The Pacific Crest Trail is one of the longest wilderness trails in the world, and perhaps the most famous. It is also the home of many of my all-time favourite camps. I have hiked a total of 500 km on the PCT as of 2024. This guide covers the Northern Sierra section, from Tuolumne Meadows in the south to Echo Lake in the north. For my list of best camps on the John Muir Trail section, click here.

lily pad lake

Probably my favourite camp of this PCT section hike. This (unnamed on FarOut) lake at mile 1064.2 is just onward from Lower Sunset Lake. Aptly named, it is covered in huge floats of waterlilies blooming in bright yellow. It was the greatest treat after a wonderful day on the trail. I arrived alongside hikers Nurries, Fancy Feast, Stretch, and Whistles for a whole afternoon of eating delicious snacks and basking in the sun. The lake is perfect for swimming in (aka proper warm), there are next to no mosquitoes even at twilight. Countless flat spots on white rock and sand to pitch tents, and excellent sunset views.

In FancyFeast’s words “Prime lakeside property with excellent views of The Nipple”. The Nipple is a mountain.

Smedberg lake

So, this cheeky piece of near-heaven makes the cut due to its stunning location. However, we shared “Club Smed” with around 660 billion mosquitoes, and that sucked profoundly. They weren’t there during the afternoon as we had a gentle breeze, but the minute that died down, it was swarm hell. We ate our dinners up on the hillside away from the water, in full head nets and raingear. However! Smedberg Lake is stunning, with perfect swimming temperature, and a blissful reward after a hard day over Benson Pass. We camped in a little grove with space for about 3-4 tents, and were only woken in the night by the thudding stomps of a deer that pretended to be a bear. ‘Twas quite terrifying.

Dorothy Lake

In a similar vein to Club Smed above, Dorothy lake was mosquito hell but still makes the list for its stunning location (and mozzies are seasonal after all). Dorothy Lake felt like the most wild Sierra-esque camp, with the snowy Forsyth crest crowning above it. The lake itself is big enough to have tiny waves lapping at its grassy shores when the wind blows. There are several campsites along the north-western shore, we picked one that was less used on rockier ground away from the bushes and trees. I like camps that have slightly drier ground, and this was perfect. An amazing sunset spot.

showers lake

My last camp on this PCT section hike. I was lucky to be with Nurries who had camped here before. He led us away from the forest camp spots on the trail to the northern shore. Among the huge granite boulders there are perfect camp spots aplenty. It’s private and offers impeccable swimming opportunities. No mozzies! Sheltered by trees and boulders, this would be a great camp even in a storm. It was such a great last camp after a 20 mile day, and the miles leading to it are completely flat – so you can cruise in right over the finish line with a smile without breaking a sweat.

return creek camp

Our first camp set the bar way up high! We were absolutely smashed after our first blazing hot day in hefty terrain coming off of a heatwave. We arrived at 6pm when the sun was low, and seeing this absolute paradise of camp spots was utter bliss. Return Creek is perfect for swimming in (Chris and I swam in our birthday suits only to spot the flustered elderly German gentlemen staring from the opposite shore), and there were barely any mozzies. There are countless good spots on the white rock and in little groves scattered around the creek. This night on trail was probably the busiest, we shared our oasis with probably 20+ hikers. There are no other campsites remotely nearby, so don’t miss out on this treat!