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| | | Rae Lakes Loop - Kings Canyon, CA | | | |
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Rae Lakes Loop - Kings Canyon, CA
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| Backpack | 64.35 Miles |
15,359 AEG |
| | Backpack | 64.35 Miles | 5 Days | | |
| 15,359 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | Firstly, thanks to @john9l for doing all the legwork and planning for this one. It's been on the list for years and finally came together due to his efforts. Popular hikes like this with challenging permit requirements take logistical planning and don't just happen on a whim. The experience is worth all the work!
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Six of us met up at the Princess Campground a few miles past the Grant Grove entry station where we spent a chilly night before making our final preparations and driving the final hour down (then back up) the spectacular Kings Canyon Scenic Highway to Roads End the next morning.
Day 1: Roads End to Junction Meadow
10.5 mi - 3,405aeg - 5:49
We hit the trail before 10am knowing we had a big climb ahead. Temps were unseasonably cool, providing pleasant conditions in the mid 60s even at the 5,000 ft elevation at Roads End. The day warmed as we climbed elevation but never got above the mid 70s and by the time we reached camp was only in the 50s.
The big climb happens via switchbacks over the course of about two miles early on, climbing out of the bottom of Kings Canyon and up into the Bubbs Creek drainage where the rest of the day is a much more moderate creekside grade.
The most impacted camping area lies just over half a mile below Junction Meadow, but we continued on and found a suitable site farther up. Another backpacking couple camped 25 yards away, and as darkness fell they were joined by a half dozen others who we had seen at the trailhead when we set out, but who took an extra FIVE hours to cover the same distance.
We settled in for a couple hours of campfire shenanigans and a good 50-degree night sleep at 8000 feet.
Day 1: Junction Meadow Explore
1.0 mi - 149aeg - 0:33
After setting up camp near Junction Meadow, I took a stroll from camp to explore the area and look for other camp sites and check out a bit of the trail that heads up toward East Lake. The evening meadow views were peaceful with a few deer fearlessly foraging despite my presence. The rocky pinnacles on the south face of Mt. Bago are a sight to behold from the meadow area. In the morning, DnA encountered a sow and her two cubs here. She growled her displeasure with their proximity, but otherwise provided no challenges to human authority. Handwritten signage posted at the trail junction by rangers suggest that aggressive bears in this area should be challenged and chased: "be the bigger bear!"  
Day 2: Junction Meadow to Middle Rae Lake
9.66 mi - 4,130aeg - 6:41
With a 3kft day yesterday, we knew that today's 4kft would provide yet another grind. But it would be only about 6 miles to reach the high point at Glen Pass with the remainder of the miles downhill. The first two miles climb steeply along the banks of Bubbs Creek as it cascades down some impressive falls with stellar views of the surrounding peaks. The grade moderates as the trail reaches Lower Vidette Meadow and the junction with the JMT/PCT that heads south to Forester Pass, a recognizable junction that I had previously visited a decade ago.
From Lower Vidette, there's a big climb up to the Kearsarge junction before traversing around the slopes east of Charlotte Lake and ascending into the Glen Pass basin. The final 1000 feet before the pass was a real grind and it always impresses me how they cut a trail through these rugged landscapes at high elevations here.
DnA had fallen back a bit, 9L was ahead waiting on the pass, while Ryan and I were just a few minutes ahead of Karl as we made the final push to the top, which revealed our first view of the Rae Lakes basin below and the northward view across the heart of Kings Canyon National Park.
The descent off the pass was a downhill relief, but no less challenging, with a trail made of baseball-sized granite and a knee-jarring drop down to lake level. There's a popular (nearly "developed") area for camping on the east side of Middle Rae Lake, but we opted for a bit more seclusion and after a lengthy search for a suitable spot ended up setting up camp between Upper and Middle Rae on an elevated bluff with stellar views across the basin.
The air was chilly, some big breezes set in, and cloudiness prevented solar warmth, so we bundled up for a brisk night at 10,500 feet, an area of the park where campfires are always prohibited.
Day 2: Middle Rae Lake Loop
2.65 - 400aeg - 1:30
After getting settled at camp and enjoying a celebratory beverage, I set out to stay warm by staying in motion  with trip around Middle Rae Lake. There's no trail on the west side, but off-trail travel at this elevation is largely unencumbered. The views here are nothing short of spectacular and I can't possibly convey the enjoyment I felt spending an hour and a half sauntering around this place. Along the way I spied a handful of beautiful campspots that receive far less visitation than those adjacent to the trail on the east side of the lakes.
Day 3: 60 Lakes Basin and Mount Cotter
9.94 mi - 3,573aeg - 7:18
Our "zero day" at the lakes was never going to be spent sitting at camp, but it probably didn't need to be this aggressive either lol. All six of us set out to explore 60 Lakes Basin, which is about 3 miles on a developed trail west of Rae Lakes. Once we got there, we all set out on different itineraries, and somehow I convinced Ryan to join me on my attempt to summit the nearby Mount Cotter (12,694), an impressive looking peak that looked like it would provide some good views of the surroundings.
We started our ascent at the north end of USGS topo-marked lake 3304m and made steady work traversing the west slope up through 11,000 feet before turning back north and climbing to a relatively flat area at 11,500. I had originally planned to climb directly to the ridge and go from there, but it looked quite rugged and it seemed this would be unnecessary extra distance, so we just made a more direct cross-slope climb toward the ridge just south of the summit.
This area was made up largely of huge granite boulders, most of which were easily navigated, with only the occasional surprise when one pivoted or otherwise moved a bit underfoot. There were plenty of breaks for oxygen replenishment even though we had stretched our route to a tolerable 1200ft/mile grade.
Upon reaching the ridge, views opened into the Gardiner Basin, a goal I had set for myself and which absolutely did not disappoint! The final stretch of ridgeline narrows to a knife edge and we had to drop a bit on the north side to get to the base of the summit block. After extensive exploration, evaluation, and a couple of attempts on possible routes, we settled for stopping 30-feet below the summit. The Sierra Club reports this as a Class-2 summit, and other reports say there's a Class-3 requirement at the end. That's true for sure. We figured out what was the probable best-route up but the exposure was not to either of our liking and neither of us had issue with the choice to make good decisions on this day!
Views were no less stellar from our perch and I'm so thoroughly satisfied with the attempt that I would do it again without question.
On the return, we took a more direct descent than we had on the climb. This slope is void of the large stable boulders we had going up, with a lot more loose sand that made for some nice sliding. Farther down it was a zig zag mystery to find the breaks through the various cliff bands above the lake.
Once back in 60 Lakes Basin, we took the opportunity for a refreshing swim to rinse off a few days of backpacking. The sun was still out in strength, so recovery didn't take long. There's nothing quite like swimming in an alpine lake, and I relish each opportunity I have to do so.
Refreshed, we made quick work retracing our morning steps back from 60 Lakes to camp at Middle Rae.
Day 3: Dragon Lake
1.8 mi - 632aeg - 1:31
Because I'm not one to sit on my pumpkin too much, after a snack at camp we headed up to check out Dragon Lake, less than a mile away, but a bit of a climb on an undeveloped route. Happy hour at the lake with stellar views of Dragon Peak, Dragon Tooth, and surroundings provided an excellent end to a memorable day.
Day 4: Middle Rae Lake to Middle Paradise
15.2 mi - 1,105aeg - 7:25
As is customary for a 9L trip, the penultimate day is extended from the original plan in order to shorten the exit day. Instead of our planned destination of Upper Paradise, we instead set a goal a couple miles farther to Middle Paradise. The early miles on this stretch of the PCT are along the remaining lakes in the Rae Lakes basin with outstanding views, and a mild descending grade. Lower Rae, Arrowhead, and Dollar are all worthy destinations, each with developed camping areas near the shore.
After Dollar, the next four miles drop 1500 feet along South Fork Woods Creek, a couple of sections of which are relatively steep. Along the way, the trail drops under the 10,000ft campfire prohibition level, but there's really only one real opportunity for camping until reaching the suspension bridge at Woods Creek proper.
At Woods Creek, the PCT heads uphill and our route heads downhill and west toward South Fork Kings Canyon, 6 miles away and another 1500 feet down. This stretch has some impressive views of the Castle Domes to the north, and unnamed peaks to the south. But it is largely an open valley with little shade and a steady downgrade.
The old bridge crossing South Fork Kings in Paradise Valley was destroyed by flooding in the winter of 2016-2017. This required a shallow wade which was no problem at this time of year. Adjacent to the old bridge site is a large and popular camping area called Upper Paradise with numerous occupied campsites.
We continued downstream to the much more intimate camping area at Middle Paradise. Along the way we were treated to an encounter with a very blonde black bear and her curious cub. It's always a highlight to see these magnificent creatures in their home environment!
Day 4: Woods Creek Waterslide
1.69mi - 435aeg - 0:47
Halfway through the hike from Rae to Paradise, I took a side trip about a mile up the PCT to check out the cascades along Woods Creek known as the Waterslide. These smooth granite cascades are plentiful along Sierra Creeks and one of the treats that I enjoy seeing, so it was worth the extra hour it added to the day.
Day 5: Middle Paradise to Roads End
7.11 mi - 462aeg - 2:57
Our exit day started early and seemed straightforward on the map. None of us realized what an absolutely stunning canyon this would be as the downstream views were top notch and our exploration along five different viewpoints adjacent to Mist Falls was yet another major highlight of the whole trip. The deep canyon walls provided shade from the morning sun nearly all the way to the Bubbs junction, a nice feature given that the lower elevations were slated to have temps well into the 80s by afternoon.
Those last two miles along Bubbs Creek seemed eternal, as they often do in these scenarios, but we trodded along until we reached the cooler with celebratory beverages signifying another successful journey in the mountains and the start of a long drive back to the valley of hell and death.
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For the first time in recent memory, mosquitoes were not an issue on this trip which was a nice change. I don't know if this was a change in winter and spring precipitation and temperatures or just the reality of being a few weeks later in the summer than some previous trips. But I'm here for it.
This was a super fun and satisfying trek with a great group of adventurers. 11/10 would do again! |
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| I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 
), but ended up heading around to the Barton Flats area since there were cooler temperatures and more opportunities for camping. Road access to the Fish Creek trailhead (plus Aspen Grove) is restricted due to extensive flooding caused by Tropical Storm Hillary in September 2023. This made South Fork the most logical choice for our summit plan.
