Parking
Start at the PCT parking lot on North Entrance Road; the route joins the PCT just beside the lot.
Overview
About Red Cone Trail
Why go
- A relatively flat PCT walk through open volcanic terrain.
- Leashed dogs are allowed.
Heads up
- Long and very exposed, with no confirmed water point on this segment.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Crater Lake map
Full mapElevation6,155–6,503 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
2 active Crater Lake alerts
- ClosureCleetwood Cove Trail closed for rehabilitationCleetwood Cove Trail is closed to the public during construction to rehabilitate the trail and marina.Official details
- CautionPinnacles Road restricted to hikers and bicyclistsPinnacles Road is open only to hikers and bicyclists because of a road construction project; motor vehicles cannot use it.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Crater Lake Tour Guide
Your drive to Red Cone Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Crater Lake National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Crater Lake audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Red Cone and Bald Crater Trailhead0:00 / 0:26
“You're approaching the Red Cone and Bald Crater trailhead on North Entrance Road.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Crater Lake Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Where the Blue Comes From
- Leaves That Catch Insects
- The Landmark That Drifts
- Pumice Point Overlook and Picnic Area
- 58 audio storiesacross Crater Lake’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Black Bear, Mule Deer, Common Raven, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 34 trails, 49 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Red Cone Trail
The walkRed Cone Trail is a 7.
Red Cone Trail is a 7.2-mile out-and-back on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), from the North Entrance Road parking lot to the first Bald Crater Loop junction. The park describes it as relatively flat and very exposed. A mapped measurement is closer to 6.4 miles round trip, so budget for roughly seven miles and about three hours. Choose it for a long walk through open, burned terrain near Red Cone, not for a summit hike.
Turn at the loopFollow the PCT northwest from the parking lot.
Follow the PCT northwest from the parking lot. It passes north of Red Cone and reaches the first Bald Crater Loop junction after about 3.2 miles on the mapped line; turn around there. The park says there is no trail to Red Cone or its summit, so don't add an off-trail climb.
Exposed and dryExpect an open, burned stretch with little shelter.
Expect an open, burned stretch with little shelter. No water point was confirmed on this segment. Water sources elsewhere along the park's backcountry PCT can be scarce, and many are dry by late July or early August; the park recommends carrying at least a gallon per person. Leashed dogs are allowed, with one dog per hiker.
A nearby volcanic coneRed Cone is the largest and probably youngest of the three northern cones.
Red Cone is the largest and probably youngest of the three northern cones. Thick flows of gas-bubbled basalt form a shoulder at its southeast base. The PCT passes north of the cone but does not climb it.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Crater Lake
16 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
178 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
26 sightingsCommon RavenMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
33 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around 1 PMSighting map
47 sightingsRed-tailed HawkMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
71 sightingsCascades FrogMost seen around 5 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Crater Lake. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
