Trail guide · Kings Canyon National Park · California
Rae Lakes Loop
A 41.4-mile loop topping out at Glen Pass, 11,978 feet. Pick a direction, win a permit, carry a canister, and time the river crossing.
The short version
Before you plan it
Brooke, editor. Built from the official pages and trip reports this guide cites.Facts checked October 27, 2026.The Rae Lakes Loop is a 41.4-mile circuit in Kings Canyon National Park that climbs from 5,035 feet at the trailhead to 11,978 feet at Glen Pass. What controls the trip is timing and paperwork: the loop is heavily traveled with high demand for limited entry, and you need a wilderness permit for all overnight travel. Start by choosing a direction, because the permit you reserve locks it in.
The two starts are Woods Creek, which runs the loop clockwise, and Bubbs Creek, which runs it counterclockwise. Recreation.gov describes the Woods Creek start as the easier direction and the Bubbs Creek start as the more strenuous one. A permit for one start doesn't let you begin the other way.
For this guide I read the National Park Service pages on the loop, permits, food storage and minimum-impact rules, the Recreation.gov permit page, and several trip reports and guides, checked October 27, 2026, and I added up the mapped route data against the official distance.
Is it for you?
Your first backpacking trip
Okay fitFit enough for a first big loop only with prior overnights. High pass at 11,978 feet, hard permit, and exits 4.7 to 7.8 miles from roads. Not a first backpacking trip.
A long weekend
Great fitA classic loop for people with trail experience. Clockwise is the easier direction, since counterclockwise is the more strenuous one.
Thru-hiking
Okay fitGood for a loop on the way through, but at 41.4 miles it's short, and permits are in high demand.
Snow season
Not a fitGlen Pass is typically snow-free in July, and Charlotte Lake averages below freezing from October to May. Early or late season needs snow skills and gear.
Who the Rae Lakes Loop is for
It covers the stat strip, then an honest fit check, then a verdict for first-timers. Open the day planner below and check it against your pace. The day planner below shows 3, 4 and 5 day splits.
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This part is for deciding whether the loop suits you before you chase a permit. It covers the stat strip, then an honest fit check, then a verdict for first-timers.
The numbers at a glance.
| Stat | Figure |
|---|---|
| Distance | 41.4 miles, as the Park Service prints it. The mapped trail line measures 39.51 miles, and mapped lines run short because they cut corners and switchbacks, so I went with the Park Service figure |
| Climbing | 7,392 feet of gain, from USGS elevation data along the trail |
| High point | Glen Pass at 11,978 feet |
| Low point | Trailhead at 5,035 feet |
| Type | Loop, starting from Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek trailhead |
| Direction | Clockwise from the Wood's Creek trailhead, counterclockwise from the Bubb's Creek trailhead |
| Days | The day planner below lays out the options |
| Season | Daily permit cap runs May 22, 2026 through September 26, 2026. A hikeset.com guide calls July the best month, with Glen Pass typically snow-free |
| Difficulty | Strenuous. Counterclockwise is the more strenuous direction, per Recreation.gov |
Open the day planner below and check it against your pace.
The day planner below shows 3, 4 and 5 day splits.
Fitness. The sum that matters is climbing per leg.
The mapped trail line puts 3,592 feet of gain between Woods Creek and Glen Pass in 8.8 miles, clockwise. Add the two legs before it, 1,715 feet and 1,985 feet, and the climb from the trailhead to the pass is 7,292 feet over 23.2 miles. That's nearly all of the loop's gain stacked into the first stretch, and it ends at 11,978 feet. Sleeping and walking at that height is the hard part, more than the distance. Charlotte Lake, at 10,400 feet, has an average July low of 41 F and a cold night of 33 F, so a warm sleeping bag matters from July on, and cold nights come earlier and later in the season.
Experience. You need to read a map, carry a full pack over a high pass, and manage food storage and water yourself.
The Recreation.gov permit page says the loop is heavily traveled and in high demand for limited entry, so planning and permit timing are part of the skill set.
Days needed. The distance and the gain set the pace, and the planner shows how the miles split.
Take the longer plans if you haven't carried a full pack over a high pass yet.
How to leave early. The exits are long, and none is close to the high country.
Near the end, the Kanawyer Loop Trail junction at mile 37.5 leads to Roaring River Trailhead, 4.7 miles away. Clockwise, the first of those exits comes after you have already crossed Glen Pass, so treat the first 23 miles as a commitment. Counterclockwise, the Kanawyer exit is the early one, 2.01 miles in. The route map below marks every exit.
First-timer verdict. I'd call it a good first big loop for a fit person who has already done a few overnight trips, and a poor first backpacking trip.
The permit is hard to get, the pass is high, and the exits are long. If you're new, build up with shorter overnights first. If you go, I'd start clockwise, since counterclockwise is the harder direction.
The next action: check permit availability for your dates on Recreation.gov before you lock in time off.
From the Park Service and Recreation.gov pages, checked October 27, 2026.
Rae Lakes Loop at a glance
This overview sums up the loop so you can decide whether to keep reading. The loop is 41.4 miles on the official figure, with a mapped length of 39.51 miles. It starts at 5,035 feet and reaches Glen Pass at 11,978 feet. Both starts park at Roads End.
Three things shape the plan. First, direction: Woods Creek is clockwise and Bubbs Creek is counterclockwise. Second, season: high water at stream crossings can be a problem in May and early June, and one hiking guide calls July the best month, with Glen Pass typically snow-free. Third, food storage: canisters are required in the Rae Lakes Loop area from May 1 through October 31.
The day planner below lays out the trip lengths I compared.
The day planner below shows 3, 4 and 5 day splits.
Next action: read the permit section and check when your target dates open for reservation.
Trail conditions · November 4, 2026
What the trail is like this week
Snapshot from November 4, 2026. This panel refreshes every day. Each item shows its source and its own date.
Glen Pass · 11,565 ft · NWS, issued November 4, 2026, 2:09 AM PST
Pass forecast, take care: Low under 20°F16°F low
Overnight: ClearFeels like 4°F
- Road to Road's EndCloses for winter, typically early to mid-November.fine: Open
- Snow on trailCharlotte Lake, 10,400 ftfine: Bare ground
- Smoke8.8 µg/m³ fine particles at Pinehurstfine: Good
- FireNearest listed wildfire: Danny Fire, about 141 mi southfine: None within 15 mi
- Live cameraBuck Rock 2 cameraOpen Live camera, opens in a new tab
Sources: NWS forecast (issued November 4, 2026, 2:09 AM PST); NPS road conditions (updated November 1, 2026); CDEC station CRL (daily, October 31, 2026); AirNow (Nov 4, 1 AM PST); NOAA smoke map (November 3, no smoke, smoke aloft, not a ground reading); InciWeb and NIFC (November 4, 2026); ALERTCalifornia (live when you open it).
Ranger trail reports, in hiking order (clockwise)
- Rae Lakes basinNPS mile 22.7
"Expect winter conditions."
October 26, 20269 days old
- Glen Pass, 11,978 ftNPS mile 24.6
"Expect winter conditions."
October 26, 20269 days old
- Kearsarge Pass (side trail, the way out east)turnoff at NPS mile 26.7
"Expect winter conditions."
October 26, 20269 days old
- The missing bridgeabove Upper Paradise
Washed out in the winter of 2016-17; NPS says construction of a replacement has not begun.
Undated note on the page (page updated November 2, 2026)
NPS caveat: don't rely on trail updates in spring, fall and winter, when very few rangers are in the field. Call the Wilderness Office before you go: (559) 565-3766
NPS trail conditions · page updated November 2, 2026 · ages counted from November 4, 2026
Satellite image, October 27, 2026: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2026 (Sentinel-2 L2A scene S2C_11SLA_20261027_0_L2A, via Element 84 Earth Search), not retouched.
Satellite image, October 27, 2025: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2025 (Sentinel-2 L2A scene S2B_11SLA_20251027_0_L2A, via Element 84 Earth Search), not retouched.
Hiker report, not verified by the land manager
Rae Lakes Loop Backpacking Guide: My 51-Mile Sierra Nevada Adventure Over Kearsarge Pass
Came in over Kearsarge Pass in a heat wave, then sat out hours of rain at camp after an afternoon storm. Trip dates not given.
Wild Trout Chronicles · published August 3, 2026 · 93 days old · older report
The 9 official pages behind this panel
The trail, part by part
The trail in 5 parts, in hiking order
The official length is 41.4 miles. The mapped trail line measures 39.51 miles, which is 1.89 miles shorter because a line drawn between points skips the bends of corners and switchbacks. I went with the official figure everywhere.
Climbing follows the same story: the mapped trail line adds up to 7,392 feet of gain, and the pass sits at 11,978 feet. Glen Pass may be impassable to hikers until mid-late July, and crossing the South Fork of the Kings River can be extremely hazardous, possibly not feasible until sometime in July.
Hikers are required to carry portable bear-resistant canisters. The permit and canister rules come first in this guide, then the leg-by-leg breakdown.
- 1Woods Creek & Bubbs Creek Trailhead to Middle Paradise Valley7.3 mi on the mapped line
- 2Middle Paradise Valley to Woods Creek7.1 mi on the mapped line
- 3Woods Creek to Glen Pass8.8 mi on the mapped line
- 4Glen Pass to East Lake Trail junction6.2 mi on the mapped line
- 5East Lake Trail junction to Woods Creek & Bubbs Creek Trailhead10.1 mi on the mapped line
Mist Falls, Kings Canyon National Park Photo: Moonlitserenity · CC BY-SA 4.0Part 1 of 5 · 7.3 mi on the mapped line
Woods Creek & Bubbs Creek Trailhead to Middle Paradise Valley
The first 7.3 miles climb 1,715 feet and 101 feet down on the mapped trail line. Clockwise, the first legal camp is Lower Paradise Valley.
Upper Paradise Valley Photo: RDNE Stock project · Pexels LicensePart 2 of 5 · 7.1 mi on the mapped line
Middle Paradise Valley to Woods Creek
From Middle Paradise to Woods Creek is 7.1 miles with 1,985 feet up. The mapped trail line puts Woods Creek at mile 14.4.
Rae Lakes, Painted Lady Photo: Mara Hancock · CC BY-SA 2.0Part 3 of 5 · 8.8 mi on the mapped line
Woods Creek to Glen Pass
The big climb: 8.8 miles and 3,592 feet up from Woods Creek to Glen Pass. Rae Lakes allow one night per lake.
Part 4 of 5 · 6.2 mi on the mapped line
Glen Pass to East Lake Trail junction
After Glen Pass the trail drops 3,890 feet over 6.2 miles. Bullfrog Lake is closed to all camping.
South Fork Kings River Photo: RDNE Stock project · Pexels LicensePart 5 of 5 · 10.1 mi on the mapped line
East Lake Trail junction to Woods Creek & Bubbs Creek Trailhead
The last 10.1 miles are nearly all downhill, 3,146 feet down. Counterclockwise starters reach their first legal camp 4 miles in.
On the way
Three places on the trail
Rae Lakes
Lower, Middle and Upper Rae Lakes sit between miles 19.83 and 21.27 on the mapped trail line, clockwise.
Mist Falls
A waterfall on the mapped trail line near mile 3.91, clockwise.
Trail atlas · north up
Drag the elevation chart. The map follows.
The red line is the trail as drawn on OpenStreetMap, the free public map. Drag along the elevation chart below the map and the dot moves; the cards show how far it is to the next water, camp, toilet, food locker, trail junction and ranger station. Tap any marker for its source.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), relation 1710944, fetched October 28, 2026. North up.
Map mile 0.0
Woods Creek & Bubbs Creek Trailhead
Elevation, feet
Drag, or use the arrow keysMap miles count clockwise from Woods Creek & Bubbs Creek Trailhead along the OpenStreetMap line, which measures 39.5 mi. The NPS figure for the route is 41.4 mi, so its miles run a little longer. Elevation: USGS 3DEP data along the line, 7,392 ft of climbing and 7,383 ft of descent.
Day planner
Three, four or five days?
Pick how many days and which way round. The camps are the campsites OpenStreetMap marks within 200 m of the trail. The land manager's rules, in the permits section, decide where you may sleep. Day miles are map miles; climbing per day comes from USGS elevation data along the trail. Tap a day to see its camp on the map.
Share sends your days, direction, camps and miles to your group as plain text.
Which direction to walk the loop, and where the first night goes
This part is for choosing a direction and a first night before you chase a permit. The direction is locked in when you pick the trailhead, so decide here first.
1. Choose your direction. The Park Service lists the Woods Creek trailhead for clockwise and the Bubbs Creek trailhead for counterclockwise. Recreation.gov calls the Woods Creek start "the easier clockwise direction" and the Bubbs Creek start "the more strenuous counter-clockwise direction". A Woods Creek permit does not allow starting the loop counterclockwise, and a Bubbs Creek permit does not allow starting it clockwise. You can't switch once the permit is issued, so pick the trailhead on purpose.
2. Why I'd start clockwise. I read the Park Service pages, Recreation.gov, four trip reports and the mapped trail line, and my recommendation rests on three things. Recreation.gov itself labels clockwise the easier direction. The mapped trail line puts the steepest climb, 3,592 feet up from Woods Creek to Glen Pass over 8.8 miles, in the middle of the loop, after you've had two camps to settle in. After Glen Pass the rest is nearly all descent: 3,890 feet down over 6.2 miles, then 3,146 feet down over 10.1 miles. If you're carrying a full pack over a high pass for the first time, I'd pick this order. Counterclockwise is the right call if you want the hardest climbing early and a gentler finish, and the Bubbs Creek permit is the way to do it.
3. The first legal night. Do not camp before reaching the first camping area for your trailhead. Clockwise from Woods Creek, the first allowable camping is 6.5 miles from Roads End at Lower Paradise Valley. Counterclockwise from Bubbs Creek, it's 4 miles from Roads End at Sphinx Creek crossing. The Park Service distance table gives the same Lower Paradise camp at 5.7 miles from Road's End via Paradise, labeled the first campsite. The two figures differ, and I'd go with Recreation.gov's 6.5 miles for the permit rule and treat the table's 5.7 as a check on the camp's place. The mapped trail line puts Lower Paradise Valley at mile 5.9.
Land manager's note. The NPS page, checked October 27, 2026, says: "Camping in Lower Paradise Valley is permitted only in designated campsites. (See temporary closure)". Confirm the current status with the Wilderness Office at (559) 565-3766.
4. Itinerary table, both directions. Distances are from Road's End, first by way of Paradise Valley (clockwise), then by way of Bubbs Creek (counterclockwise), from the Park Service table.
The day planner turns these stops into splits for both directions. The loop measures 39.51 miles on the mapped trail line against the Park Service's 41.4 miles, because mapped lines cut corners and switchbacks. Open the day planner below and check it against your pace.
The day planner below shows 3, 4 and 5 day splits.
5. Named campsites and why they matter. Lower Paradise Valley is the first camp clockwise and a designated-sites-only area. Middle Paradise and Upper Paradise are the next two in the valley, and the valley has a two night limit. The mapped trail line puts Middle Paradise Valley at mile 7.3 and Upper Paradise Valley at mile 8.87. Rae Lakes is the scenic goal, and each lake allows one night. Charlotte Lake has a two night limit, and so do Kearsarge Lakes, east of Bullfrog.
- Use designated sites only in Lower Paradise Valley.
- Paradise Valley: two nights. Charlotte Lake: two nights. Kearsarge Lakes: two nights. Rae Lakes: one night per lake. Recreation.gov defines the Rae Lakes area as Dollar Lake to Glen Pass.
- Bullfrog Lake, east of the trail between Vidette Meadow and Glen Pass, is closed to all camping, grazing and stock travel. Recreation.gov adds no camping within 0.25 miles of Bullfrog Lake.
- No camping within 25 feet of water. From 25 to 100 feet from water, camp only in previously established campsites.
- Camp on durable surfaces or in designated campsites, not on vegetation or in meadows.
The mile-by-mile table below lists every mapped camp, but a mapped camp isn't a legal one by itself. The rules above decide where you may sleep.
Next step: pick your trailhead on Recreation.gov, Woods Creek for clockwise, and write your first camp into the permit plan using the first-night mile for that trailhead.
From the Park Service and Recreation.gov pages, checked October 27, 2026.
Permits and fees
Quota-season permits are listed at $15 per trip (NPS, checked October 27, 2026) plus $5 per person. Reservations open daily at 7:00 AM Pacific, up to six months out. Pick up between 1:00 pm the day before and 10:00 am on your start date.
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This part covers who issues the permit, what it costs, when reservations open, how pickup works and what the whole trip adds up to. Use it to plan the order of operations before you pick dates.
Who issues it and where. Wilderness permits are issued by trailhead rangers at the permit station closest to the desired trailhead (NPS, checked October 27, 2026).
For both Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek, permits are issued at Roads End Contact Station (Recreation.gov, checked October 27, 2026). Reservations are made through Recreation.gov.
Daily permit cap. Quota season runs May 22, 2026 through September 26, 2026 (NPS, checked October 27, 2026).
Woods Creek has a 25 person daily quota, of which 20 are reservable. Bubbs Creek has the same: 25 per day, 20 reservable. The mapped trail line starts and ends at the Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek trailhead, so those are the two numbers that govern a loop start.
When reservations open. Quota-season reservations are released daily at 7:00 AM Pacific Standard Time, up to six months in advance.
Reservations can be made between six months and one week prior to your start date. So the earliest booking day for a given start date is six months before it, and the last is one week before it. Set an alarm for 7:00 AM Pacific, have your party's names ready, and pick a few backup start dates, since only 20 spots per day are reservable at each trailhead.
What it costs. The quota-season permit is listed at $15 per trip plus $5 per person (NPS, checked October 27, 2026).
Recreation.gov agrees: the reservation fee is listed at $15, non-refundable, for each wilderness permit (Recreation.gov, checked October 27, 2026), and the per person fee is listed at $5, refundable (Recreation.gov, checked October 27, 2026). The two sources match, so the guide uses them as one fee.
A worked sum for a party of two: $15 per trip plus 2 people at $5 each comes to $25 (my sum of the NPS and Recreation.gov fees, 2026). For a party of four it's $15 plus 4 at $5, which comes to $35 (my sum of the NPS and Recreation.gov fees, 2026).
Changing or canceling. Cancellations more than one week before your start date are refunded the $5 per person fee.
Cancellations one week or less before are not refunded fees. Increasing party size incurs an additional $5 per person fee.
Pickup rules. Reserved permits must be picked up and validated in person.
You may pick up as early as 1:00 pm the day before your start date, or no later than 10:00 am on the morning of it. If you do not make arrangements for a late pickup, your reservation is canceled at 10:00 am and your spots may go to people waiting for walk-up permits. For late pickup, call the Wilderness Office at 559-565-3766 and leave a message with your permit number and name. The permit timeline below lays these dates in order.
Other fees. Reservations are not required to enter the parks, but an entrance fee is collected at the entrance stations, or you may buy a pass online (NPS, checked October 28, 2026).
Recreation.gov states that all trailheads require payment of the entrance fee. Bear container rental, if you need one, is listed at $5 for 3 nights and $2 each additional night for BearVault and Garcia containers (NPS, checked October 27, 2026), or $6 for the first night and $3 each additional night for Wild Ideas containers (NPS, checked October 27, 2026). A standard campsite for up to 6 people is listed at $32 (NPS, checked October 27, 2026). That campsite line is for a campground, such as the night before your start.
Total trip cost. What the sources let me add up: the permit, plus a container rental if you rent one, plus a campground night if you want one.
The entrance fee amount isn't given on the Park Service pages or Recreation.gov pages I read, which say only that it's collected. No fuel, food or lodging cost is sourced either, and the pages I read give no shuttle cost or booking details for Sequoia Shuttle, so check the current rate with the shuttle company and the lodge you pick.
Before booking, open the day planner below and check it against your pace. The day planner below shows 3, 4 and 5 day splits. Then mark your six-month date and be on Recreation.gov at 7:00 AM Pacific.
From the Park Service and Recreation.gov pages, checked October 27, 2026.
When to go
When to go, month by month, and how cold the nights get
Average low and high by month: CDEC CRL (CHARLOTTE LAKE, 10400 ft), 2011-10-01 to 2026-09-30 (15 water years).
- May, JunHigh water at stream crossings can be a problem in May and early June. (NPS)
- JulGlen Pass may be impassable to hikers until mid-late July and even later for stock. (NPS)
- JulWhile we can not forecast exact conditions trips attempting to cross this area may not be possible until sometime in July. (NPS)
- JulCrossing the South Fork of the Kings River can be extremely hazardous; may not be possible until July. (NPS)
July is the best month: Glen Pass is typically snow-free, meadows are green, wildflowers peak, water flows reliably and temperatures stay pleasant. Highway 180 to Roads End closes mid-November and typically reopens the fourth Friday in April, and trail opening dates vary with snowpack and road damage. Temperatures below are from the Charlotte Lake station at 10,400 feet.
| Month | Snow and water | Bugs and crowds | Avg high / low |
|---|---|---|---|
| May | High water at crossings, early June too; avoid without snow skills | Not stated | 45 / 24 F |
| June | Same as May | Not stated | 57 / 34 F |
| July | Pass typically snow-free; river hazardous until late July | Mosquitoes can be unbearable | 63 / 41 F |
| August | Stable weather, afternoon thunderstorms | Bugs largely gone by mid-August; lighter crowds | 62 / 40 F |
| September | Streams near the pass may shrink to trickles | Minimal mosquitoes | 56 / 34 F |
Another source gives July through September average highs of 71 to 79°F and average lows of 45 to 53°F, without naming a station. I'd size bag and pad to the cold night, the coldest tenth of nights: 33 F in July, 31 F in August and 27 F in September at Charlotte Lake. September also brings colder nights. Check the monthly temperatures table below against your bag's rating.
Nights by month
Bar: average low to average high. Black tick: a cold night (0 F in Dec), the 10th percentile of daily lows, so about 3 nights a month run colder. Dashed line: 32 F. Source: CDEC CRL (CHARLOTTE LAKE, 10400 ft) (CDEC), 2011-10-01 to 2026-09-30 (15 water years).
Your timeline
Pick a start date. I'll do the date math.
Permits, refunds and pickups have hard cutoffs. Set the day you start hiking and every deadline lands on a calendar date, with the rule and its source.
Before you go · the things that stop trips here
Permits, fees and the rules
Wilderness permits come from trailhead rangers, reserved on Recreation.gov at 7:00 AM Pacific Standard Time, up to six months ahead. The quota-season permit is listed at $15 per trip plus $5 per person (NPS, checked October 27, 2026). Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek each have a 25 person daily quota with 20 reservable. Pick up between 1:00 pm the day before and 10:00 am on your start date.
Quota season
Reserve on Recreation.gov
Pickup
Pick it up in person
Off season
Outside the quota season
Conditions and live sources
This part says where to check before you leave. The NPS Rae Lakes Loop page carries conditions for the Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek Trails and Glen Pass. The NPS maps page has a live closure map, but closures can change at any time and may differ from it. Road closures are also in the park Alerts. Wildfire activity and 2023 winter storms closed some trails and access roads. Road conditions: (559) 565-3341, press 1, 1. Spring, fall and winter trail updates are unreliable, with few rangers out. Stage 1 Fire Restrictions ban wood and charcoal fires at low-elevation campgrounds. Next, read the hazards.
From the Park Service pages, checked October 27, 2026.
Three hazards, tap to read
Wading the river where the bridge is out
The South Fork Kings River Bridge above Paradise Valley washed out in winter 2016-2017, and replacement construction will not begin before 2027. The NPS says the crossing can be extremely hazardous and may not be possible until sometime in July. Hikeset says snowmelt makes it hazardous or impossible until late July. Rule: don't plan to reach it before July, and check the NPS page first.
Snow on Glen Pass
The NPS says Glen Pass may be impassable to hikers until mid-late July, and later for stock. Hikeset says it can hold dangerous snow into mid-July in heavy winters, and to avoid May and June without snow-travel experience, carrying microspikes and an ice axe. Rule: no snow-travel skills, no start before mid-late July.
First-day heat and bugs
Cedar Grove can reach the 90s F in mid-summer. The trailhead is at about 5,000 feet and the first day is likely quite warm after about 11 am, so start early. Mosquitoes can be unbearable in July at Junction Meadow, Paradise Valley and near Woods Creek. August brings afternoon thunderstorms.
Getting there: trailhead, parking, shuttles, the night before and phone signal
Roads End is the trailhead and you need your own car, since no shuttle serves it. Pick up your permit from 1:00 pm the day before until 10:00 am on your start date. Phones mostly have no signal.
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This section covers how to reach the trailhead, where to park, whether a shuttle exists, where to sleep the night before and what to expect from your phone. Read it before you book, because the way in is by car, and the permit pickup window sets your first morning.
Trailhead and parking. The loop starts and ends at Roads End in Cedar Grove, and parking for both the Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek entry points is at Roads End.
From Fresno, follow CA-180 E to the Big Stump entrance station, then continue 37 miles through Grant Grove Village to the road's end. The mapped trail line puts the Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek trailhead at mile 0 and again at mile 39.51, so the loop returns to the same spot. Parking at Roads End fills on summer weekends, and a trip report advises arriving before 9 AM or camping nearby the night before. In summer, on Fridays, Saturdays and holidays from Memorial Day to Labor Day, long lines of cars have extended from the entrance stations, which can eat into an early start.
Overnight rules for your car. Don't leave food and containers in cars at the trailhead, including ice chests, bags and cans.
All food must come out of the car and go into the trailhead food-storage boxes, unless a container is completely empty and free of food residue. There are no gas stations or EV charging stations in the parks, so fill up before you enter. The nearest gas is outside the parks, in the neighboring national forest, at a year-round stop and a summer-only resort.
Getting there without a car. Shuttles operate only within Sequoia National Park, and there are no shuttles in Kings Canyon National Park.
If you arrive at Sequoia without a car, it is not possible to reach wilderness trailheads north of Wuksachi Lodge, including those in Grant Grove and Cedar Grove. There's no in-park shuttle or public transportation from Sequoia to Kings Canyon. For a bus or airport route to Roads End, the pages I read (the NPS transit page, the Recreation.gov permit page and the trip reports) give no connection, so plan on a vehicle.
Shuttles. One source states that no shuttle providers are servicing the trailhead, so you will need a vehicle.
The loop returns to its own trailhead, so a car shuttle is only needed if you leave over Kearsarge Pass. One guide says to arrange private shuttles through local contacts or leave a vehicle at each trailhead, with a 4-hour drive between Roads End and Onion Valley via Lone Pine. The pages I read name no shuttle company and give no price or booking method, so there's no rate to quote. Two cars, one at each end, is the plan the sources describe.
The night before. Permits are picked up in person, from 1:00 pm the day before your start date until 10:00 am on the start date, and there are no night drops.
One trip report gives the window as after 1 pm the day before or before 9 am the day of. I'd go with the park's 10:00 am, the land manager's own figure, and treat the trip report's 9 am as a cautious reading. Wilderness permits for the loop are issued at the Roads End station, 5.5 miles beyond Cedar Grove. Campgrounds sit on Highway 180: Sentinel and Canyon View take Recreation.gov reservations, and Moraine is first come, first served. Sentinel is next to the Cedar Grove Visitor Center and 0.25 miles from Cedar Grove Village. A trip report also names Sheep Creek. Cedar Grove sits at 4,000 feet, and one report says camping the night before helps you acclimatize and reach the permit station when it opens. Cedar Grove is a more remote area of Kings Canyon, an hour's drive from Grant Grove.
Phone signal. There is little to no cell reception in most areas of these parks, and Sentinel Campground has no cell phone reception.
Recreation.gov hikers rated each carrier on a scale where the lowest score is no signal. Verizon averaged 0.40 of 4 from 183 ratings, with 147 rating it no signal. AT&T averaged 0.15 of 4 from 152 ratings, with 137 rating it no signal. T-Mobile averaged 0.11 of 4 from 103 ratings, with 98 rating it no signal. Sprint averaged 0.20 of 4 from 10 ratings, with 9 rating it no signal. The phone signal block beside this section shows the same ratings by carrier. Cell phones have limited coverage, and Recreation.gov says not to rely on a phone or satellite device to summon help. If you have an emergency and cannot self-rescue, contact a ranger or Park Dispatch at (559) 565-3195. A satellite messenger is a backup for sending a message, not a rescue plan, so carry the number above in writing.
Day hikes from the same trailhead. The pages I read give no day-hike names or distances from Roads End.
A day hiker can ask at the Roads End permit station when picking up a permit, or at the Cedar Grove Visitor Center.
The mapped trail line shows Mist Falls at mile 3.91 as the first landmark out of Roads End. Your next action is to reserve Sentinel or Canyon View for the night before, then plan to reach the Roads End desk after 1:00 pm that day.
The day planner below shows 3, 4 and 5 day splits.
Settle the night before first, since the car and permit pickup time depend on it.
From the Park Service and Recreation.gov pages, checked October 27, 2026. Shuttle details from hikeset.com and pariaoutdoorproducts.com, checked October 27, 2026.
Phone signal · checked October 27, 2026
Little or no phone signal reported
Recreation.gov users rate cell signal from 0 (no signal) to 4. Each bar is the share of ratings at 0.
This trail's Recreation.gov permit
Source: Recreation.gov cell coverage ratings, checked October 27, 2026. To check a carrier, the FCC National Broadband Map (broadbandmap.fcc.gov) shows the mobile coverage each carrier reports.
Gear, food and books
Bear canisters are required, and the Park Service lists the BV450 Solo and Garcia 812 at 6 person-days and the Wild Ideas Expedition at 9. Fires are banned above 10,000 feet. Dogs and bear spray aren't allowed.
Show the full notesHide the full notes
This part covers the rules that decide what you pack, which bear canisters work here, how food fits, and which maps and books to read before you go. Read the rules first, because they set the canister and fire choices.
Regulations. Hikers are required to carry portable bear-resistant canisters.
Containers are required in the Rae Lakes Loop area from May 1 through October 31. Soap, sunscreen, deodorant, toothpaste and garbage are stored the same way as food. When you use a canister, all scented items (food, toiletries and garbage) must fit inside it for the whole trip unless you're in attendance or actively preparing food. Put the canister and your kitchen 50 feet from your sleeping area, leave the canister on the ground and don't hang it from a tree.
Campfires are prohibited above 10,000 feet (3048 m). In Kings Canyon National Park campfires aren't allowed above 10,000 feet, and fires are also prohibited in Granite Basin and Redwood Canyon. The high point on the route is 11,978 feet, so for much of the loop fires aren't an option. During high fire danger, additional campfire restrictions may be put in place, and they apply to wood-burning camp stoves too. Plan on a gas or canister stove and check the park's fire notices before you leave.
Pets and wheeled vehicles aren't allowed on any park trails, and pets aren't allowed in the wilderness, so the dog stays home. Possession of weapons, including bear spray, is prohibited. Human waste must be buried at least 6 inches deep and 100 feet from trails, camps and all water sources, so pack a trowel. Maximum party size is 15 people on trail and 12 off trail. Wilderness permits are required for all overnight travel, and the signed permit must be in your possession and shown to an authorized person on request. The Park Service pages I read give no separate California campfire permit requirement for this loop, so the wilderness permit is the document to carry.
Bear canisters. Rentals are run by the parks' non-profit partner, Sequoia Parks Conservancy.
Cedar Grove has no containers for rent, and the closest rental is the Kings Canyon Visitor Center. That visitor center rents only Garcia Backpacker's Cache containers. The Mineral King Ranger Station rents Garcia, Wild Ideas Weekender and Expedition, and BearVault BV450 Solo containers.
What fits how many days, per the Park Service: the BearVault BV450 Solo holds 6 person-days of food and weighs 1 lb. 6 oz. The Garcia Backpackers Cache 812 holds 6 person-days. The Wild Ideas Expedition holds 9 person-days. The mapped trail line measures 39.51 miles and the Park Service prints 41.4 miles, so a 5 day trip needs 5 person-days of food, which fits a 6 person-day canister with one day of spare room.
BearVault and Garcia containers are listed at $5 for 3 nights and $2 each additional night (Sequoia Parks Conservancy via NPS, checked October 27, 2026). Wild Ideas containers are listed at $6 for the first night and $3 each additional night (Sequoia Parks Conservancy via NPS, checked October 27, 2026).
Food. The Park Service advises compact, compressible, high-calorie foods such as rice, tortillas, jerky, flat pastas, dehydrated powders, nuts, dried fruits, peanut butter, candy and nutrition bars.
Take food out of its original package and repackage it into resealable bags to fit more and cut garbage. Carry the first two meals, lunch and dinner, outside the canister, and check at the trailhead that everything fits inside for the first night. The nearest resupply is Cedar Grove Village, 6 miles by road from Roads End, with a small store that has minimal backpacking supplies, so pack the whole trip. The Park Service pages and trip reports I read give no calories-per-day figure, no cold-weather food guidance, no water-for-cooking figure and no canister volume for this loop.
The monthly temperatures table below shows how cold nights get at Charlotte Lake, which is the number to check when you decide how much hot food to bring.
Books and maps. The Park Service maps page offers free downloadable 7.5 minute USGS quadrangle maps, or you can purchase maps.
Some hiking maps are sold at Sequoia Parks Conservancy stores at the Foothills, Lodgepole and Kings Canyon visitor centers and the Giant Forest Museum. The Park Service's Sequoia & Kings Canyon Park Atlas is an interactive online tool with wilderness regulations, ranger stations and natural resources, and you can save or print custom maps from it. One trip report names the Tom Harrison Kearsage Pass / Rae Lakes Map as its topographic map. Free high-resolution USGS topographic PDFs for the loop come in two parts. The evidence I read names no guidebook and no natural-history book. I read one land manager page and one trip report or forum thread for this item, and none gives a reason to pick a particular book or says which closures the Maps page trail and road closure map shows.
Next step: download the two USGS PDFs and print the atlas map with the regulations layer before you pick a canister.
From the Park Service pages, checked October 27, 2026. Resupply details from hikeset.com, checked October 27, 2026.
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Garmin inReach Mini 2
NPS says there is little to no cell reception in most areas of these parks. My review covers this one.
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Packing list for this trip (11 items)
- Park-approved bear canister sized for your person-days (rent or bring)
- Resealable bags to repackage food out of original packaging
- Compact, high-calorie food for every day, since resupply is off the loop
- Lunch and dinner for the first day carried outside the canister
- Toiletries and garbage bags that fit inside the canister
- Gas or canister stove, since campfires are banned above 10,000 feet
- Lighter and backup
- Trowel for burying waste 6 inches deep
- Signed wilderness permit in your possession
- Printed USGS quadrangle maps or the Tom Harrison Kearsage Pass / Rae Lakes Map
- Printed atlas map with wilderness regulations
Show all 11 itemsShow fewer
Reference
Miles, camps, water, junctions and ways out
This section gives the mile-by-mile numbers, says which end they count from, and lists every early exit I could find, so you can plan camps and know where the short ways out are. Use it beside the route map, which marks camps, food lockers, exits and mapped water.
Which end the miles count from. The Park Service table counts from Road's End, and it prints two columns. Going via Paradise (the clockwise way here), Road's End is 0 miles and the finish is 41.4 miles. Going via Bubbs, the same table runs backward: Road's End is 41.4 miles at the start of that count and 0.0 at the end. Pick one column and stay in it. In the table below, the Paradise column is the clockwise count, and the Bubbs column counts the other way around.
Official miles against the mapped line. The Park Service prints 41.4 miles. The mapped trail line measures 39.51 miles, which is 1.89 miles shorter. A line drawn through trail coordinates cuts across the bends of corners and switchbacks, so it always measures a little short of the distance the land manager prints. I went with the Park Service figure for planning and show the measured one beside it. The mapped trail line also runs on a slightly different mile scale, so its mile marks for the same place can differ from the Park Service ones.
Camping rules that shape the table. Camping in Lower Paradise Valley is permitted only in designated campsites. Bullfrog Lake, east of the trail between Vidette Meadow and Glen Pass, is closed to all camping, grazing and stock travel. The mapped trail line shows many more camp marks than the Park Service lists, and those are what OpenStreetMap shows, not designated or legal sites, so the Park Service rules win.
Water. About 34.4 of the 39.51 mapped miles lie within 150 meters of mapped rivers, streams and lakes. That's mapped water. The mapped line shows gaps longer than 0.3 mile at miles 0.25 to 0.55, 19.1 to 19.65, 22.8 to 23.4, 24.2 to 25.8 and 26.9 to 27.2.
Hazards and junctions. Glen Pass is at mile 23.2 on the mapped trail line, with a second mapped mark at 23.7. Named junctions on the mapped line are the John Muir Trail at mile 14.33, Baxter Lakes Trail at 18.32, Dragon Lake Trail at 20.85, Upper Sixty Lakes Basin Trail at 21.32, Charlotte Lake Trail at 25.49, Bullfrog Lake Trail at 25.97, the John Muir Trail again at 27.15, East Lake Trail at 29.41, Avalanche Pass Trail at 35.55 and Kanawyer Loop Trail at 37.5. The Rae Lakes Ranger Station is at mile 20.41 and the Charlotte Lake Ranger Station at 24.81.
Bailouts and early exits. The mapped trail line shows four exit junctions, all counted in the clockwise direction:
- Mile 25.28, a path junction to Onion Valley Trailhead, 7.8 miles via Kearsarge Pass Trail.
- Mile 25.49, Charlotte Lake Trail, to Onion Valley Trailhead, 7.7 miles via Charlotte Lake Trail and Kearsarge Pass Trail.
- Mile 25.97, Bullfrog Lake Trail, to Onion Valley Trailhead, 7.5 miles via Bullfrog Lake Trail and Kearsarge Pass Trail. Camping at Bullfrog Lake itself is closed.
- Mile 37.5, Kanawyer Loop Trail, to Roaring River Trailhead, 4.7 miles via Kanawyer Loop Trail, Zumwalt Meadow Loop Trail, Zumwalt Meadow to Roaring River Falls Trail and Roaring River Falls Trail.
The three Onion Valley exits all sit in the stretch after Glen Pass, so the early part of the loop has no mapped exit other than turning back. Hikers starting from Bubbs Creek should plan for the possibility of having to backtrack to safely reach Cedar Grove. In an emergency you cannot self-rescue from, contact a ranger or Park Dispatch at (559) 565-3195.
What the sources don't give. The Park Service pages, the permit pages and the mapped trail line I read give mile data, camps and crossings, but no drawn map image and no hazard-zone layer, so hazard marks above come only from the mile data and not from a mapped zone.
For the day-by-day split of these miles, use the planner.
The day planner below shows 3, 4 and 5 day splits.
Next step: copy the table column for your direction into your own notes and mark the camp you want each night, checking the Lower Paradise and Bullfrog rules first.
Map miles along the OpenStreetMap line (39.5 mi; the NPS figure is 41.4 mi). Each row is something OpenStreetMap marks within 200 m of the trail. A row marked Campsite is a camp OpenStreetMap shows, which doesn't make it a designated or legal site. The Park Service rules decide where you may camp. Elevation from USGS 3DEP. Water: a mapped river, stream or lake within 150 m, not a promise of flow. Glen Pass is the NPS figure.
The mile table (28 places)
| Mile, clockwise | Mile, counterclockwise | Place | Elevation | What is here | Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | 39.5 | Woods Creek & Bubbs Creek Trailhead | 5,033 ft | Start, toilet, drinking water, crosses Copper Creek | Beside the trail |
| 3.9 | 35.6 | Mist Falls | 5,815 ft | Beside the trail | |
| 5.9 | 33.6 | Lower Paradise Valley | 6,592 ft | Campsite, food locker, toilet | Beside the trail |
| 6.6 | 32.9 | Toilet | 6,608 ft | Toilet | Beside the trail |
| 7.3 | 32.2 | Middle Paradise Valley | 6,641 ft | Campsite, toilet | Beside the trail |
| 8.9 | 30.6 | Upper Paradise Valley | 6,908 ft | Campsite, food locker | Beside the trail |
| 14.3 | 25.2 | Woods Creek | 8,507 ft | Campsite, food locker, toilet, crossing, trail junction | Beside the trail |
| 15.7 | 23.8 | Campsite | 9,033 ft | Campsite | Beside the trail |
| 17.1 | 22.5 | Campsite | 9,574 ft | Campsite | Beside the trail |
| 18.5 | 21.0 | Dollar Lake | 10,236 ft | Beside the trail | |
| 18.9 | 20.6 | Arrowhead Lake | 10,319 ft | Campsite, food locker | Beside the trail |
| 19.8 | 19.7 | Lower Rae Lake | 10,552 ft | Campsite, food locker | Beside the trail |
| 20.4 | 19.1 | Rae Lakes Ranger Station | 10,576 ft | Ranger station | Beside the trail |
| 20.7 | 18.8 | Dragon Lake Trail junction | 10,586 ft | Campsite, food locker, trail junction | Beside the trail |
| 21.2 | 18.3 | Upper Rae Lake | 10,544 ft | Beside the trail | |
| 21.3 | 18.2 | Upper Sixty Lakes Basin Trail junction | 10,567 ft | Campsite, trail junction | Beside the trail |
| 22.1 | 17.4 | Campsite | 11,119 ft | Campsite | Beside the trail |
| 23.2 | 16.3 | Glen Pass | 11,978 ft | Pass, the high point | None mapped |
| 23.7 | 15.8 | Campsite | 11,517 ft | Campsite | Beside the trail |
| 24.1 | 15.4 | Campsite | 11,200 ft | Campsite | Beside the trail |
| 25.5 | 14.0 | Charlotte Lake Trail junction | 10,711 ft | Side trail out, 7.7 mi to Onion Valley Trailhead, trail junction | None mapped |
| 26.0 | 13.5 | Bullfrog Lake Trail junction | 10,509 ft | Campsite, side trail out, 7.5 mi to Onion Valley Trailhead, trail junction | Beside the trail |
| 27.2 | 12.4 | John Muir Trail junction | 9,566 ft | Campsite, trail junction | Beside the trail |
| 29.4 | 10.1 | East Lake Trail junction | 8,175 ft | Campsite, food locker, trail junction | Beside the trail |
| 29.6 | 9.9 | Campsite | 8,125 ft | Campsite | Beside the trail |
| 32.4 | 7.1 | Campsite | 7,290 ft | Campsite, food locker | Beside the trail |
| 37.5 | 2.0 | South Fork Kings River | 5,110 ft | Crossing, side trail out, 4.7 mi to Roaring River Trailhead, trail junction | Beside the trail |
| 39.5 | 0.0 | Woods Creek & Bubbs Creek Trailhead | 5,033 ft | Finish, toilet, drinking water, crosses Copper Creek | Beside the trail |
Show all 28 placesShow fewer
From the Park Service and Recreation.gov pages, checked October 27, 2026.
What hikers report, with dates
Day hikes on or near the Rae Lakes Loop
Mist Falls is the named day hike: 3.9 miles each way by the Park Service, or a 9-mile round trip gaining about 600 feet by Backpacker. Plan on 7.8 to 9 miles.
Show the full notesHide the full notes
This part is for readers who want a day on the loop's trail without the full multi-day commitment, and for anyone checking what a day hiker can reach from the trailhead. The loop itself measures 39.51 miles on the mapped trail line, and the Park Service prints 41.4 miles. Both numbers are in play below, and the Park Service figure wins where they differ.
Day hikes from the same trailhead. The one day hike the evidence names is Mist Falls, and it starts at the Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek trailhead where the loop begins.
The Park Service distance table lists Mist Falls (no camping) at 3.9 miles from Road's End via Paradise. A hikeset.com page calls Mist Falls (mile 4) a popular day-hike turnaround for visitors and says to expect crowds until Paradise Valley. The mapped trail line puts the falls at mile 3.91 from the start. A Backpacker article (source s4) describes the Mist Falls trail as a 9-mile day hike that gains about 600 feet, mostly over the last mile to the falls.
How the numbers fit. The Park Service figure is 3.9 miles one way.
Doubled for the out-and-back, that's 7.8 miles. The Backpacker figure is 9 miles. That's 1.2 miles more than the doubled Park Service figure. The sources don't explain the difference, so I'd plan on 7.8 to 9 miles for the round trip. The 600 feet of gain is Backpacker's number, and it says most of it comes in the last mile to the falls.
Mist Falls and the loop route. Because the falls sit at mile 3.9 to 4 on the same trail the loop uses, a day hiker walking there shares the path with backpackers starting the loop.
Camping isn't allowed at Mist Falls. The mapped trail line shows the first mapped camp at Lower Paradise Valley, mile 5.9, past the falls.
Other short options on the mapped trail line. Beyond Mist Falls, the sources I read name no other day hike with a distance and gain.
For reference, the mapped trail line lists Middle Paradise Valley at mile 7.3, and the first leg from the trailhead to there's 7.3 miles with 1,715 feet up. That's a longer out-and-back than Mist Falls, and I'd treat it as a stretch of the loop, not a published day hike. The mile-by-mile table below lists every mapped place by distance so you can pick your own turnaround.
What I couldn't find. The Park Service pages, the hikeset.com page and the Backpacker article I read give Mist Falls as the only named day hike with a distance, and none gives a gain for any other day-hike turnaround on this trail.
Trip reports. The only trip-style source I read for this part is the Backpacker piece on the best hikes in Kings Canyon National Park (s4).
It's a blog roundup, and its Mist Falls figures are the ones above.
Next action: check the Park Service trail page for current conditions before you pick a turnaround, and choose between the 7.8-mile and 9-mile planning figures for Mist Falls.
From the Park Service pages, checked October 27, 2026.
Mistakes people make here
- Planning a dog or bear spray: pets aren't allowed in the wilderness and weapons including bear spray are prohibited.
- Counting on a campfire for dinner when much of the route is above 10,000 feet.
- Leaving toothpaste, sunscreen or garbage outside the canister overnight.
- Hanging the canister from a tree instead of leaving it on the ground 50 feet from your sleeping area.
- Expecting to rent a canister at Cedar Grove, which has none.
Frequently asked
What people worry about
Is the Rae Lakes Loop safe to hike solo?
This part covers the solo question. There is little to no cell reception in most areas of these parks, and the Recreation.gov permit page says not to rely on a phone or satellite device to summon help. For an emergency you cannot self-rescue from, contact a ranger or Park Dispatch at (559) 565-3195. The loop is heavily traveled with high demand for limited entry, so you won't be alone on the trail in season. Solo, beginner and altitude concerns have only trip-report evidence, no official source; I read the Park Service pages, Recreation.gov, and the trip reports, and none gives an official solo rule or rating.
Is this a good first backpacking trip for a beginner?
Check the numbers before you decide. The loop is 41.4 miles long and climbs from 5035 feet at the trailhead to 11,978 feet at Glen Pass. Hikers are required to carry portable bear-resistant canisters. The Woods Creek start is described as the easier clockwise direction. Solo, beginner and altitude concerns have only trip-report evidence, no official source, so the Park Service pages I read give no beginner rating. If you haven't carried a full pack over a high pass yet, I'd treat a canister, snow and river conditions as the real tests.
How bad is the altitude on the Rae Lakes Loop?
The route starts at 5035 feet and tops out at 11,978 feet on Glen Pass, so most of the climbing is a gradual gain toward that pass. Solo, beginner and altitude concerns have only trip-report evidence, no official source; I read the Park Service pages, Recreation.gov, and the trip reports, and none gives an altitude-sickness rule for this loop. One trip report suggests camping the night before near the trailhead to help acclimatize. Another notes that gloves were wanted on two or three mornings above 9000 feet.
What do I need to know about bears?
Hikers are required to carry portable bear-resistant canisters, and they're required in the Rae Lakes Loop area from May 1 through October 31. Keep a minimum distance of 100 yards (300 feet) from bears. Possession of weapons, including bear spray, is prohibited. Put the canister and your kitchen 50 feet from your sleeping area, on the ground, not hung from a tree.
Will the Rae Lakes Loop be crowded?
Yes, plan for company. The loop is heavily traveled with high demand for limited entry. Mist Falls at mile 4 is a popular day-hike turnaround, so one trail guide says to expect crowds until Paradise Valley. A guide reports August has lighter crowds than July but brings afternoon thunderstorms. Parking at Roads End fills on summer weekends, so arrive before 9 AM or camp at Sentinel or Sheep Creek the night before.
What are the real dangers on the loop?
Water and snow come first. High water at stream crossings can be a problem in May and early June. Glen Pass may be impassable to hikers until mid-late July. A trail guide advises avoiding May and June without snow-travel experience and carrying microspikes and an ice axe, and says Glen Pass can hold dangerous snow into mid-July in heavy winters. Drowning is the leading cause of death in the parks. Mosquitoes can be unbearable in July, particularly at Junction Meadow, Paradise Valley and near Woods Creek; by mid-August the bugs largely disappear. Check conditions with the Wilderness Office at (559) 565-3766 before you go.
Official rules pages
The condition pages (trail, snow, weather, road, fire, permits) sit in Trail conditions, near the top.
How this guide was checked
Every source, in full
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/rae-lakes-loop.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/wilderness_permits.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/bear_bc.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/minimum-impact-restrictions.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/road-conditions.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/trailcond.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/food-storage-containers-for-rent.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/parktransit.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/campgrounds.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Recreation.gov: Recreation.gov, https://www.recreation.gov/api/permitcontent/445857, checked October 27, 2026
- Recreation.gov: Recreation.gov, https://www.recreation.gov/api/ratingreview/aggregate?location_id=445857&location_type=Permit, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/bears.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/conditions.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/learn/nature/ns_bears.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/cg_regs.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/camping-safety.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/packing-a-food-storage-container.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/maps.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/weather.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/road-information.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/directions.htm, checked October 27, 2026
- Research: hikeset.com, https://hikeset.com/gs/rae-lakes-loop/, checked October 27, 2026
- Research: backpackers-review.com, https://backpackers-review.com/trip-reports/rae-lakes-loop/, checked October 27, 2026
- Research: backpacker.com, https://www.backpacker.com/trips/best-hikes-in-kings-canyon-national-park/, checked October 27, 2026
- Research: pariaoutdoorproducts.com, https://www.pariaoutdoorproducts.com/blogs/affordable-backpacking-gear-blog/134934855-hike-of-the-week-rae-lakes-loop?srsltid=AYCX9vLM--2fCUYgbi_2j5-CDfsXvuOKT1EBhCcExfMeB9s4CAQhVJ3x, checked October 27, 2026
- Land manager: National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/permits.htm, checked October 28, 2026
- Research: nobackhome.com, https://nobackhome.com/rae-lakes-loop/, checked October 28, 2026
- Research: backpackinglight.com, https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/35765/, checked October 28, 2026
- Research: kevingong.com, https://kevingong.com/Hiking/RaeLakesLoopPack.html, checked October 28, 2026
- Forum: Encore: Rae Lakes loop in day - Backpacking Light, https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/encore-rae-lakes-loop-in-day/
Words in this guide
These are the terms the rest of this guide leans on. Skim them once before you start planning, then come back when a word trips you up. Each definition uses the land manager's own wording where a rule is involved.
- Bear canister.
- A hard-sided, portable bear-resistant food container. Hikers are required to carry one on the Rae Lakes Loop. All scented items, meaning food, toiletries and garbage, must fit inside it for the whole trip unless you are in attendance or actively preparing food.
- Clockwise and counterclockwise.
- The two ways to walk the loop. Woods Creek is the clockwise start and Bubbs Creek is the counterclockwise start. Recreation.gov calls clockwise the easier direction and counterclockwise the more strenuous one.
- Daily permit cap.
- The limit on how many people may start from one trailhead each day during the quota season. Woods Creek has a 25 person daily quota, of which 20 are reservable. Bubbs Creek has the same numbers.
- Quota season.
- The stretch when overnight entry is limited. The NPS lists it as May 22, 2026 through September 26, 2026. Recreation.gov gives it generally as the Friday before Memorial Day through the Saturday that falls between September 23-29.
- Wilderness permit.
- The signed paper required for all overnight travel. You must carry it and show it to an authorized person on request.
- Trailhead.
- The place a route starts. Woods Creek and Bubbs Creek are the two start points for this loop, and both use parking at Roads End.
- Roads End.
- The end of Highway 180 in Cedar Grove, where both loop trailheads begin. Permits for both are issued at the Roads End Contact Station.
- Designated campsite.
- A campsite the park has officially set aside. Camping in Lower Paradise Valley is permitted only in designated campsites. A camp that's merely marked on OpenStreetMap isn't the same thing.
- OpenStreetMap.
- A free, volunteer-built online map. The mapped trail line, camps, lakes and water on this page come from it, so they show what is marked there and aren't a promise of flow or of legal camping.
- Mapped trail line.
- The route as drawn on OpenStreetMap. It measures 39.51 miles, shorter than the official 41.4 miles. A drawn line skips the bends of corners and switchbacks, so it reads short.
- Glen Pass.
- The high point of the loop at 11,978 feet. It may be impassable to hikers until mid-late July.
- Stock.
- Pack animals such as mules and horses. Bullfrog Lake is closed to all camping, grazing and stock travel.
From the Park Service and Recreation.gov pages, checked October 27, 2026.
Rae Lakes Loop photo tour
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