Backcountry Camping at Twin Lakes in Bighorn National Forest

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There is a pretty good trail description and map on alltrails.com.

Turn off of route 16 at Deer Haven and drive to the very end of the road, near the Ten Creek campground, and park at the overnight area. Fill out the form at the trailhead and take the carbon copy with you. There is no fee.

My buddy Dan and I hiked the 6-mile Lost Twin Lakes Trail and camped in the backcountry on July 4th and 5th, soon after the snowmelt on the trail, paving the way for an unbelievable number of mosquitoes.

Follow trail 65; it splits a few times but there is signage that is easy to follow. Early on the trail enters the Cloudtop Wilderness area.

The elevation change is only 1,400 feet and the trail is only 5.7 miles, but the trail is somewhat difficult with a full pack, as it goes up and down.

If you’re reasonably fit and not stopping too often, it takes about two hours to get to Mirror Lake and another two to reach Twin Lakes.

There are a few small stream crossings that are easy to cross on rocks, and then a wider stream to cross about 2/3 of the way to Mirror Lake. There was a rock bridge when we were there, but it would be easy to get your feet wet if you slipped.

The trail is pretty rocky but any good hiking footwear would probably suffice.

It’s easy to miss Mirror Lake. It’s on the left heading up the trail as you come to a beautiful clearing that may distract you from the lake. There are likely more suitable campsites around the lake, and there is a very nice area to camp or eat lunch right off the trail.

From Mirror Lake, the trail continues to climb at times and passes through beautiful drainages. Toward the end, there is a short scramble, but it isn’t too difficult.

Just before you reach the Twin Lakes, the trail splits. Most backpackers go to the right, which leads to the shore where there is enough space for 2-3 small parties. One woman continued past there toward the cliffs and must have found a good spot there.

We went to the left, crossing a stream with two small waterfalls, and made camp just beyond, on a sort of flat, grassy shelf that overlooks one of the lakes. We probably didn’t need to filter the water coming out of a snowfield just above, but there were a fair number of marmots scurrying along the rocks, so we didn’t take any chances.

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