Like Summer Camp, Only Better

Mammoth Lakes Family Friendly Summer Adventure

Mountains, lakes, ample playtime. Mammoth Lakes is like the ultimate summer camp, only way better: because it's for kids and kids at heart!

Take a guided kayak trip on Mono Lake, a high-desert oasis filled with fascinating towers of gnarled limestone tufas. Kids will be in awe of these Dr. Seuss-like formations and parents will relish the lake's peacefulness. Your kayak guide is like the coolest camp counselor you'll ever meet. Or settle into a canoe for a sunset paddle on Inyo National Forest’s Convict Lake—framed by 12,000-foot granite peaks.

Rather pedal than paddle? Ride on! Miles of paved bike trails surround Mammoth Lakes, with beginner-friendly trails leaving right from town. Pro Tip: Ride on over to The Village at Mammoth for outdoor live music, a distillery, restaurants, ice cream, and fun games. Novice and expert mountain bikers have a variety of choices at Mammoth Mountain’s legendary bike park (yep, the famous ski slopes are transformed every summer into impeccably groomed trails). Everyone gets to share the epic High Sierra scenery.

For those who'd rather have their summer camp feel more Westworld than Walley World, Bodie State Historic Park is an old Western ghost town that can be explored by horseback.

And of course there’s hiking—miles of it—made super accessible by the free shuttles in Mammoth Lakes, from a 2-mile circuit around Lake Mary to longer adventures up to hidden oases in the Ansel Adams Wilderness.

Who says kids get to have all the fun? The whole family's invited to the place that's like a giant summer camp for all: Mammoth Lakes.

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  1. Taking the Stage: Tyler Ranch

    Hike the recently opened Tyler Ranch Staging Area in Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park, with 18 miles of new trails. This 6.5-mile loop up Sunol Peak is a challenge and rewards with exceptional views of seasonal iridescent hills.

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  2. A woman stands at Dante's View in Death Valley, looking out to Telescope Peak and Manly Lake, Badwater Basin below.

    Sunset Hike (and Manly Lake Vista!) at Dante's View

    It’s one of the world’s best places to watch a sunset. Dante’s View is a 5,476-foot vantage of the whole southern basin of Death Valley from the top of the Black Mountains. On clear days you get views of both the highest and lowest points in the contiguous U.S. 

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  3. Swing into Spring

    Swing into this 7.1-mile hike in the hills of Half Moon Bay! It’s got gorgeous views, fields of spring wildflowers, and a hidden rustic tree swing.

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  4. The Carson Show

    Carson Falls is ready for primetime. This three-tiered, 100-foot stunner is hidden back in a canyon outside of Fairfax and reached on a 3.25-mile (round-trip) hike.

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  1. Lava Lava

    Once a land of volcanic activity, Mojave National Preserve shares plenty about its past via a quick yet adventurous hike to the Lava Tube in the Cima Dome Volcanic Field.

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  2. Kelso Dunes

    The hike to the top of Kelso Dunes in the Mojave National Preserve is only 3 miles (out and back), but you’ll feel like you’ve hiked much farther by the time you’re done.

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  3. William Kenyon Overlook

    Some of the best vistas of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park are easily accessible via a short and sweet 1.25-mile (round-trip) hike just off the CA-78. Enter your next favorite desert viewpoint: the William Kenyon Overlook.

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  4. Beaudry Bountiful

    There are no cars allowed on Beaudry Loop, but this 6-mile hike takes you on a wild ride. You’ll be climbing 1,500 feet up the southern Verdugos along a chaparral-lined trail with gorgeous mountain and urban vistas every step of the way.

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