7 Roads End to Onion Valley

SCENERY:

TRAIL CONDITION:

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DISTANCE: 35 miles

HIKING TIME: 4–5 days

OUTSTANDING FEATURES: Mist Falls, Paradise Valley, Rae Lakes, Glen Pass, Kearsarge Pass

Much of this section mirrors the venerable Rae Lakes Loop, one of Kings Canyon’s most celebrated hikes. Its popularity is not surprising given that it squeezes nearly every alpine highlight into a jam-packed 35-mile adventure: waterfalls, wood thickets, riverside valleys, picturesque alpine lakes, high-mountain passes, and stunning views of jagged peaks. Starting with a moderate climb, rise through lush Paradise Valley before joining the John Muir Trail as it crosses Woods Creek on a spectacular suspension bridge. Continue ascending up-canyon to reach the justifiably famed Rae Lakes, a chain of gorgeous high-altitude lakes sitting below Glen Pass (11,978 feet). If time allows, plan a layover day at Rae Lakes to loll about in supreme alpine splendor before summiting the pass. Descending toward Vidette Meadow, continue south while the Rae Lakes Loop returns west to the trailhead. Leaving the JMT, head east rising to yet another lofty perch at Kearsarge Pass (11,845 feet) before exiting the wilderness in Onion Valley.

DIRECTIONS: ROADS END TRAILHEAD—Roads End lies at the head of the canyon for which the park is named. From Fresno, head 53 miles east on CA 180 to Kings Canyon’s Big Stump Entrance, continue straight through the park, dropping more than 3,000 feet as the road curves along the South Fork Kings River to Grant Grove Village. It’s another 30 miles to Cedar Grove Village, and Roads End lies another 6 miles east at its terminus.

Public transit is sorely lacking in the park, and your best bet would be to hitchhike from Fresno (serviced by Amtrak and Greyhound) or to contact the friendly folks at Mammoth Shuttle by phone at (760) 934-6588 to arrange for private transit on demand to or from the trailhead. This is a pricey option but may be worth it for larger groups. Prices (per eight-passenger shuttle, not per person) range considerably from $100 (from one eastern-Sierra trailhead to another) to $600 (from eastern- to western-Sierra trailheads).

ONION VALLEY TRAILHEAD—The closest town to the Onion Valley trailhead is Independence on US 395, 16 miles north of Lone Pine and 26 miles south of Big Pine. From Independence, drive west on Market Street for 13 miles. The road name eventually changes to Onion Valley Road, and the trailhead lies at its terminus (9,180 feet).

You can take public transit as far as Independence via Inyo Mono Transit’s CREST bus, but you would need to walk or hitchhike the remaining 13 miles to the trailhead. The bus travels north on US 395 between Bishop and Reno via Mammoth Lakes on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and south between Mammoth Lakes and Ridgecrest on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Independence lies 45 minutes south of Bishop. Rates and routes are subject to frequent change; call ahead for information and reservations at (760) 872-1901 or (800) 922-1930. More information can be found on the Web at www.countyofinyo.org/transit/CRESTpage.htm.

GPS coordinates		Starting trailhead ROADS END
UTM zone (WGS84):		11S
Easting		0358790
Northing		4073406
Latitude		N 36°47′40.82″
Longitude		W 118°35′4.16″
GPS Trailhead Coordinates		Ending trailhead ONION VALLEY
UTM zone (WGS84):		11S
Easting		0380432
Northing		4070625
Latitude		N 36°46′25.95″
Longitude		W 118°20′23.37″

From Roads End trailhead (5,036 feet), follow the Paradise Valley Trail. Just past the ranger station, cross Copper Creek on a footbridge and continue east. It’s a flat 2 miles on exposed pumice sand from the ranger station to the junction with Bubbs Creek Trail. Walk through fragrant stands of pine and cedar that ultimately give way to a shaded fern grove. At the Bubbs Creek junction, veer left uphill for the moderate 2.7-mile journey up to Mist Falls (5,563 feet). Head north along the South Fork Kings River through open forest and along granite staircases. The dramatic views down the valley provide plenty of excuses to stop and catch your breath. Reach Mist Falls, so called for the glistening spray erupting from its base, and admire one of Kings Canyon’s largest waterfalls. This is a popular destination for day hikers and families. After reaching the thundering falls, the real climbing begins. Head up a series of tight switchbacks through a landscape of cottonwoods and aspen groves for 2 miles to Lower Paradise Valley.

Once you reach Paradise Valley, camping is restricted to one night in designated spots in an effort to help this fragile area recover from frequent use. There are bear boxes, a pit toilet, and numbered sites at each Paradise Valley campground (lower, middle, and upper). The streamside sites at Lower Paradise Valley (6,586 feet) are some of the nicest in terms of shade and proximity to water. Hikers aren’t the only people who love this trail; it’s also a mecca for savvy bears looking to pick up a little extra trail mix. Be sure to store your food well.

Continue up-valley another 1.1 miles to Middle Paradise Valley (6,619 feet), where sugar pines and butterscotch-scented ponderosa pines shade sites and a sandy riverside beach affords excellent views. It’s another 2.2 miles along the river to Upper Paradise Valley (6,876 feet). Walk through the well-defined campsite and cross the South Fork Kings River on an impressively robust stone-and-steel bridge built in 2006. This marks the confluence of Woods Creek and the South Fork Kings River. Head east along the Woods Creek Trail, ascending up the wooded valley.

Descend to Castle Dome Meadow, an area strewn with aspen groves and boasting stunning afternoon light. Designated campsites are no longer necessary past Paradise Valley. There are places to camp on the west side of the meadow, although it’s a bit of a struggle to get to the water due to streamside shrubs. It’s not a struggle, however, to crane your neck to enjoy views of the highly polished summits of Castle Dome’s royal peaks. And it’s a treat to dry your clothes on the omnipresent sage bushes that impart a lovely scent. Nature’s deodorant!

Leaving the meadow, continue eastward, reentering the forest, and continue to climb intermittent steps carved into the tough granite. Descend among cottonwoods and enter a grove of older aspen trees just before the trail meets the John Muir Trail (JMT), coming down from Pinchot Pass.

Interestingly, quaking aspen are the most widely distributed tree in the northern hemisphere. While celebrated for their flat leaves that shimmer in the wind and provide a brilliant fall display, they are most unique for their reproductive cloning. Each aspen grove lives off a single root system, where new trees, “suckers,” are sent up when older trees are destroyed. The width of the tree trunk indicates the age of that particular tree, but some of the groves themselves are 8,000 years old. Their regeneration tactics make aspens often the first species to grow in a zone following a disturbance, such as a fire or avalanche.

Turn right to follow the JMT south across the impressively sound and robust suspension bridge. Built in 1988, this is the mack daddy of bridges, certain to withstand whatever Woods Creek sends its way. Late in the season, when the creek is but a trickle, it seems a tad overwrought, but its girth and weight are a welcome find during high water. Be sure to cross one person at a time.

Across the bridge, note the popular Woods Creek campsites (8,492 feet) scattered amid Jeffrey Pines with bear boxes. This is an excellent place to pump water. Ignore the side trails to western campsites and continue heading southeastward on the Rae Lakes Loop. The trail begins rising gently and subsequently switchbacking up through an open area of aspen trees. The landscape alternates between rocky switchbacks and more open valleys and meadows along this gradual ascent.

Cottonwoods give way to lodgepole pines as the trail winds its way into a fragile meadow near the Baxter Creek crossing. This is another excellent spot for water, as the climb up to Dollar Lake is a hot and dry one. Continue climbing as the trail rises above the river. The views open up tremendously above treeline. Walk past foxtail pines to Dollar Lake (10,200 feet) for your first taste of the alpine wonderland that awaits at Rae Lakes. There is limited camping here, but check signs for restoration areas.

Skirt the lake’s western shore and continue climbing to larger Arrowhead Lake (10,300 feet), nestled under the impressive Fin Dome peak, a sharklike protrusion reflected in the placid waters. Campsites dot the northeast lakeshore.

Cross Arrowhead’s outlet and walk along the lake’s eastern shore until the trail begins climbing again, away from the water. Reach the first lake in the Rae Lakes chain, with campsites with bear boxes near the south end. Just past this first lake, a spur trail veers right to the seasonally staffed Rae Lakes Ranger Station (10,597 feet). The lakes were named by William Colby, a Sierra Club member instrumental in the founding of Kings Canyon National Park, who honored his wife, Rachel (“Rae”).

Campsites are plentiful here, as are jaw-dropping views, and this is an excellent place for a layover day or two. There is a two-night camping limit at each Rae Lake. Follow the trail southwest for close to a mile across a flat isthmus dividing Middle and Upper Rae lakes and admire the photogenic granite islands “floating” in the upper lake. From here, it’s a 2-mile grunt up nearly 1,500 feet to the top of Glen Pass, and you should get water before starting the climb. Ignore the rough trail heading northwest toward Sixty Lake Basin, and continue south toward the pass.

Mount an initial set of steep switchbacks before the trail levels out briefly to follow a surprising lush brook among willows into a meadow swale worthy of an Andy Goldsworthy project.

A second set of switchbacks leads to a more desolate landscape of turquoise tarns and rocky ridgelines. There is little vegetation here, save for the occasional stunted white-bark pine. Limited camping is available here if you’re willing to sleep on a granite bed.

Continue on a final series of gratifying zigzags up the talus slope to the narrow ridge of Glen Pass (11,978 feet). Admire southwestern views of snow-covered Mount Brewer and the reddish slopes of Mount Bago, as well as other Great Western Divide peaks.

Descend serpentine switchbacks past an unnamed lake. The descending trail can be hard to pinpoint amid snow and scree, but look for helpful cairns and continue heading southwest. Eventually the switchbacks become more defined. Head down gravelly angled paths toward treeline and a number of lovely tarns, an excellent place to fill up on water. Continue down, bump up a small rise, then enjoy a long, gradual descent along the ridgeline above Charlotte Lake as white-bark and foxtail pines come into view. Admire views of looming Charlotte Dome hovering above the distant lake. Descend into an open wash with lots of junctions. Hikers continuing to Mount Whitney would continue straight, ignoring the side trails to Kearsarge Pass and Bullfrog Lake over the next mile.

Instead, veer left at the first junction following Glen Pass to leave the JMT and head east toward Kearsarge Pass. Traverse a rocky slope high above Bullfrog and Kearsarge lakes to ascend the 2.7 miles to Kearsarge Pass (11,823 feet). Catch your breath and admire epic views of Kearsarge Pinnacles and Lakes. Descend east a grueling 5 miles, with close to 3,000 feet of elevation loss, to the Onion Valley Trailhead (9,180 feet).

PERMIT INFORMATION: Reservations are available in Kings Canyon National Park from May 21 through September 21. Mail or fax your application to Wilderness Permit Reservations, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, 47050 Generals Highway, #60, Three Rivers, CA 93271. For more information, call (559) 565-3708. Applications can be downloaded at www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/wilderness_permits.htm, or you can furnish the following information with your written request: name; address; daytime phone number; number of people in the party; method of travel (foot); number of stock (if applicable); start and end dates; proposed camping areas for each night; entry and exit trailheads (Roads End entry, Whitney Portal exit); principal destination; credit-card number and expiration date, money order, or check made out to the National Park Service for a nonrefundable $15 reservation fee.

You may pick up your permit beginning at 1 p.m. the afternoon preceding the beginning of the hike, and it will be held until 9 a.m. the morning of the hike. If you know you will be delayed, call the Roads End Ranger Station, (559) 565-3766 to hold your reserved permit. But note that they cannot hold your permit past 2:30 p.m., as the station closes at that time. Walk-in permits are also available at the Roads End Ranger Station, however this is a busy trailhead and walk-in permits are sometimes limited.