The Great Basin region consists of wide valley basins separated by about 160 long, parallel mountain ranges. This basin region covers more than 200,000 square miles, as much area as the combined land mass from Maine to Maryland. It is one of the least known and understood areas in the West. The Great Basin appeal has to do with silence and space, with the grand lonesome sweep of the country itself, and with long vistas and clean air.

The Great Basin is a region where exploration and discovery await everyone who enters its boundaries. The best place to begin that exploration, and to uncover the mysteries of the region, is Great Basin National Park.

Within Great Basin National Park, more than 660 species of animal and plant life attest to its biological diversity. Ancient bristlecone pines, one of the world’s oldest living things, survive for more than 4,000 years. Significant geological values include at least 30 caves. The air quality of the park is the best in the continental United States, with visibility often exceeding 120 miles.

Great Basin National Park lies deep within the rugged region of mountain ranges and basins situated between the Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevada Range. The Southern Snake Range, which acts as the backbone of the Park, provides a natural environment of great beauty.

The landscape plays and replays a single magnificent theme of alternating basin and range – broad basins hung between craggy ranges, from the Wasatch Mountains of Utah to the Sierra Nevada of California, in seemingly endless geographic rhythm.

Close beneath the summit of Great Basin’s Wheeler Peak, a bit of the Ice Age exists in the form of a 50-acre glacier, the only one of its kind in the Great Basin. This is an alpine glacier, not the huge continental ice sheets that enveloped the northern part of the continent. Here, ice never reached the valley floor, but melted at an elevation of about 9,000 feet.

Tree-ring sequences from ancient bristlecone pines can trace the climate of the region back at least 5,400 years. Plant remains provide a history of vegetation in and around the Great Basin for the last 34,000 years. More than 70 archeological and historic sites have been identified in the Park.

Hiking Trails
Alpine Lakes Loop Trail: Winding more than a half mile through a subalpine forest and meadows to Stella and Teresa lakes.
Bristlecone/Glacier Trail: Just below Teresa Lake, this trail leads to the bristlecone pine forest and glacier area. Exhibit panels present the history of the bristlecone.
Wheeler Peak Trail: A steep trail, it leads from the summit parking lot to the 13,000-foot-plus summit of Wheeler Peak.

Hiking times of different trails, in addition to the above, range from 30 minutes to several-day trips.

Campgrounds
There are four developed campgrounds with sites available on a first-come, first-served basis. They provide water (in summer), restrooms, fire rings and picnic tables. Wheelchair accessible sites are available. Backcountry campers are encouraged to register at the Visitor Center. One campground is open year-round.

Lehman Caves Tours
The Lehman Caves National Monument was proclaimed Jan. 24, 1922, and was incorporated in Great Basin National Park on Oct. 27, 1986. Throughout the year, visitors can take 30-, 60- or 90-minute, paid guided tours of the famous Lehman Caves, the entrance to which is at the 6,825 foot level. The tours extend a quarter-mile into the limestone and low-grade marble that flank the base of the Snake Range.

Great Basin for Kids
A fun, educational summer program gives kids a chance to meet the ranger.

School/Bus Tours
School groups and bus tours should call at least two weeks in advance so special arrangement may be made, if staffing permits. Please call the park for current information on group sizes and teacher-to-student ratio requirements.

Campfire Programs
Campfire programs are offered nightly in the summer. Program topics vary, covering subjects related to the Park’s cultural and natural resources. Programs last 40 to 60 minutes.

The Visitor Center and cave tours operate year-round except for Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

For more information on Great Basin National Park visit the following sites:

National Park Service
Official Great Basin National Park Home Page
National Park Foundation
Great Basin Park Map
Lehman Caves Tour Fees