13. Half Moon Lake

Length:	12 miles round trip
Hiking time:	8 hours or overnight
High point:	8,200 feet
Total elevation gain:	2,000 feet
Difficulty:	moderate
Season:	mid-July through early October
Water:	available from Glen Alpine Creek, Half Moon Lake, and Gilmore Lake's outlet stream; purify first
Maps:	USGS 7.5' Emerald Bay, USGS 7.5' Rockbound Valley, USGS 7.5' Echo Lake, USFS Desolation Wilderness
Information:	Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit

The huge glacial cirque that holds Half Moon and Alta Morris Lakes rates among the most gorgeous areas in the northern Sierra. Swim, sun, and admire steep peaks and high ridges. You must obtain a permit for this hike. Call Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit for more information.

Drive 3 miles northwest on Highway 89 from the junction of Highways 50 and 89, then turn left on Fallen Leaf Road. Go 4.6 miles to the former Fallen Leaf Lodge, and continue past it as far as possible before parking.

The hike begins paved and level past swampy Lily Lake, where day hikers can fill out a self-issue wilderness permit. Skirt several summer cottages at 0.6 mile, then pass one of Glen Alpine Creek's many scenic falls, flanked by Cathedral Peak to the north and Angora Peak to the south. Step into a shaded forest at 1.8 miles at a reunion with Glen Alpine Creek, then bear right 0.1 mile farther at a signed trail junction. (The left trail travels 0.7 mile to Grass Lake, which offers good swimming and camping.)

Sections of strenuous climbing pass scattered ferns, sage, red-flowered mountain spiraea, and huckleberry oak, and then Sierra juniper, Jeffrey pine, pinemat manzanita, and ceanothus. Bear right at a signed trail junction at 3.6 miles, then 0.2 mile farther note a spectacular display of Indian pond lilies dotting a black pond on the left. A few more footsteps connect you with Hike 15 (Dicks Lake, Gilmore Lake, and Lake Aloha) at a four-way trail intersection: The left fork heads for Susie and Heather Lakes and Lake Aloha; the right fork goes to Gilmore Lake. You proceed straight. At 4.2 miles come to a rocky flat where Sierra junipers frame a view of Susie Lake, surrounded by numerous high peaks.

Continue up into a large glacial cirque, accompanied by mountain hemlock, juvenile lodgepole pine, and several ponds, to the lightly visited yet very beautiful Half Moon Lake, where the deep waters reflect the steep visages of nearby Jacks and Dicks Peaks.

The scenic north shoreline trail escorts you past a mix of lodgepole and western white pine, sage, abundant corn lily, and sulfur flower. At 6 miles, cross an alder-choked inlet stream and a colorful meadow to Alta Morris Lake, where you'll spot a large campsite on the Dicks Peak side. Continue cross-country along Half Moon Lake's south side past several campsites to regain the trail back to the parking area.