Patterson Trail

This trail is the easiest of the 4 lake trails in the area. It begins from the Big Eightmile campground and follows the creek up the canyon until you hit a saddle up to the lake itself. There are no major obstacles, just a few very small creek crossings and several water diversion "humps". There is a mix of loose rock, embedded rock, and hardpack dirt, with it getting more rocky as you reach the top. Some minor exposure, but the trail is decently wide for a shelf road. Only one slight off-camber section of about 100 feet that crosses a scree hill that could be troublesome on an ATV. You cannot ride directly to the lake, but it is only a short walk past the end, with an obvious trail to the lake. Overall, an easy, quick ride that can connect with several other trails.