Gold reserve under Round Lake

Round Lake—at an elevation of 6,800 feet (2,073 m)—backdropped by mountains of the northern Sierra Pacific Crest

Round Lake Trail is a 1.5-mile-long hiking path—part of the Bear Lakes Loop—to a picturesque, cirque-bound lake in the Lakes Basin Recreation Area near Graeagle, California. Relics at the south side of the lake provide a glimpse into the local gold mining history [1-3].

From the Y-junction, about a quarter mile west of the trailhead parking lots, turn left and make an easy climb to where a short use trail leads to point with views of Great Bear Lake. 

Great Bear Lake see from a use trail dead-end off Round Lake Trail

Return to the main trail and continue your climb to the Pacific Crest Trail connector/Bear Lakes Loop junction. Here, a  Plumas National Forest historical marker with the title “Round Lake Mine” summarizing the gold mining activities at and underneath the lake [4]:

This gold mine, part of the Johnsville Mining District, was initially prospected during the Gold Rush but not fully developed until 1914. A stamp mill was built here in 1915 to extract the gold. Only a few feet of ground surface were gold bearing as the quartz vein extended under Round Lake and was covered by glacial debris. In 1918, miners built a shaft 300 feet deep. This created a tunnel that followed the gold-bearing solid quartz fissure 100 feet to the east and another 160 feet to the west under Round Lake. 

Going deeper under Round Lake. The marker inscription goes on:

In 1935, the Ready Bullion Company of Sacramento built a second mill at a cost of $100,000. A 400 feet incline shaft was built to reach under the lake. Unfortunately the mill and shaft timbers burned to the ground shortly after they were built. and the venture was abandoned. The remains of the mill are what you see here.

Historic gold mining site with Round Lake

Round Lake mining relics of the historic Johnsville Mining District with Mt. Elwell (Elev. 7818 ft) in the back

Getting to the Round Lake Trailhead

From Graeagle, follow the Gold Lake Highway south to the Gold Lake Lodge. Turn right at the left-side Gold Lake Lodge sign. Go west, head south-west at the fork and find parking near the trailhead.

Map of the Bear Lakes Loop area

Bear Lakes Loop including Round Lake and Silver Lake

Also, check out the detailed trail map at the koomot site [2].

References & more to explore

[1] Mike White: Afoot & Afield. Wilderness Press, Berkeley, CA; 2nd printing November 2008.

[2] Bear Lakes and Round Lake Loop. komoot. URL: https://www.komoot.com/smarttour/e1050438208/bear-lakes-and-round-lake-loop.

[3] Western Mining History - Round Lake. Mining Town Archive 2026. URL:  https://westernmininghistory.com/mine-detail/10212878/. .

[4] Round Lake Mine. The Historical Marker Database. URL: https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=66178.