40th Birthday Adventure Day 2: Great Basin National Park – Bristlecone Pines, Glacier, and Lehman Caves… Oh My!

October 12, 2023

We awoke on a beautiful vista outside of the Snake Creek entrance of Great Basin National Park, eager to the see the views after arriving at the campsite after dark (and an adventurous drive). Our neighbors at a campsite further down had left, so we decided to move down to that site and leave a tent set up to (hopefully) save the campsite for the next two nights.

After a slow morning of some remote work, breakfast, and lounging, we finally headed out on the nice, smooth, graded gravel road that Google oh-so-nicely didn’t route us on the night before towards Baker. Our first stop was at the first of two visitor centers at Great Basin National Park, the Great Basin Visitor Center that is on the edge of “town” in Baker for the passport stamp, souvenirs, and Junior Ranger book. (Baker has less than fifty residents and does not consist of much, so calling it a town might be setting some expectations too high). Even I was alarmed at the amount of people in the visitor center, and the harried looking ranger remarked she hadn’t seen that many people in one place all year. As one of the top ten least visited national parks, I am really curious to see what the annular eclipse does for the 2023 visitation numbers! Of course, the crowds were a fraction of a typical day at Rocky Mountain, Yellowstone, or any other popular national park – in other words, small and quite manageable.

Visitor center duties fulfilled, we headed up the Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive, steep paved twelve-mile journey that gains 4000 feet in elevation with a couple of overlooks and trailheads, and arguably the most visited thing at Great Basin National Park. At the end is a campground and a trailhead for some of the most popular hikes in the park. Luckily we found parking even though it was noon, and set off on a hike to the Bristlecone Pine Grove (5000 year old trees!) and Wheeler Peak Glacier (Nevada’s only glacier!). I’d make a strong argument that this is the most popular hike in the national park, rightfully so.

We were on a bit of time crunch as we had 3pm cave tour tickets, so we tried to make quick work of the hike, which came in at 3.6 miles round trip with 753 feet of elevation gain. If one is going to just the bristlecones, the hike will come in about a mile shorter. It is also possible to expand this a couple more miles by adding in Teresa and Stella Lakes, a pair of alpine lakes. (Full hiking information for Great Basin National Park can be found here.)

There are a few options for Lehman Caves tours, and the one I was able to get tickets for was the Lodge Room tour. I was on the east coast (aka not my normal time zone) when tickets went on sale, and missed out on the Grand Palace tour as it sold out by the time I realized the dates were live for sale. Thankfully Lodge Room tickets were still available, and we’d be seeing Lehman Caves! (Full details on the various cave tours can be found here and tickets become available thirty days in advance on recreation.gov. Advance purchase of tour tickets is highly encouraged.)

We checked in at the Lehman Caves Visitor Center about twenty minutes ahead of our tour after stamping passports and finding souvenirs (the gift shop at Lehman Caves does have more selection than the Great Basin Visitor Center, if you’re visiting both, and then there is also a private gift shop and cafe at Lehman Caves as well with an even expanded selection). A ranger gave us our tickets and conducted the white-nose syndrome screening. No bags or extra items are allowed on the tour so I stashed my purse back at the truck and we joined the line outside the cave entrance, which is directly behind the visitor center.

The Lodge Room tour would be sixty minutes long, and explores the majority of the tour areas of Lehman Caves. Ranger Michaela briefly gave us a safety briefing (and most importantly, emphasized NO TOUCHING of the cave… for the cave’s safety!) and backstory on Absalom Lehman’s rediscovery of the cave system in 1885 (I wish to recognize that Lehman was not the first human to discover the caves).

This family-friendly tour takes visitors along a majority of the tour path inside Lehman Caves. While following a ranger guide, the path begins in the Gothic Palace, then winds its way through the Rose Trellis Room, Music Room, and Lodge Room. Along the tour route, expect to see an incredible variation of cave formations, like the famously unique cave shields, often found in small numbers but ubiquitous in Lehman Caves.

National Park Service

(A quick side note… I must issue a warning that the photos might be a tad blurry and dark… they were taken in a cave after all! While the iPhone 14 Pro does amazing in low light… low light is low light, especially with no tripod and flash.)

The tour begins by entering through a manmade airlock tunnel, which helps preserve the natural cave. Once the tour group was all in the airlock, we were able to enter into the Gothic Palace after a very short walk.

WOW. Just wow!

I haven’t been in many caves… some super small ones as a kid, along with a lava tube in southern Washington, so really I am naïve to seeing the brilliant geological formations that can occur in caves. Everything seemed like not… real. It was a wonderland of stalagmites, stalactites, flowstone, columns, cave turnips (Lehman Caves is one of the rare places these are found), cave bacon, soda straws, draperies, helictites, popcorn, and so much more!

After Ranger Michaela gave us a great run-down of the formations and gave us a demonstration of the fluorescence and phosphorescence of calcite, we weaved our way into the Rose Trellis and Music Rooms, pausing to regroup and learn more. She also had us sing “Row Your Boat” in the Music Room to show off the room’s echo.

Our tour wrapped up in the very big Lodge Room, which had been used as a meeting place in the past. Ranger Michaela presented a lesson on cave life, showing photos of the various things that make their home in the dark (including the Great Basin Pseudoscorpion). Then it was time for the exit tunnel (manmade), and the final airlock before heading back outside into the stunningly bright evening sun. Without a doubt, a visit to Great Basin National Park would not be complete without a tour of Lehman Caves, and I am so happy I was able to nab tickets! (Time to make a mental note of the clothing and shoes worn… since it strikes them off the list for any future caves…)

After wrapping up our cave tour, it was time to head back to camp. First we stopped at the Bristlecone General Store, Baker’s only option for provisions that are not national park souvenirs. This small, charming store sells some basic food items, local beers and spirits, souvenirs, and also has a coffee shop. I picked out some oatmeal and muffin for the next day’s breakfast, and much to my delight, several Moon Pies that they were selling in honor of the upcoming annular solar eclipse. Oh, and I cannot forget about the decal that describes me perfectly – “Easily distracted by cloud formations”!

Back to camp while the sun was still up (and with no encroaching neighbors or crowds), we fixed up some chicken tacos, topped off with some freeze-dried guacamole Eric made and chips we picked up at the general store. Tomorrow would be a big day of hiking to the summit of Wheeler Peak, so full tummies and a full night’s sleep was a must!