Rae of Light

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park Rae Lakes Loop Backpacking Trip

Want special access to some of the most beautiful lakes in the Sierra Nevada? Grab your backpack and lace up your hiking boots for a multi-night journey on Rae Lakes Loop in Kings Canyon. On the agenda: spiky granite peaks, rivers and lakes for refreshing swims, high mountain passes, and starry nights. This popular backpacking trip traverses parts of the John Muir Trail and Pacific Crest Trail. Get a permit (by reservation or walk-up) and start from “Roads End” in Kings Canyon. The switchbacks amid aspens and cottonwoods are a solid challenge as you head up to Mist Falls through Paradise Valley. The South Fork of the Kings River parallels the trail, so take splash-water-on-your-face breaks.

Camp the first night at Middle Paradise Valley; it has a nice beach and several campsites. The photogenic payoff of the trip (Rae Lakes) is still 13.5 miles from here. Hike to it in one day (or spend your second night at Woods Creek for a more leisurely pace). You’ll make your way through the ponderosa pines of Upper Paradise Valley, the avalanche-formed Castle Dome Meadow, and plenty more cottonwoods and aspens. Now it’s time to join the famed John Muir Trail through the granite high country of Rae Lakes. At 10,538 feet, you’ll feel the elevation and the elation! Sky-blue lakes with granite islands sparkle in the craggy High Sierra basin. Not in a hurry? Spend a couple of nights up in this beautiful area (the potential buzz kill: mosquitoes).

Leaving Rae Lakes and heading up the grueling talus switchbacks to Glen Pass (11,978 elevation) is a thigh-burning sweat inducer, but the views are banner: The Great Western Divide opens to north and south in granite and snowy-peaked splendor. Spend the last night on the trail in Junction Meadow along Bubbs Creek with campsites among the lodgepole pines and red firs. It’s 10.5 miles back to Roads End. Loop of a lifetime!

The entire Rae Lakes Loop is 41.4 miles long and climbs 5,035 feet. Consider camping the night before in Cedar Grove. Get reservation information here. The South Fork Kings River Bridge above Paradise Valley washed out during the winter of 2016-2017. Construction of a replacement bridge will not begin before 2019. The entire route is usually free of snow from mid June to mid September, but weather can come in at any time. No dogs.

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

    View
  2. Afternoon on the Island

    What is it about tiny islands in the middle of lakes? There’s something that just draws you in. It’s even more fun when getting there is half the adventure because you have to reach it by canoe, kayak, paddleboat, or a ranger-guided boat tour!

    View
  3. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

    View
  4. Hiker in the forest at Mount Sutro in San Francisco

    San Francisco's Middle Earth

    No need to travel to New Zealand to visit Middle Earth. San Francisco’s Mount Sutro Open Space is practically Hobbiton—a hidden “shire” in the middle of the city. Okay, maybe not quite as magical, but still an incredible place to take a hike in city limits.

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  1. Locals' Feature: Jim Litchfield, Owner of Reno Fly Shop

    If there's a river, you're likely to find Jim Litchfield there. As the owner of Reno Fly Shop, Nevada's premier fly fishing outfitter and shop, Jim's passion for rivers knows no bounds: he's fished in places near and far, including Alaska, Bolivia and Christmas Island. But home is beautiful Reno, where he has been running Reno Fly Shop and leading tailored river float and fly fishing adventures (including beginner-friendly options) for over a decade.

    View
  2. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

    View
  3. Volcanic Activity

    Northern California is home to one of the most unique ecosystems in the country: Lassen Volcanic National Park. The region features geothermal areas, including the largest dome volcano in the world, Lassen Peak. Hike to the top of this active volcano on a 5-mile out-and-back.  

    View
  4. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

    View