Backpack Trail Guide

Trails / Utah / High Uintas

Amethyst Lake

High Uintas Wilderness, Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest (Evanston Ranger District)

Amethyst Lake sits in a meadow-framed cirque below Ostler Peak on the north slope of the High Uintas. CleverHiker describes a 13-mile round trip from Christmas Meadows that follows the Stillwater and Ostler forks of the Bear River past waterfalls to the lake, with Ostler and Hayden peaks above it.

It’s a shorter High Uintas overnight, with most of the effort packed into the middle miles.

The hike

Christmas Meadows is at the end of a 4-mile dirt road off the Mirror Lake Highway, just past the Stillwater Campground sign, according to CleverHiker and Girl on a Hike. The Forest Service says the Stillwater Fork flows just outside Christmas Meadows Campground.

Girl on a Hike describes the first 2 miles as rocky, rolling terrain through shaded pines. About 100 yards past the High Uintas Wilderness sign, a large rock pile marks the Amethyst Lake turnoff. From there the trail climbs steeply over rocks past Amethyst Falls, with the steepest stretch lasting about half a mile. Ostler Peak comes into view at the second meadow. She notes that many of the bridges are old and some are unbalanced, and that parts of the trail are waterlogged and muddy.

She counted 6.5 miles one way with about 1,950 feet of gain and took a little over three hours. At the lake, she filtered snowmelt from a waterfall on the south end. CleverHiker suggests circling the lake or climbing Ostler Peak as extras, and describes a four-day option continuing about 11 miles from Amethyst Lake to Ryder Lake.

Weather is the main planning factor. CleverHiker says afternoon thunderstorms are typical and lightning is a serious threat above treeline, and Girl on a Hike set up camp early to beat afternoon storms. Mosquitoes can be severe early in the season near bogs and water, per CleverHiker.

For a longer trip from the same highway, see Naturalist Basin, which starts at the Highline Trailhead near Hayden Pass.

Tips

Camping

No backcountry permit is required. Under the 2026 High Uintas order, camp at least 200 feet from any occupied campsite, trail, lake, pond, stream, spring, or other water source where terrain allows; groups are limited to 14 people and 15 stock; and stays are limited to 14 days in one drainage. Campfires and wood stoves are banned within 1/4 mile of Amethyst Lake and other lakes in Amethyst Basin, so cook on a stove.

Inside Intel: CleverHiker recommends several camps: the second meadow on the way up, a small pond just past it, a site it calls BR-24 about a mile below the lake at the end of the long meadow (for wind protection and fewer mosquitoes), and the far end of Amethyst Lake below the peaks. Girl on a Hike also mentions an unnamed turquoise pond with several campsites around it.

Trail facts

The Lowdown

A sheltered pitch below Ostler Peak:

CleverHiker points to a meadow camp a mile below Amethyst Lake for wind protection, and a sturdy tent helps when Uinta storms roll through. See the tents testers trust.

See the picks →

Where this comes from

This page draws on the sources below, along with other guides and trip reports. Links go to the original pages.

Before you go: This page is based on published trail guides, trip reports, and reviews, along with official park and agency information where we could find it. It’s meant to help backpackers discover new trails, not to replace current, official information. Conditions, closures, permits, campsites, and water sources change, and some details here may be out of date or wrong. Confirm everything with the managing agency and check current conditions before you head out, and don’t rely on this page alone for safety or navigation. Backcountry travel involves risk.