Did a three day trip to Charlotte Lake. On the day final day the plan was to be up extra early to pack and get on the trail before the day started heating up. As a bonus we were treated to the most magnificent sunrise of the entire trip!

Tonight around ~10:30 pm near Big Baldy Trailhead I encountered a presumably lost dog. It was black and white, medium sized with a collar. I stopped at the trailhead and attempted to coax them but they were very scared and ran away from me almost immediately. Wasn't sure where to post, so I posted it here in case it is helpful to someone missing their dog.

I’ll preface this by saying I personally think it’s likely a bad idea/too much, but could be wrong as I have not done Rae yet myself.

Howdy everyone! I’ve got a group heading up to Rae Lakes next Thursday, going clockwise over 5 days (approximate plan is 9 mile day, 9 mile day, 7 into Rae, 7 out of Rae, and another 9 to the lot).

Just had not one but two folks bail. I have one friend that has expressed interest in joining. but she has never backpacked. Her fitness is above average, she’s a hiker and a runner and does not have any lingering or chronic injuries I know about. We’d be able to share a good amount of gear and I also have doubles of nearly everything, so immediate $$ investment would be low.

But I’m worried about the total number of days (five seems a lot to just dive into), food planning (and other things that can be unique to backpacking), as well as all the other little things like bathrooms, and the full commitment required to do this hike (for example, we did High Sierra camps a few years ago and were able to bail at day 3 and hitchhike to the car; Rae feels pretty committed once you’re two days in).

Anyway, I think it might be too much, but she’d be with four or five seasoned backpackers. I haven’t done it though, so curious to hear from folks who have.

Edit: Thanks, everyone. I think we'll let it ride and bring her along. The rest of the group is a bunch of 40+ backpackers who aren't pushing for extreme times and aren't afraid to bail. We'll have 2-3 cars in the parking lot so if anyone needs to bail day 1 or 2, they'll be able to go back to Fresno and hang out with some friends I have there while the rest of the party finishes the hike. I'll discuss other logistics with the newer backpacker tonight, primarily the whole pooping in a hole thing; but I think she'll be fine with it all and we'll just take our time each day, doubly so the first day or three. The elevation profile of Rae looks pretty mellow (save for Glen, of course), so I was really just hoping to get a vibe check on how strenuous the 5-day plan is from people who've actually done it.

Hey all! We have a big group (6-8) with permits secured for late August with the below itinerary. We are all very experienced backpackers but we love to maximize the experience so we are open to changing anything. It’s our first time in this specific zone and we couldn’t be more excited. Would love this groups advice for alternate options, must sees, places to camp or whatever else you are willing to share:)

I also plan to bring my fishing pole so open to any advice there!

Entry and exit: Timber Gap

Night 1: Redwood meadow
Night 2: Hamilton/Precipice lake
Night 3: little or big 5 lakes
Night 4: Monarch lake

My first ever backpacking trip, 6 days in the Mineral King area. Started over Timber Gap, night 1 at Eagle Scout creek, night 2 at Hamilton lake, night 3 at Big Arroyo, night 4 at Big Five lakes, and over Sawtooth Pass for our final night at Monarch Lake. Overall an incredible experience!

I'm going clockwise. I've been looking at the loop and it looks like there is always a water source nearby EXCEPT for the section once you leave Rae Lakes, going over Glen Pass, and all the way to Bubbs Creek. Basically, once you leave Rae Lakes, Bubbs Creek will be your next reliable water source. Otherwise, water is abundant.

Is this correct?

I have a permit next week for 5 days on the Rae Lakes loop - counterclockwise - and planning to spend the first night at junction meadow. What is the most epic side quest(s) for days 2-3?

So far I’m looking at the following:

Taking the spur around bullfrog lake and spending the 2nd night at Kearsarge Lakes before Rae lakes the next day?

Same route to Kearsarge for camp on night 2 but for day 3 attempt 60 lakes basin and Rae lakes for camp? (Probably the biggest payoff but also the hardest mileage and elevation gain)

Charlotte Lake camp for the 2nd night then 60 lakes basin out and back detour and camp at Rae lakes night 3? (Assuming this is shorter route but arrive late at Rae Lakes)

Or from Charlotte to Rae Lakes to set camp and day hike back to 60 lakes basin? (Little longer due to backtracking to Rae Lakes but can set up camp and day hike)

Any other ideas?

Hello folks. My wife and I are planning a short backpacking trip based out of Kings Canyon (the actual canyon, not Grant Grove) in September. I've never backpacked before and she has only done it a few times. We are young enough (early-mid 30s) and in-shape enough that we want to challenge ourselves, but we are also beginners, so we want to keep it manageable. We are thinking just one night in the back country, sandwiched between a night in either Sheep Creek or Moraine campground on either end.

With this in mind, can anybody recommend a trail that's suitable for a one-day backpacking trip from the Canyon?

Also, what kind of weather can we typically expect in the high country in September? I've done a little looking but haven't been able to find any weather stations in that area, so figure it might be more effective to crowdsource some anecdotal data from this sub instead. Thanks in advance!

I have a permit that I probably won't be able to pick up until 1pm the day of. I've read somewhere that if it's not picked up by 10am the day of then the permit is released. However, I did email SEKI np and they said by 3:30pm

I just want to make sure that's true. There could have been miscommunication in the email and it's a BIG deal of my permit is given away. I would have flown across the country without a trip.

heyo!

just got back from a beautiful stay in big sur last week and was surprised on the visitor info that hammocks were banned in that park. wondering if anyone has ran into trouble with this at seki? going to stay at sentinel campground - this might be a CA state vs national park issue but I haven't found any info.

Hey yall :) Headed out next month and planning on dispersed camping while waiting to lock in a wilderness permit (coming in on a Monday night so 🤞)

What is everyone doing with their food while dispersed camping? Are the local bears getting into cars or no? Thank you in advance ♡

Edit: I've picked up a second bear can and have left a message with the rangers asking their advice. When I heard back I'll let yall know

I have a permit for woods creek coming up. This will be my first solo trip and don't really want to push myself too hard. I was considering doing the full Rae Lakes Loop, but now I'm thinking of just Spending a few nights at the various lakes and just returning back down Paradise Valley. Going over Glen Pass doesn't really appeal to me and it sounds like the rest of the clockwise after Glen Pass isn't very interesting. I'm considering bringing a Tenkara rod to fish and spending a few days around the lakes with short days to fish sounds really nice. lt also seems that coming back via Paradise Valley is more gradual decline.

Is everything I said sound correct? Is this a bad idea?

Highly niche question forthcoming:

Do I need to do the tarp wrap thing at Mineral King if I'm driving my Rivian? My understanding is that they're attracted to various engine fluids etc that I don't think an EV has. I'm guessing the answer is "better be safe than sorry." But I am curious if anyone has previously explored this topic... it's been gnawing at me 😉

Going to backpack the Lakes Trail mid-August. I've read a lot about marmots chewing through backpacks for the salt from your sweat. Where do you store these overnight? Can you hang them in a tree or will the marmots still get to them? I've heard that the bear boxes are not reliable, plus my vestibules are very small and it's difficult to store our entire party's backpacks and poles (3 of us). Any other tips? We are bringing bear canisters for food, just worried about other gear

How strict are the rangers about minimum occupancy for group sites? My reserved site in Canyon View says 20 minimum but there’s always a chance that one or more of my group won’t show up. The reservation is for this coming weekend: July 25-26, 2026.

We’re staying at the Cedar Grove Lodge for 2 nights and then the Grant Grove tents cabins for 1 night July 24-27. We’ve never been to Seki. Can people please let me know your suggested activities and dining suggestions? We always camp and make our own meals at other parks, so this is new for us. Also, I get altitude sickness above 4,000 feet (yep my days of
hiking at Lake Tahoe or up to Clouds Rest or Half Dome are over unfortunately), so no strenuous hiking for me this trip. TIA!

Hi All,

I took off a few days to get over to Kearsarge Pass trail and do an out and back on Tuesday. The weather looks less than ideal for appreciating the views, but I know that weather moves quickly in the Sierras. Has anyone else gone out on this trail with a prediction like this, "Isolated showers, then showers and possibly a thunderstorm after 11am. High near 64. Light and variable wind becoming east 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 90%"? Should I just suit up in my rain gear and push through?

Thanks in advance!

https://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=36.7727&lon=-118.3403

We are spending 3 days in SEKI this week and staying at Wuksachi Lodge. We are trying to decide whether to do the Lakes Trail to Pear Lake or Mist Falls Trail in Kings Canyon. Both sound like beautiful trails- but we have to drive over an hour to get to Mist Falls Trail. While I’d rather not spend the time in the car, I feel that is the only way to see some of Kings Canyon (including teh Kings Canyon Scenic Byway, Cedar Grove, and the canyon itself). We probably only have time to do one of the hikes. Which would you choose? We do have two kids (9 and 11)- they are pretty good hikers though. We did Grinnell Glacier last year and they did fine.

Most specifically at Sheep Creek campground but I'm curious throughout the parks like the Roaring Rivers Trail or Grizzly falls? We love tent camping but were overwhelmed by them at our Yellowstone campground in West Montana. So I'm tying to decide how many different repellents to bring.

1. Is there a place I could recharge battery banks?
2. How much do the showers cost and how long do you get?
3. Can you buy a fuel canister there?

Exploring camping (RV) in Kings canyon at short notice and it looks like Sentinel is thoroughly booked while Moraine has a lot of vacancies, despite being close. I can't seem to figure out why. What gives ?

My 14 y/o son and I are going to Kings Canyon next week. We are looking for a good backpacking loop, 2-3 nights. We have a permit starting at Timber Gap. Any information on best routes to take would be appreciated.

A few selects from when I did the Rae Lakes loop back in early June 2026. Rae lakes, kings canyon, vidette meadow, junction meadow

Hi All,

Planning a trip from Copper Creek to Bishop Pass starting 8/21. We’re flying into Fresno afternoon 8/20 and have a ride arranged to the trailhead, so we won’t have a car after that. I’m considering camping somewhere near Road’s End the night before to help acclimate, even if relatively nominal. What would be the most convenient option for a couple car-less backpackers? We can always head up early the next day, but I figured it would be prudent to sleep above sea level the night before and put ourselves in position to start up Copper Creek as early as possible. Thank you!

Hi! We just did the northern half of the BSL (Road's End -> Copper creek -> JMT -> exit Bubb's Creek, ~85 miles) in 7 days and thought I'd leave a trip log and observations here. We did the northern half of the JMT about five years ago and were looking forward to some of the famous southern passes. We got that and more. In this post I'll focus on the less-traveled bits, since the JMT is already well-documented and the most challenging part is certainly the Simpson Meadow/Middle Fork area.

Roughly how we did it (July 5 start date):

• Day 0: Got to Road's End mid-afternoon, hiked ~4 miles up to lower tent meadow, camped (and saw two bears!)
• Day 1: Hiked over Granite Pass, down a ways, and camped close-ish to the State Lakes loop junction
• Day 2: Down to Simpson Meadow (a doozy!), went a mile or so, and camped in the meadow somewhere sort of by the river but not really (see below)
• Day 3: Up the Middle Fork, past Devil’s Washbowl, hit JMT junction. Camped a mile-ish up from there.
• Day 4: Golden Staircase + Mather Pass, camp in the upper basin
• Day 5: Over Pinchot Pass, and then allll the way down to the Woods Creek junction and suspension bridge (wheeee!)
• Day 6: Rae Lakes + Glen Pass, camped near the Bubbs Creek junction.
• Day 7: Down Bubbs Creek to Road's End!

• Nice bits:
  • Wildflowers galore!
  • The area up to and from "the lip" (before Granite Pass) to the beginning of the Simpson meadow descent (mostly day 1) is gorgeous -- lovely gradual wanderings through low passes and high meadows. It's a bit buggy in lower areas.
  • The whole Devil's Washbowl area is insanely cool (although see comments about the Middle Fork trail scaries below!)
  • We didn't see a soul between lower tent meadow until the JMT junction. This "true wilderness" feeling (and the route-finding) was very different from being on the JMT.
  • Although ofc the JMT never disappoints and we were especially happy to hit it after the Middle Fork struggle. I especially enjoyed the Golden Staircase and Mather Pass area -- a big climb but really well-graded (especially compared to what we'd just done.) Rae Lakes was busy but beautiful (watch out for bears, we saw one there too!) Pinchot wasn't bad SOBO. I'm sad we missed out on Forester.

• Tough bits/intel:
  • The descent into Simpson Meadow ("the bitch") is as brutal as they say: long, ungraded, unmaintained, overgrown, and EXPOSED. At this point it's basically a glorified waterway. Your feet will hurt and your brain will hurt from focusing on not slipping on whatever leaf litter/overgrown plants/rocks are obscuring the trail. Make sure to bring lots of water as the meadow is HOT, dry and you don't hit easy water immediately. We made the big mistake of doing it in the middle of the day with not enough water.
  • Finding a campsite in lower Simpson Meadow was tougher than we anticipated -- it's super overgrown and there are no established/obvious sites with reasonable river access. We camped super jankily in the middle somewhere, but if you have time + energy, definitely hike the extra a mile or two across the sagebrush meadow and camp at the bottom of the climb up the river. There are one or two established campsites at the bottom, and then another one sort of midway up the middle fork, but I didn't note their exact location.
  • The Middle Fork trail that leads from Simpson Meadow up to the JMT junction is seriously overgrown. After the Cartridge Creek footbridge, we lost the trail for a solid half hour or so and were bushwhacking in circles before we found it about 50 yards away. It's sort of obvious what general direction you should be going, but still it's bad news if you get lost in the woods. Have more than one form of navigation on hand. The climb up the Middle Fork is along the cliff-like river walls -- overgrowth and granite rubble made for slow going. There's a portion traversing a fast-flowing stream/waterfall that was okay for us but would be big scary if we'd gone earlier in the season.

• Right before the JMT junction you have to ford Palisade Creek. This was the toughest ford of the trip. There are no conveniently located rocks and we had to go a ways up the stream to find a place where the current wasn't so fast/deep that we could semi-safely cross. Even so, the water came up to mid-thigh (ok, I'm 5'1 and my legs aren't so long) and the current was pushing hard. Be careful with this one.
• This is a minor complaint, but Glen Pass is lowkey a little brutal? It's not the biggest pass, but it is so steep, and my feet were aching hard at the end of that day. But that might have been in my head since I knew the end was near...
  • Just random thoughts:
• There's really no way in/out of Road's End that doesn't involve a big up/down. I thought Copper Creek was okay, and doing a 1/2 day to start was a good way to adjust to altitude. If you're stronger than me you can definitely reach Granite Pass fro the bottom in one day, but that's a lot of climbing (esp after ~6 hrs of driving.) I found Bubbs Creek more monotonous actually, it's a more gradual slope but longer.
• We kept the trip to 7 days since that's as much food as we could pack in our bear cans without resupply (we're not ultralight and I'm not the fastest hiker on the trail!) If we had chosen to resupply, we would have hopefully found a way to utilize Kearsarge Pass. That's the best-located place. We debated doing a "B" (looping back to Road's End, resupplying there, then heading back out) but I think we (correctly) decided that it would be psychologically hard to go back out after hiking all the way "back."
• Bring a back-up lighter or matches (God bless you, PCT hiker who donated matches to me at the JMT junction....)