Born Lakes

Trailhead elevation: 8,800 feet
Ants Basin Divide elevation: 9,920 feet
Ants Basin elevation: 9,555 feet
Elevation gain: (Divide) 1,600 feet;
(Basin) 1,440 feet
Access: late June through October
Road: 2-wheel drive, rough washboard surface
Maps: Sawtooth Forest, USGS Washington Peak,
Boulder Chain Lakes

Features: Finding all seven lakes, seeing marmots
and pikas.

Born Lakes can be visited on a long day hike, but it’s best saved for a weekend backpack. Once at the lakes, you’ll want to lounge on table-size flat granite, watch marmots and pikas scurry about, catch pan-size trout, and huff and puff to a view of Four Lakes Basin.

From Fourth of July Lake, hike to Ants Basin Divide, and then drop off a steep trail into Ants Basin. The Born Lakes trail heads east -- if you’re not on a defined path, search until you find it. Crossing Ants Basin, the trail goes over tiny streams and acres of July wildflowers before entering woods and steeply descending. Next, it crosses talus slopes and reaches the first lake in 4.5 miles from Fourth of July trailhead. There are a total of seven Born Lakes and ponds. Campsites are plentiful. On the return hike, expect to gain over 500 feet to reach Ants Basin Divide. This makes the hike tougher than some people expect, especially carrying a large backpack!

Side trips: Four Lakes Basin Ridge, Four Lakes Basin, Devil’s Staircase, Shallow and Scree Lakes, Quiet and Noisy Lakes, Upper Boulder Chain Lakes -- e-mail us for directions for the steep ascents and descents to these destinations. Born Lakes provides a direct route to these lakes for experienced hearty scramblers.

Cautions: traveling through rocky, forested terrain between the various Born Lakes on faint trails can be confusing - keep the kids in sight. When leaving Born Lakes back to Ants Basin, make certain you’re on the right trail and not find inadvertently dropping into Warm Springs canyon.