Hang onto you hat—the views if not the wind will sweep you away on this dramatic day hike to a fire lookout with a railed stairway leading to the top. You might not want to make the final ascent with your pup, but he's more than welcome on the rest of the steep, five-mile trek up from Packer Lake at 6,220 feet. Elevation gain to the top of the crags is 2,367-foot vertical feet. This is considered one of the top day-hikes in the state, almost on par with Half Dome. Sutter Buttes is a stupendous formation at the center of the Lakes Basin Recreation Area.
From the Gold Lake Highway off of Highway 49 (turn north at Bassetts Station), drive 1.4 iles to Sardine Lake/Packer Lake Road. Bear right past Packer Lake and bear left at a fork. Continue to a parking area. The trail starts as a jeep road; follow it to the trail proper.
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