Deadman Canyon to Elizabeth Pass Trail

This is a 10.6-mile one-way backcountry route from the Sugarloaf Valley junction near Roaring River, up Deadman Canyon to Elizabeth Pass. It climbs about 3,900 feet to a pass at 11,339 feet. Keep it for a serious high-country backpacking trip; the start is remote, so plan it as a leg of a longer route rather than a drive-up day hike.

The mapped start is a wilderness junction, not a parking area. Roads End at the end of CA-180 is the drive-in staging access on this side; reaching the junction adds a separate walk on the park trail network. Decide how you will continue beyond the pass or return before leaving the trailhead. Overnight travel outside designated campgrounds requires a wilderness permit. Pets are prohibited on park trails.

The trail rises from forest into a broad, U-shaped alpine valley with meadows, Deadman Creek, and rock fields. Near a brushy notch, a steep run of steps leads to a shelf with a look back down the canyon. An aspen grove holds the wooden grave marker of herder Alfred Moniere, a striking human detail in an otherwise rugged stretch.

Above the notch, long switchbacks cross pale boulders and chunky gravel; the final pitch is steep. Allow a full day for the mapped segment itself. At Elizabeth Pass, the view opens north toward Monarch Divide and south over the Kaweah drainage toward Castle Rocks. At this elevation, the combination of distance, climb, and loose footing makes a slow pace sensible.

This listing covers the Deadman Canyon approach to Elizabeth Pass only. The roughly 48-mile circuit from near Lodgepole adds Twin Lakes, Silliman Pass, and the High Sierra Trail; it is a separate multi-day itinerary with different route limits.