Why Visit Great Basin National Park
Great Basin National Park is one of the least visited National Parks in the continental United States. It took the park 88 years to reach the same amount of visitors that Yosemite National Park receives in one year. However, we feel the less crowded experience at Great Basin National Park is major benefit for visitor experience.
The park is quite remote with the closest major city, Salt Lake City, UT 3.5+ hours away. Although SLC is closer, the park is entirely in the state of Nevada. In fact, Great Basin National Park encompasses much of the Snake Range Mountains that rise high above the sagebrush floor of the larger Great Basin area.
We absolutely loved our trip over the Independence Day weekend. Throughout this blog we’ll share our experience and our advice for a great visit.
Biodiversity
Great Basin National Park is home to an impressive amount of diversity. Within the park you can gain over 5,000 feet in elevation by vehicle up to Wheeler Peak. And by foot you can gain another 3,000 feet in elevation up to the Wheeler Peak summit. Within this range of elevation the flora and fauna also change. The scenic drive up to Wheeler Peak highlights the diversity of the park. Starting from sagebrush you end in pines and aspens before bristlecone pines and an impressive rock glacier.
The Oldest Trees in the World
Great Basin National Park is home to the largest collection of Bristlecone Pine groves, the oldest trees in the world. Bristlecones can live up to 5,000 years or longer with many in the park 2,000-4,000 years old. They’ve evolved to grow slow and resilient to some of the harshest weather conditions. It’s really impressive when you consider how long these trees have been alive and how they survive.
Caves
Above ground is impressive at Great Basin National Park, but so are the Lehman Caves. This cave tour is a must at the park. We were really impressed by the size of the caves and the information we learned from our ranger led tour. The Lehman Caves were originally a national monument before becoming part of the larger national park.
Stargazing
Last, but certainly not least, is the amazing night sky visible from Great Basin National Park. Because the closest major light sources are hundreds of miles away, Great Basin National Park is well known for its incredible opportunity to see the stars and the Milky Way galaxy.
How to Visit Great Basin National Park
Flying vs Driving to the Park
Visiting Great Basin National Park had been on our list for a while. We debated on flying versus driving for a bit, ultimately deciding on driving. Although driving requires more travel time, we looked at the cost benefits and the fact that we could bring everything we wanted. However, many visitors fly into the Las Vegas or Salt Lake City airport and rent a car.
On Thursday after work we drove 4.5 hours from Phoenix to Las Vegas where we stayed with friends for the night. However, there are plenty of hotels and Airbnbs in the area. The next morning we were up early and drove 4.5 hours to Great Basin National Park. Splitting up the drive allowed us to get some valuable rest after the work week and to get to the park at a decent time on Friday.
Consider the Season
Another major factor we considered was time of year and seasonal openings. Wheeler Peak can get a lot of snow and often doesn’t open until Memorial Day or later. In 2025, the 4th of July was on a Friday which worked out perfectly for a three day weekend without using our PTO. The NPS has helpful resources for weather forecasts here.
During our trip the lower elevations had high temperatures in the upper 80s °F and Wheeler Peak had high temperatures in the low to mid 70s °F. At the campground the nights got into the upper 40s °F. The most significant weather impact we had was strong wind, mostly wind gusts. On the Friday we arrived, the park was under a Red Flag Warning. Besides having to make sure things wouldn’t fly away, we didn’t have any issues with the weather.
Plan to Stay Overnight
Our goal was to camp at the National Park no matter if we flew or drove. However, there are a few places to stay in Baker, NV at the entrance of the park. The places look cute and somewhere we’d consider next time. There are multiple campgrounds within Great Basin National Park and their website describes them well along with the process of getting a campsite. Over the years they’ve been improving the campgrounds with likely more planned, so pay attention to updated closures. With a mid-summer visit to Great Basin in mind, camping at Wheeler Peak Campground was our top choice. They announced in the morning on social media that the sites were open for reservation and by that afternoon we had picked our desired site.
Reserve Cave Tours in Advance
The Lehman Caves are one of the most popular features of the park, for good reason. Cave Tours are limited and require a reservation. Some are available day of but it’s best to reserve as far in advance as you can to ensure you get the tour of your choosing.
Great Basin National Park Itinerary
Friday
We arrived to the Lehman Caves Visitor Center in Great Basin National Park just before noon on Friday. First, we checked in with the rangers for our 3pm cave tour and bought some souvenirs. Next we ate lunch at the picnic tables down the road from the main parking lot. From there we decided to take the scenic drive up to Wheeler Peak and to check out our campsite.
Along the drive we stopped at some of the pullouts and viewpoints where we learned more about the park. After checking out our campsite we headed back down the mountain all they way to the other visitor in the town of Baker. The visitor center there was focused on the whole park, but the souvenirs were the same.
Finally, it was time for our ranger led cave tour. We took the Parachute Shield Tour, but they do offer other tours. The hour long tour was super interesting and our ranger did an excellent job. We highly recommend doing a cave tour! The history of the caves geologically and anthropologically is interesting.
Because Great Basin is known for it’s lack of light pollution, we wanted to get a picture of the Milky Way. Unfortunately for us, the moon was quite bright. So we set multiple alarms to check on the moon in the middle of the night and finally at 2am the moon was gone and the Milky Way was visible to the naked eye. It was definitely cold out with the wind that night.
Saturday
By evening time on Friday, Owen was definitely feeling the altitude and headaches, so it was nice to have more time to acclimate before hiking on Saturday. The next morning we were up early and refreshed. We set out to hike the Bristlecone and Alpine Lakes Loop. We were on trail by 8:3 am and it was fairly quiet.
This hike was gorgeous! And with hardly any other hikers it was quite peaceful. The birds were very active and we saw some deer in the distance enjoying their grass breakfast. By the time we got to the Bristlecone Pine grove we were seeing more hikers, but still not too bad. As the morning progressed more hikers were on trail as we continued to the moraine and rock glacier at the end of the trail. After taking time to soak everything in, we started our hike back around noon. This time we faced a lot hikers that started much later in the day so it was nice to know we were getting off trail soon.
We took the rest of the day to relax at our campsite and enjoy the cooler temperatures. After a very busy June and travel to the park, it was nice to just be still.
Quick Stats
Length:
6.46
Route Type:
Loop
Elevation Gain:
1,312 ft recorded
Vaulted Toilets:
Yes
Dog Friendly:
NO
Fee:
Yes (Park Entrance)
Difficulty:
moderate
Water:
At visitor center
Sunday
Instead of breaking up the drive home, we planned to do the full 9 hours in one day. After breakfast Sunday morning we packed up and left. We got a photo at the entrance sign and stopped at the cute little market in Baker before heading back.
Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our time at Great Basin National Park and wish were there for longer. It really surprised us how much we fell in love. There are no bears in park, crowds are minimal, and there are many hikes to do along with creeks and alpine lakes.
Wheeler Peak Summit
For this trip we elected not to attempt Wheeler Peak Summit. The summit sits over 13,000 feet above sea level is generally not a difficult trail to follow. The hike itself is long and very exposed, but no intense rock scrambling or bouldering is required. We had limited time in the park and wanted to see the alpine lakes, 3000+ year old bristlecone pines, and rock glacier up close, verses from a distance. With one more day in the park, we for sure would have attempted the hike if the weather cooperated. This is something we really thought about and even questioned if we regretted our decision. Overall, we feel we did what was best for us, and now we have another reason to come back!
Additional Resources
If you’re interested in the gear we’re wearing, using, and brining, check out each photo linked below or our Top Gear Recommendations and our Hiking Essentials.
