We are here: Evolution Basin Total Mileage: ~57 miles Total Elevation Loss/Gain: ~9,500 feet (a few hundred feet more gain than loss) Length: 6 days Trailhead: We started at North Lake at Piute Trailhead (~9,400 feet) Mountain Passes: Piute, Muir and Bishop We offer this guided journey in three itineraries: 3-day Ultralight 4-day Backpacking (July 23-26, 2022) 5-day Backpacking (July 16-20, 2022) The Guthook PCT app on my phone showed most of the camping spots along the main trail, but it didnt show any of them on the trail I was about to take. The next day we made it up to evolution valley. No storms. Along the way I came across the Muir Rock which I had seen on the topo map. Great hike to explore the backcountry and multiple parks. Mosquitoes were everywhere but easily controlled with DEET and an (optional) headnet. ~. Well worth every step! The map showed that it eventually merged into the South Fork San Joaquin River somewhere out of sight of the trail. Maybe I was oxygen-starved, but my companions said they were similarly affected. Goode, Bishop Lake, Jigsaw Pass. The trail distance from the junction of the San Joaquin River and Evolution Creek to the summit of Muir Pass is 15.4 miles / 24.8 kilometres (mile 113.2 to mile 128.6 in the Blackwoods Press John Muir Trail Atlas). You can learn more about her travels with her husband, Mitch, on CruisingSailors.com. This is one of my favorite trips of many in the eastern Sierra. This will bring you onto the PCT north of Evolution Valley, a distance of about 16 miles. This trek met every expectation I had plus some! The trail immediately climbed high above the creek, and stayed there, perched on the canyon wall. Get to know the winter safety gear you need in your pack. Follow it 2.1 miles back to the trailhead. Day Zero Travel day. Golden trout present. Next came McClure Meadow and the Ranger Station. I started hiking up the Piute Pass Trail, hoping to camp two miles further Piute Creek, below, and Mount Henry. While there are no 14,000 ft peaks in these groups the peak are high and majestic. A boat-taxi across the lake is available from the trailhead in the summer. Anon. Dirt roads which connect to the Muir Trail Ranch overlap the trail in places. Hwy 168 accesses both trailheads west out of Bishop and there are many signs so even the most directionally challenged can easily follow the breadcrumbs. To win Best in Show our site sported a ledge, floating above a yakkety brook, Mt. The ferry is worth it if its running. This was an absolute must do trail! Im a layman, what can I say? A switchback climb below the Piute Crags, followed by traverse leads to Loch Leven. 1 decision & planning. Here you will find the most recent trail conditions available to us. Moderate. Evolution Valley elevation: 9,500 feet Oh well. Fork), from which you access Evolution Valley via Piute Creek down to the River, then back up the river and Evolution Creek to McClure Meadow and beyond; stated simply, from the pass this is a down-up. There were a few sections that were mosquito-dense, but otherwise the bugs and critters were tolerable! It is visible from the trail, but some hikers have walked past it without noticing it. Hundreds of feet of granite on one side, and beautiful open meadow on the other. Grand views of the high sierra. An epic (almost) loop in the heart of the Sierras. View full map Reviews (235) Photos (774) 5 4 3 2 1 4.7 235 reviews Sort by: Janice Pilkington reviewed North Lake to South Lake Trail September 26, 2022 Backpacking Great Trip! To become a member of the SPS, one must be a Sierra Club member and have climbed at least six peaks on the SPS List; it is not necessary that the peaks be Emblem peaks. I jumped up and pumped them for information. Then it is violently opposed. Bridge at JMT junction Stream crossing below Goddard Canyon turnoff Bridge below Goddard Canyon Back across Goddard Canyon Log crossing below Evolution Meadow View up Evolution Valley Gould, Mendel, and Darwin Darwin to Huxley, the Evo traverse crux Beautiful trip! Very scenic. The ferry was not running yet. I want to hike West to East in the lowest part of the evolution valley, beginning at Edison Lake. Lodging is available at Vermilion Valley Resort at Lake Edison and also at nearby Mono Hot Springs. We also brought along dark chocolate and tequila for special-treat nights. The trail leads through Double and Blayney meadows. The canister is a whole lotta bulky but is worth its weight should a bruin decide hed like some chocolate with his berries. Awesome views and an incredible variety of terrain. The benefits of hiking, more than you can imagine! I recommend an early start because of the exposure in the first 3 miles of Piute Trail. Lots of mosquitos in some areas. Recommend to everybody. Although the trail from the head of Florence Lake to Evolution Valley climbs over 2,000 feet, most of the elevation gain comes during the last miles. Do you wish to share an stories about that particular spot? We had rain (often with hail) during 5 of our 6 days out, so bring a rain coat and a pack cover. Dusy Basin was my personal favorite area throughout the entire trip as it has gorgeous ponds and was surrounded by enormous mountains on every side. They were having a seriously fun time on a hot Summers Day. I wished her well. classic Sierra beauty from the very start. Campsite 1: Upper Golden Trout Lake. Of course, the unforgettable moments started to pile up as we descended into Evolution Basin and then officially into the hanging valley of Evolution. That pond is the same pond I had lunch at last year descending from Bishop Pass into Le Conte Canyon. I was definitely overheating, and simply wanted to take a long rest. Just needed a puffy jacket, could skip the fleece. Starting at Lake Sabrina we could do a proper loop with just two 2 mile stretches on the road. Purchase tickets in the store. Was it this heavy yesterday? Reports of hail and lightning from others along the trail. I see no real advantage to hiking one way vs. the other. Trailhead to Piute Lake Distance from Trailhead: 7.0 miles (round trip) . Plentiful water (I never carried more than 16 oz.). I had descended 2500 feet and climbed another 1000 feet to get up here. In other words, I was probably dehydrated. The SteriPen uses UV light to kill the germs. That was about 8 miles, we had wanted to camp at the meadow but was beat so made camp a couple miles sooner. The Best backpacking hike ever! No mosquitos. Slept like a drunken sailor. Darwin/Bench. We took the ferry both ways to save us some time and miles! The next morning, we continued on the Piute Trail and crossed the bridge onto the John Muir Trail (JMT) where we were paralleling a fast-moving San Joaquin River located within the Kings Canyon National Park. Great trail, not all of it is technically dog friendly since you enter Kings Canyon NP for the 2nd half. As I hiked along, I met several PCT Through-Hikers heading north. It was also one of the last areas explored by early park pioneers. This is a beautiful post. The normal crossing is not recommended now due to the higher flow, so people have been crossing upstream a bit. Parking: A large parking lot for overnight trips is situated close to the lake. What seemed like an irritating setback at the time, ended up giving us a chance to acclimate a bit before hauling ourselves, and 40 unaccustomed pounds, over Bishop Pass. The river and steam crossings were simple because the water level is so low at this point in the season. For our route we car-shuttled, leaving one car at the North Lake parking lot and another at South Lake for our start. Hi, Jeff; Thank you for your compliment of my photo. Backpackers are really friendly and fun, so it was a good time. The information provided on this website is done so without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The North Lake-South Lake loop is there High Sierra at its very best! We went north to south. This high col skips the portion in Humphrey's Basin, Piute Meadows and Evolution Valley resulting in total distance of about 35 miles. We passed more than a dozen lakes some of which I will mention when I upload photos. Tough climb over the pass at 11,423 and descended into Paiute Canyon where we connected up with the JMT. I also set an early alarm. The Vanderbilt Mine is located partly on private land in the San Bernardino County, two miles west of California-Nevada state lines in the New York mountains four miles southeast of the Ivanpah valley within the Mojave National Preserve. We took four full, plus two half days, to hike the 57-mile route starting at South Lake and ending at North Lake, so 10-12 miles each day was the score. It was desert like in the high alpine on that side. I had 2500 feet of climbing to do tomorrow, and I wanted to get as much of it done as possible while it was still cool. I didnt realize it, but that was the last Id be seeing of Evolution Creek. I hung out by the creek for an hour and a half, until 3pm. While the passes were more challenging and toward the beginning going CW, we loved the direction we chose. 2 trip report day 0-4: getting in & Yosemite National Park warm up. Maybe not bathing for three days has its advantages. It is, of course, the perfect time for this 5 - 7 day hike. Completed end of July 2022. Video of a PCT hiker butt-sliding under the bridge. We did encounter several groups of happy campers who had spent the previous night at some of these lakes. We hiked through Evolution Meadow and decided to stay a few miles away near the McClure Meadow Ranger Station (closed due to Covid-19). Well, yeah, maybe then. Hike up Muir Pass, down to Le Conte Ranger Station. Day 2 Evolution Valley 17.18 2977 AEG Emptied our packs and hiked down to the Muir Trail Ranch to pick our resupply. The information provided on this website is done so without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. Piute Pass was comparatively easy with just a few snow patches. I have to say, however, that descending into Le Conte Canyon from Dusy Basin, and not the other way around, seemed like the more fortunate direction for my legs and backside. Muir Pass snow is melting fast and maybe only 1.5 miles worth heading northbound and maybe 2 over towards Sapphire Lake. Also included are North Lake, South Lake, Piute Pass, Evolution Valley and Lake Sabrina. Highly recommend pushing up to lower Dusy Basin (though there are several campsites about 1200 vertical feet up from Le Conte, just prior to a bridge crossing) (night 4). The trail condition is great, although it get pretty rocky around Muir Pass. The trail includes one major unbridged crossing of Evolution Creek - often an exciting wade during the spring run-off - and three . The hike isn't strenuous, and even the switchbacks didn't feel that bad. And it felt like it. They are past the Muir Trail Ranch. Wonderful backpack but challenging for us 60-75 year old hikers. Fantastic hike! We did it over 4d/3n (south lake to le conte, le conte to sapphire lake, sapphire lake to the junction with Piute pass trail, and then out to north lake on the last day). Membership. 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