. Marguerite has her jacket on, but I am in short sleeves because the Sun is shining hard. It is a Thursday and there was plenty of parking at the trailhead. Still, I can see how it could get really crowded on the weekend or anytime during the summer months. I only saw maybe 10 parking spots, but you could probably park along the road? I did not verify that, so make sure to check if you have to park on the street. The wind is pretty breezy and there are a lot of pine trees. I think I am looking at a Douglas fir right here and I think the pine trees are probably Ponderosa Pine?
There is a little snow field at the end of the trail but nothing that can't be crossed easily enough especially if you have boots on. It took 2 hours on the nose and 4.2 miles round trip. We've heard a Mountain Chickadee while having a picnic lunch. I give this four stars on AllTrails and two stars on Wrong-way Trails. I would do it again with somebody else if they wanted to, but I don't think I would pick it to do independently again unless it was a different part of the year, maybe snow showing. There are several trails in the area.
More notes: Donner Pass: Per Wikipedia: To reach California from the east, pioneers had to get their wagons over the Sierra Nevada mountain range. In 1844 the Stephens-Townsend-Murphy Party followed the Truckee River into the mountains. At the head of what is now called Donner Lake, they found a low notch in the mountains and became the first overland settlers to use the pass. The pass was named after a later group of California-bound settlers. In early November 1846 the Donner Party found the route blocked by snow and was forced to spend the winter on the east side of the mountains. Of the 81 settlers, only 45 survived to reach California; some of them resorting to cannibalism to survive.
More about the Donner Party: History.com’s Ten Things you should know about the Donner Party.