Mountains, Deserts, Caves - Great Basin National Park has it all…Except the Crowds
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Great Basin National Park is one of the least visited, and more remote, national parks. That’s exactly why you should go.
Interesting statistics.
In 2025, there were 161,210 visitors. Between 1934 and 2025, there have been 5,087479 visitors to Lehman Caves National Monument and Great Basin National Park. To give you context, compare that to the Blue Ridge Parkway, within the National Park system. It welcomed 16,533,753 visitors in 2025. That means the Blue Ridge Parkway saw over three times more visitors in 2025, than Great Basin has had since they’ve been keeping records!
You can pull up similar fascinating statistics on the NPS website.
Where is it?
It’s roughly 235 miles (about 3 hours 40 minutes) south west of Salt Lake City, or 285 miles (about 4 hours 15minutes) north of Las Vegas. As you can see from the maps, it's remote.
We took the route from Salt Lake City Airport through Wendover, Utah/West Wendover, Nevada to see the nearby Bonneville Salt Flats, which lie 10 miles east of West Wendover. We also planned a stop at Smith’s, the last major grocery store for miles, to pick up snacks and water.
Where’d We Stay?
We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Ely Nevada. Ely is the closest town of substance to Great Basin. It’s still an hour to main entrance of Great Basin, but it was clean and comfortable. If you prefer, there’s camping in Great Basin, and we met someone along the trail who was camping.
What’s There to Do?
Hiking
Well, of course there’s hiking. We did the Alpine Lakes Loop trail. The hike is listed as an easy hike. The elevation gain is only 440 feet or 134 meters, BUT, the starting elevation is 9,890 feet or 2,987 meters. If you live at sea level, like us, the elevation is THE challenge. There was a group RUNNING up the trail. They didn’t even look winded.
We did this trail in May. It was a bit muddy in places due to snow melting, and there was definitely snow on the ground. For a very short patch, I was up to my knees in snow – it was kinda fun!
Note: Driving to the trailhead - 30 minutes from the Visitor Center. It was a beautiful view, but there were some switchbacks involved and YIKES! No guardrails!
Tip: Bring water, snacks and definitely dress in layers. Starting out on the trail was brisk, but in a short time, we were down to t-shirts in spite of the snow.
Go Underground …Lehman Caves
One of the reasons I wanted to go to Great Basin was to visit Lehman Caves. Unfortunately, when we visited, the caves were closed for work. Once the caves reopen, you’ll need to make reservations on Recreation.gov. Tickets are limited and tend to sell out.
If You’re a Stargazer
You can participate in one of the park’s astronomy programs. According to the NPS website, Great Basin is, “recognized by the International Dark Sky Association as a Gold Tier International Dark Sky Park in 2016, Great Basin National Park is home to some of the least polluted and clearest night skies in the contiguous United States.”
And Then There’s the Bristlecone Pines
They're beautiful. I’ll just leave the description to the National Park Service website.
Where’d We Eat?
Getting There:
Salt Flats Café, Wendover, UT Really good Mexican food
In the Park: Great Basin Café at Lehman Caves Visitor Center– it’s a good place to grab a post-hike snack.
In Ely:
JT’s Steakhouse. We made reservations and I’m glad we did. It was the place to be! Food was fairly straightforward, but not awesome. I had a baked potato and a salad, my husband had…a steak!
Smash and Grab Café, inside Jailhouse Casino: It was your basic fry fest. We had fried pickles. I ordered off the kids’ menu – a grilled cheese and fries. My husband ordered a burger and fries.
At the Park:
It's limited to snacks and finger food, and you'll pay a premium, but we had a quick bite to eat and a drink at the Great Basin Cafe and Gift Shop, located at the Lehman Caves Visitor Center.
Would I Recommend Visiting Great Basin?
Yes! It’s not easy to get to, but it’s worth the effort!
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