Rae Lakes loop from Onion Valley

Rae lakes loop has been on my list of hikes for a while now, I did part of it few years ago and have always wanted to go back. After a frustrating few weeks of dealing with “life”, I decided to get away to my happy place among the mountains to clear my head so to say. I took Thursday, Friday off from work to take full advantage of Labor day weekend for a 5 day backpack.

My plan was to drive early morning on Thursday to ranger station in Lone Pine, get my permit and then head out for 5 days but I ended up doing the loop only in 4 days and didn’t stay at the campsites that I had originally planned.

Day 1: Onion Valley – Kesarge Pass – Charlotte Lake

Woke up at 4 am and started driving towards Lone Pine at around 5 am, I knew I had to get there early for any chance to get a permit and when I got to the ranger station there was already a crowd there. I didn’t have a solid plan B but thankfully I didn’t need one and was able to get a permit. Charlotte Lake, Rae Lakes, Upper Paradise and Bubbs Creek were supposed to be my camps on the loop.

I started the hike at around 9.30 am and as soon I started I smelled something funky. It was the smell of my cooking fuel and I checked it to find that I had forgotten to turn off the valve. Luckily it didn’t spill that much and I figured I had enough for 5 days, crisis averted. It was tough going from the start and soon enough after couple of hours I started to get some hot spots in my feet. I had packed climbing tape for blisters and nothing else but didn’t bother to check the decade old tape and it was useless. I wrapped the tape around my pinky toes but it wouldn’t stick and I just had to deal the blisters since I had no other option.

I trudged along slowly and was definitely not happy with the pace. It was about 1.30 pm that I got to the top of Kesarge pass and after a brief break I started heading towards Charlotte Lake.

From top of the pass, its all downhill to Charlotte lakes and my frame of mind was also headed in the same direction. I wasn’t feeling good, the blisters, slow pace, everything was dragging me down, and as I reached Charlotte lake I sunk to the very bottom. I take pride in being a fast downhill hiker and I should have been going at a faster pace but it took me 2 and half hours to hike 3.5 miles downhill. I was having serious doubts if I was going to be able to complete the loop.

It felt that I had forgotten everything about backpacking, hiking or being alone in the mountains. I kept on coming with excuses in my head as to why this was the case, why was I so slow, Was it because I was doing a big hike for the first time in 3 years since I broke my leg or just simply I had become lazy and out of shape. It was a mental struggle and what was going to be my plan B if I didn’t complete the loop. Would I head back out and feel disappointed in myself, Would I ever be able to do serious hiking or backpacking after this trip?. There was a fire around Bubbs creek and the fire crew was escorting hikers through this section of the trail, maybe I will use that as an excuse for me not being able to finish the loop and head back out. Better to be safe than sorry, It will make me feel good about myself right.

After I reached Charlotte lake, both mentally and physically exhausted, I decided to play it by the ear and make a decision in the morning after a good nights rest. Fire crew walked by and they said that the fire by Bubbs creek was contained so there goes that excuse. I had gotten only 4 hours of sleep the previous night so it didn’t take me long to pass out after dinner at around 6pm and It was definitely one of the best nights of sleep I have had in a month or two.

Day 2: Charlotte Lake – Glen Pass – Rae Lakes – Woods Creek Crossing

I took my time to get going and it was a relatively cold morning so getting ready took longer than usual. After breakfast I felt energized, a totally different person but decided to not make a decision yet. I had to hike back to the Vidette meadow which is about 0.7 miles from Charlotte lake and when I got there I was feeling good so I decided to continue towards Glen Pass. I have backpacked to Rae lakes and back before so this was going to be the least minimum I had to hike if things didn’t go well or I could turn around anytime before reaching top of Glen pass.

I kept on going at a decent pace to my pleasant surprise, the blisters though present weren’t bothering me as much and I was in a totally different state of mind. Even on the final section of the Glen pass, I got into a very good rhythm and was sitting pretty at top of Glen pass at around 11 am. A JMT hiker who I met the previous day left Charlotte Lake about an hour before me and I caught up to him at the top of the pass. At this time, I decided to hike the loop and there won’t be any turning around.

I was totally different person as soon as I started going downhill towards Rae lakes. It felt as if my body remembered how to hike again, I was going downhill as fast as I could, hiking poles planting in front of me, my feet getting positioned almost effortlessly, I was in a good rhythm and literally running towards Rae lakes. It felt great, In my head I was back baby.

My original plan was to camp at Rae lakes but it was about noon when I got there so I decided to continue further, Ideally I wanted to get to Woods Creek Campsite but it would depend on when I got to Dollar lake. I took a long lunch break at the northern end of Rae lakes and while going towards Dollar lake I met someone who told me that the campsite at Woods was much better so I decided to push for it. The fact that the trail was mostly downhill helped too.

It was a mellow 7 mile downhill hike from Rae lakes to Woods Creek junction and it offered some really nice views of Kings Canyon NP.

I was glad to reach the campground before the crowds and It was a going to be a busy campsite. Almost all of the campsites were occupied and there were couple of campfires lit too. Below 10,000 ft camp fires are permitted and I don’t understand why but with like everything few bad apples shouldn’t ruin it for everyone. I went to bed before sunset but unfortunately didn’t sleep well as last night.

Day 3: Woods Creek – Upper Paradise Valley – Paradise/Bubbs Jct – Sphinx Jct

Now that I was fully committed to the loop, for whatever reason I was also on mission to complete it as soon as possible. I kept on debating on where to spend the next night, should it be Sphinx Jct or I should carry on forward to Junction Meadow. As usual, I decided to play it by the ear. It wasn’t as cold as the previous night and I got an earlier start, 7.30 instead of 8.30 am.

As I started heading towards Upper Paradise valley, the scenery started to change and It got lot greener. The creek crossing at Upper paradise campsite gave me some trouble but it wasn’t that bad. After Upper paradise valley my pace slowed down a bit as it started getting warmer. I stopped once in a while to enjoy the views but was mainly focussed on getting to Bubb’s creek Jct.

As I was getting closer to Bubb’s creek, the trail was getting more busier. After all it was Saturday of Labor day weekend and there were lot of day hikers which made for interesting interactions. One person asked me how far the trail went, I was like ummmm as far as you want to go. After all this trail connects to JMT and the PCT so yeah have at it.

Not only it got hotter as I was losing elevation but also the landscape was changing, there were lot of ferns, small bamboo plants in the marshes, it made for a really beautiful and pleasant hike. After close to hiking 14 miles I reached the Bubb’s Jct at around 2pm and It was obvious to me that I wouldn’t be able to make it to Junction meadow given that the rest of the way was uphill.

Just getting to Sphinx Jct was a brutal 2 mile uphill slog in the heat and it took every bit of my energy to make it. I foolishly didn’t carry enough water on this section which only added to my misery. I was pleasantly surprised to find an empty campground when I got there but the first order of business was to hydrate myself and then worry about pitching the tent etc.

My only visitor to the campground was presumedly a male juvenile black bear who was blissfully unaware of my presence until I clapped to get his attention but he didn’t want anything to do with me and ran away. I should have waited to snap a pic of this fella before catching his attention. I went to bed with the same thought in my head, What should I do next day? Should I hike out all the way and back to LA or camp at Kesarge lakes and then head back. As usual, I was going to sleep over it and play it by the ear.

Day 4: Sphinx Jct – Junction Meadow – Lower Vidette Meadow – Bullfrog Lake – Kesarge Pass – Onion Valley

I thought about setting my alarm for 5 am to get an early start but decided against it and I woke up to smell of ash at around 6am. This campsite was the area where Bubb’s fire broke out last week and was contained but I could still see smoke rising in couple of places. All of a sudden there was an eerie feeling in my gut and I wanted to get going quickly. It was quite irrational on my part but I couldn’t help it so I hurried and got on the trail as soon as I could.

It was going to be a long day and the trail was mainly uphill with about 5.5k of gain over 12 miles to the top of Kesarge pass and I wasn’t sure If I was going to be able to make it. I didn’t want to think too much about it, wanted to trudge along merrily at a decent pace while enjoying the views and that is exactly what I did until I reached Junction meadow.

It was pretty mellow up to this point but it was about to get serious in terms of elevation gain in the afternoon sun and I was warned about it by one of the guys I had met who was doing the loop from other direction. Its always a tricky balance on how much water to carry, you don’t want to carry too much or too little and usually I carry extra to be safe but once again I misjudged things on this section.

The heat and not carrying enough water definitely brought things to a crawl and I thought to myself there was no way I would be able to make it over Kesarge today. I continued, not that I had any other option, slowly but surely I got the water source and this time I hydrated myself, took a nice break, got some energy gels into my system and was ready to make a run for the pass.

My goal was to get to Bull frog lake by 3pm which would give me enough time to get to Onion valley and possibly to LA the same night. I didn’t want to deal with Labor day traffic either. My other option was to camp at Kesarge lakes but that mean’t I was going half way to Kesarge pass so might as well continue along, additionally it seemed like lot of people were going towards Kesarge lakes so it would be crowded over there.

There was somehow a sense of urgency and my pace picked up just enough that I got to Lower Vidette meadow in a time where making over Kesarge seemed like a possibility. It’s a shame that camping is not allowed near Bullfrog lake and since that was going to be my only water source until I got over the pass I had to make sure I carried plenty to take me all the way. I knew once over the pass It was all downhill but 5 miles of downhill mean’t that it would take me at least 2 hours to get to my car.

I took a long break at Bull frog lake, filled my camelback and was ready to head over Kesarge. It was around 3pm and I had close to 1200 ft of elevation gain left over 3 miles and then additional 5 miles to the car so in the worst case scenario I would make it back at about 7-7.30 pm which would mean I would be home at about midnight after stopping for dinner. It seemed totally possible and I could always stop somewhere in middle if I felt really sleepy.

I was now determined, started marching towards the pass and was in for an awesome experience. My mind and body were in total sync, completely opposite of how I felt while going down the first day. I always tell people that being in nature, hiking is my form of meditation and it was the first time I consciously felt it. I was looking few feet in front of me, breath in, left foot forward, right foot forward, breathe out and repeat. I was in such a zen state for the next hour that nothing else mattered or came to my mind and that made all the suffering totally worth it. I cruised to the top of the pass in almost a robotic manner and it was time to make the downhill slog back to the car which took about couple of hours.

When I passed Matlock lake, I briefly thought about camping and spending the night there but the amount of people made me decide against it almost as quickly. I was back at the car at around 6.45 pm and after dinner in Lone Pine I was back in LA just before midnight.

Overall, this trip met my expectations and then some. I never thought that I would experience the emotional, mental lows and the highs that I did and then to overcome my own fears, concerns in the way I did was very satisfying. 50+ miles in 4 days is a solid effort of which I am proud and I could have done better with lighter pack and better management of the blisters which are going to be a pain for next week or more but I shall hopefully learn from this experience for my future trips.