The Crystal Range is a small chain of mountain peaks in the

Desolation Wilderness The Desolation Wilderness is a federally protected wilderness area in the Eldorado National Forest and Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, in El Dorado County, California. The crest of the Sierra Nevada runs through it, just west of Lake Tahoe. H ...

in the U.S. state of California. It is a subrange of the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...

. The highest and most southerly peak is Pyramid Peak at 9985 ft; Mount Agassiz is next north at 9967 ft, with Mount Price (9975 ft) rounding out the southern group of peaks.

Tells Peak Tells Peak is a mountain in the Sierra Nevada at the very north end of the Crystal Range (California), to the west of Lake Tahoe. It is located in the Desolation Wilderness The Desolation Wilderness is a federally protected wilderness area i ...

is the northernmost named peak in the range. It is southwest of

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; was, Dáʔaw, meaning "the lake") is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at , it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City, Nevad ...

and north of

U.S. Route 50 U.S. Route 50 or U.S. Highway 50 (US 50) is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching from Interstate 80 (I-80) in West Sacramento, California, to Maryland Route 528 (MD 528) in Ocean City, Maryland, on the Atlanti ...

. Two main access roads run off of U.S. Route 50, Ice House Road, which is furthest west, and more easterly, Wright's Lake Road which is a steep road not conducive to trailers or large vehicles. Many access the tallest peak Pyramid Peak from Hwy 50 directly hiking in, to the Desolation Wilderness.

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The Crystal Range
seen from east within the Desolation Wilderness looking over Lake Aloha, Pyramid Peak on the left. Mountains of the Desolation Wilderness Mountain ranges of Northern California {{ElDoradoCountyCA-geo-stub