On the John Muir Trail, you are stopping every few hundred feet and are stunned by the views. If you are a photographer, you grab a photo. Purple lake is further in from the trail here. It is supposed to be one of the pretty lakes on the trail, but when you are on a through hike and are a slow hiker, you are trying to hustle, particularly when there are clouds in the sky.

A quick photo here, registering the place in your mind before you continue your hike and imagining that you will come back here some day and camp a night or two.

Purple lake is about a couple of hours hike from Duck lake and can be accessed from Mammoth Lakes area.