Desolation Wilderness Permit — Twin Lakes

Twin Lakes (Zone 32): what makes it different

Zone 32 holds Twin Lakes, Boomerang Lake and Island Lake on the western edge of the wilderness, all reached from the Twin Lakes Trailhead beside Wrights Lake. The zone sleeps 20 people a night, the lakes are 3.0 and 3.5 miles from the car, and the Forest Service sells the permit by zone, not by trailhead.^1,4,7

Getting to the start

The Forest Service lists the Twin Lakes Trailhead in the Wrights Lake area, with vault toilets and a $10 day-use parking fee. It is day use only unless you hold an overnight wilderness permit, and the page puts the trailhead at 38.84963, -120.225762.⁵

Directions disagree on the same agency site. The Twin Lakes page says 39 miles east of Placerville on Highway 50, then 27 miles north on Wrights Lake Road. The Rockbound Trailhead page, a short walk away, says 24 miles on that road. Trust the coordinates and the signs over either figure.^5,6

A 2021 Live and Let Hike post calls the Twin Lakes lot notoriously small and suggests parking at the larger Wrights Lake lot about a mile back, then walking the lakeshore trail to the trailhead. A 2018 backpacker found a lot with a restroom and no tap, but paid no parking fee with an overnight permit and filled water at Wrights Lake Campground.^8,9

The first leg

The Forest Service table gives 3.0 miles to Twin Lakes (moderate) and 3.5 miles to Island Lake (moderate), both in zone 32. Grouse Lake is 2.1 miles from the same trailhead, Hemlock 2.6 and Smith 3.0, but those belong to other zones.⁴

Live and Let Hike walks it as a 7-mile out and back. The wilderness boundary comes near mile 1.25, a signed split for Grouse, Hemlock and Smith lakes at about 1.5, views back over Wrights Lake near 1.8, a waterfall at about 2.4, and Lower Twin Lake at about 2.8. Boomerang Lake follows over a notch near 3.1.⁸

A July 2018 backpacker logged 4 miles to Island Lake with 1,250 feet of climbing from a 6,970-foot trailhead. His group started at 6:00 p.m. and was in camp by 7:45.⁹

Terrain and difficulty

The tread leaves the forest for bare granite about a mile in. The 2018 report says the path is poorly marked there and cairns carry you across the slabs, with the outlet creek as the safest guide. A phone map or downloaded track helps.⁹

Live and Let Hike describes a boulder-field staircase early on, slickrock marked by cairns, and a rock-hopping stream crossing at the mouth of Lower Twin Lake. Past Boomerang the writer warns of social trails that branch off, and says to keep to the main track.⁸

Recreation.gov advises against bringing horses into this zone, and notes high day use at Twin Lakes.⁷

Quota at this entry point

• 2026 daily quota at Twin Lakes (Zone 32), overnight: 20 people a day. The Forest Service table splits the 20 into 14 advance and 6 walk-in. It prints no year, so the figure was checked on Recreation.gov, where division 342 most often read 14 across June to August 2026, the advance share.^1,7

Rules specific to this entry point

Your permit fixes only the zone of your first night. Hemlock and Grouse lakes, which share this trailhead, have designated campsites marked with posts; Twin, Boomerang and Island lakes are not on the special management list, so the general rule applies: camp at least 100 feet back from the shoreline.^2,3

Where it leads

Lower and Upper Twin Lake sit under a waterfall that runs hardest in spring and early summer, with a stone dam at the outlet that hikers cross. Boomerang is a small lake with a trail along its shore, and Island Lake, named for its islets, is the largest lake on the route after Wrights Lake.⁸

The 2018 backpacker used Island Lake as a base for a cross-country day to a notch north of Mount Price, with views toward Lake Aloha. That ground has no maintained trail, and he crossed snow patches in July.⁹

What trip reports say

A July 2018 report on Backpackers Review took three days, camped two nights at Island Lake, and picked a north-shore peninsula site because most hikers searched the south side. He saw friendly marmots and notes most pads are hard granite or gravel.⁹

A June 2021 post saw campers on spur trails at Twin Lakes and Boomerang Lake and called the trail a well-trafficked single track. A commenter said Grouse Lake is closed to camping; the Forest Service rules sheet instead lists designated, posted campsites at Grouse Lake, so check the posts on site.^8,3

An August 1, 2011 Ted's Outdoor World report came the week the road opened. Expecting the Twin Lakes dam crossing to be impassable in the high runoff, he detoured by a use trail to Enchanted Pools, then reached Island Lake by crossing a snowdrift.¹⁰

When to go from here

The reports show the range. In 2011 the road had been open only a week on August 1 and streams ran too high to ford at the dam. By July 2018 the crossings were rock hops, with snow left only on the ridge above Island Lake. Early July after a big winter is the risky window.^10,9

Compare with nearby entry points

• Island Lake: Island Lake is the farthest stop inside this same zone, at 3.5 miles. The permit you buy for Twin Lakes already covers a first night there.⁴
• Hemlock: Hemlock (zone 36) is 2.6 miles from the same trailhead and rated difficult, with designated posted campsites and a 12-person quota. Twin Lakes is easier walking and allows 20.^4,1,3
• Grouse Lakes: Grouse Lakes (zone 4) has a two-person quota. It is a different zone from the Grouse Lake that the Twin Lakes Trailhead reaches at 2.1 miles, which belongs to zone 36.^1,7

Sources

1. Desolation Wilderness Overnight Quota, Eldorado National Forest, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.
2. Desolation Wilderness Permits, Eldorado National Forest, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.
3. Desolation Wilderness rules and regulations, Eldorado National Forest and Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.
4. Desolation Wilderness Trails & Trailheads, Eldorado National Forest, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.
5. Twin Lakes Trailhead, Eldorado National Forest, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.
6. Rockbound Trailhead, Eldorado National Forest, USDA Forest Service. Read 2026-10-15.
7. Desolation Wilderness Permit, division 342 (32 Twin), Recreation.gov. Read 2026-10-15.
8. Twin Lakes, Boomerang Lake, & Island Lake (Desolation Wilderness, CA), Live and Let Hike. Read 2026-10-15.
9. Twin Lakes and Island Lake, Desolation Wilderness (12 mile trek), Backpackers Review. Read 2026-10-15.
10. Enchanted Pools, Desolation Wilderness, Ted's Outdoor World. Read 2026-10-15.

Safety & planning

Alternatives to a Twin Lakes permit