Parking
Follow gravel Baker Creek Road to its end at Baker Creek Trailhead. Park in designated spaces only; roadside parking is prohibited. Pit toilets are at the lot, but there is no potable water along the road.
Overview
About Baker Creek Loop
Why go
- Creekside walking and forest give the loop a different feel from the park’s open sagebrush trails.
- Baker Meadows opens the return into a broad clearing, with spring wildflowers along the edges.
Heads up
- The connector adds a short steep pitch, and the shared junctions can send you onto longer hikes.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Great Basin map
Full mapElevation7,982–8,970 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
4 active Great Basin alerts
- CautionStage II fire restrictions prohibit outdoor fires and smokingStage II fire restrictions are active throughout Great Basin National Park because of extreme fire danger. - Do not use campfires, charcoal grills, or smoke outdoors anywhere in the park.Official details
- CautionPotable water is unavailable at park campgroundsPotable water is currently unavailable in every Great Basin National Park campground; bring sufficient water or fill containers before settling in.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Great Basin Tour Guide
Your drive to Baker Creek Loop, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Great Basin 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.
Recorded for this trailhead
Baker Creek Trailhead: Lake or Meadow Loop0:00 / 0:26
“You're nearing Baker Creek Trailhead, the start of the long climb to Baker Lake. The lake sits in a rocky bowl beneath Baker and Pyramid peaks, with snow often lingering along the shore.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Great Basin Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Baker Creek Campground: Choose Your Setting
- Grey Cliffs and Pole Canyon: A Shaded Lunch Stop
- Lehman Caves: Look for the Shields
- Packrats Keep a Climate Record
- 36 audio storiesacross Great Basin’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Elk, Mule Deer, Wild Turkey, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 29 trails, 29 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 Baker Creek Loop
What the loop isBaker Creek Loop is an easy-to-moderate circuit from Baker Creek Trailhead through conifer…
Baker Creek Loop is an easy-to-moderate circuit from Baker Creek Trailhead through conifer forest, sagebrush slopes and Baker Meadows, with several creek crossings. The park lists 3.3 miles and 850 feet of gain; the connected route trace measures closer to 3.5 miles, so allow for the longer figure. Plan 1.5 to 3 hours.
Follow the easier sideFor the gentler ascent, take the Baker Creek side out and return on the south side through…
For the gentler ascent, take the Baker Creek side out and return on the south side through Timber Creek and Baker Meadows. The north leg crosses Baker Creek and climbs a series of switchbacks across open sagebrush slopes before turning alongside the creek. Watch the junctions: this shared trailhead also serves longer routes to Baker Lake and Timber Creek.
Cross the connectorThe loop's short connector crosses Baker Creek, climbs a brief hill, then drops toward the…
The loop's short connector crosses Baker Creek, climbs a brief hill, then drops toward the south return. It's the steepest-feeling piece of a walk that's otherwise broken into manageable sections, so take your time here.
The meadow returnThe return opens into Baker Meadows, a broad clearing framed by forest, then heads back under…
The return opens into Baker Meadows, a broad clearing framed by forest, then heads back under the trees. Near the trailhead it crosses South Fork of Baker Creek and Baker Creek again. Spring can bring wildflowers along the open edges; the meadow is green in late spring and summer and can be snow-covered in winter.
Before you startThe trailhead sits at about 8,020 feet.
The trailhead sits at about 8,020 feet. The park calls the route easy to moderate and says it is not accessible. There are pit toilets but no running water at the lot, and no potable water along Baker Creek Road. Pets are prohibited on park trails; trained service animals are allowed. Baker Creek Road is gravel and can close intermittently in winter and spring, so check access before driving up.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Great Basin
22 sightingsElkMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
237 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
185 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
22 sightingsRattlesnakeMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
23 sightingsDusky GrouseMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
18 sightingsThree-toed WoodpeckerMost seen around 8 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Great Basin. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
