Silver Lake lies just outside the Caribou Wilderness on its east side. It is a half mile from the Lake Caribou Trailhead and provides a great place to start day hikes. The Lassen National Forest provides two campgrounds at Silver Lake: Silver Bowl and Rocky Knoll. Silver Lake also provides access for "cross-country" hikes into Caribou Wilderness. (BE PREPARED. Cross Country hiking requires a back country map, GPS navigation unit or compass, appropriate dress, first aid supplies and food.) There are also hiking trails in forestlands outside the Wilderness that can be accessed easily from Silver Lake.

The Lake Caribou Wilderness Trailhead is located above (north of) the Silver Bowl Campground. The trailhead can be reached by an unofficial trail leading up to the Lake Caribou parking lot - about a quarter mile from the campground. The trailhead can also be reached by walking 200 yards west up the Silver Lake perimeter road to its visible high point and taking the old Silver Trailhead trail north to the Lake Caribou trailhead trail. By car, drive east on the perimeter road stay left at the intersection and then left on Forest Service Road 10. Take the next left about a 1/4 mile up the road. It will be signed for Lake Caribou.

There are numerous Cross Country hikes from Silver Lake. Take a short hike to Rim Rock Lake, a daylong loop hike to the lakes below South and North Caribou Peaks or "mountain climb" Cinder Cone or North Caribou mountain. Click here.

Nice hiking and mountain biking can be enjoyed on trails outside the Caribou Wilderness. One-half mile south of Silver Lake on Forest Service Road 10 there is the trailhead to Echo Lake via Trail Lake. The walk is about 3-1/2 miles one way. Great scenery through forests, old clear cuts and lava fields. A shorter hike is to Star Lake. Its trailhead is 100 yards south of the Echo Lake Road on Forest Service Road 10. The walk is about 3/4 mile to the lake.

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This is the official site of Caribou Wilderness.Org. Send E-mail to the info@caribouwilderness.org