An Epic 6 Day Hike in King’s Canyon National Park
An Alpine Baptism
To have an entire alpine valley all to oneself is for me the definition of heaven on earth. To take a bath in a crisp mountain stream while all alone in such a place might be something even better. Paradise? Perhaps. Relaxing? Absolutely.
I was five days into my six day backpacking trip in King’s Canyon National Park when I found this perfect bathing location. Situated just below Granite Lake, ten miles from the nearest road, a magical collection of crystal clear pools rest in the shadow of snow-stunted sequoias. Soft sunlight dapples the grassy banks and cascading waterfalls connect each of these rocky tarns to the ones above and below. Water falls in tumbling sheets across the multi-colored granite beds. In the trees above, songbirds sing of life and love and of other birdly concerns.
It was near the top of one of these cascades that I found a small depression in the stone just large enough to hold me. After stripping down to my altogether, I eased myself into the human-sized hole. The water there was so, so cold but also so incredibly refreshing. With my back to the pond below, my legs floating free in the pond above, I let the ice-cold water wash down and over me. To the west and north, just visible through the gently swaying boughs, the sheer peaks of the surrounding mountains glistened slightly pink with the morning’s first light. Beneath a quickly melting snowfield another waterfall, this one a good hundred feet tall, plunged toward the ice-rimmed lake below.
Nirvana might be the best word for such a place, because, lord knows, after hiking for the better part of a week, I definitely smelled light teen spirit (that’s a song reference for those of you who did not grow up in the 80’s).
A Hard Hike, But Worth the Effort
The day before this had been a difficult one–the hardest of my trip so far. In the last four days I had hiked nearly fifteen miles, climbed six thousand feet, and then descended another half a thousand into into this perfect valley. My legs were tired, but it was the altitude that had begun to wear me down.
After spending the night camped above the aptly-named Granite Lake, my plan for the day was to climb back up out of this rocky basin and then to spend my last night camped on the high pass above. It was to have been a relatively easy day–just three miles and a little less than a thousand feet of elevation gain, but for some reason I could not seem to muster the energy needed to begin the ascent. When I came upon those magical pools I knew at once what I needed to do.
In all of my many years of hiking I have never found a place quite as Eden-like as that one. I cannot even begin to describe how invigorating those waters were, but by the time I was finished with my bath I felt like a new man. My muscles no longer ached and my attitude had completely changed. Instead of obsessing about how tired I was, I was instead looking forward to the day ahead and was thankful for the good fortune that had brought me to this beautiful place.
A Change of Plans
Ironically, Granite Basin was not my intended destination when I first arrived in King’s Canyon. My original plan was to hike the 36-mile Rae Lakes Loop, but when I arrived at the ranger station to pick up my permit (yes, you need permits to enter the backcountry here) the rangers strongly recommended that I choose an alternate destination. When I asked why, the rangers gave me two reasons.
The first was that the high passes (the highest of which was over 11000 feet) were still buried in snow and both micro spikes and ice axes would be needed to safely traverse these (I had brought neither).
The second and much more concerning reason to alter my itinerary was that the river I would need to ford to access the Rae Lakes was currently running chest deep and the water there was also moving extremely fast. In just the past two months there had already been three near misses and one fatality at this crossing. The rangers did not tell me I could not attempt this hike, but I could tell from their demeanor that they sincerely hoped I would not.
Not wanting to become the park’s second fatality, I asked the lead ranger what my options were and she was good enough to suggest the Copper Creek Trail from Roads End to Granite Basin, with a possible side trip to Grouse Lake. In describing this hike to me, the ranger promised that I would find the same high-country scenery as Rae Lakes would have offered, but with fewer people, little snow and no life-threatening river crossings.
She did however have one caveat.
“And what is that?” I asked.
The ranger glanced at her partner, then back at me. For some reason, she seemed hesitant to answer.”Um, ” she stammered. “Well, the thing is, there might be just a tiny bit of elevation gain you’ll have to navigate.”
“How much elevation gain?” I asked. I had been training for this trip and felt that I was in reasonably good shape. A little bit of up was something I ought to be able to handle. Of course, that depended on what the ranger meant by ‘a tiny bit’.
“Five thousand feet in the first eight miles,” she said with a completely straight face.
“Oof.” The sound came out of me unbidden. I could feel my legs starting to burn at the mere thought of such a climb. “That’s a lot of up,” I said.
“Oh, you don’t have to do the whole thing in one go,” she chimed in cheerily. “The first allowed tent site is at mile 4. That’s only 2800 feet of elevation gain.”
“Only?!” I exclaimed.
The ranger offered a reassuring smile. “You can do it,” she said with the confidence of someone who does not yet have arthritic knees. “It will be easy,” she told me.
I did not see how 2800 feet of elevation gain could possible be easy, but since I had already travelled five hundred miles to experience this landscape, I did not see that I had much of a choice.
“Alright,” I said without much enthusiasm. “I guess I’ll give it a try.”
I didn’t realize it at the time, but I could not have made a better choice.
An Under-Appreciated Gem
King’s Canyon National Park in California is one of the most under-rated National Parks in the entire NPS system. Located a scant two hours by car from the much more popular Yosemite, it offers visitors a very similar experience without the oppressive crowds (Yosemite received close to 4 million visitors in 2023, where King’s Canyon welcomed less than one fifth that number).
Here, just as in the much more well-known park to the north, you will find soaring cliffs, raging rivers, and enough wildlife encounters to satisfy the wants of even the most jaded outdoor enthusiast. An added bonus is that this park is contiguous with Sequoia National Park to the south and a single entry fee allows access to both.
There are few roads within King’s Canyon, but plenty of available parking spaces and pull-outs to allow visitors to fully appreciate the amazing scenery that surrounds them. There are also 14 campgrounds within the park, as well as hundreds of miles of hiking trails; but be warned: this is not an easy landscape to navigate. King’s Canyon is the second deepest canyon in the US with an average depth between 7700 and 8200 feet. Most trails, even the shorter trails along the valley bottom will involve some elevation gain and loss, and most are very rocky.
To reach the high country you will be have to be willing to climb, and climb a lot. You also must be prepared to handle the effects of altitudes in excess of ten thousand feet. The air is thin at that elevation, and even the simplest tasks quickly become tiring.
My advice to you if plan to visit would be to get yourself into as good of shape as possible and, if you can, spend some time at altitude before you begin your hike. When packing, I would make sure to bring a good pair of hiking boots, sturdy trekking poles and plenty of water.
Also be forewarned that this is both black bear and rattlesnake country, and you are highly likely to encounter either one or both at some point during your visit. For tips on how to safely deal with any such encounters, be sure to talk to the park rangers before heading out.
Nature at Its Finest
Simply put, this was one of the most successful hikes I have ever taken. During my six days within the park I saw two bears, two rattlesnakes (both of which rattled at me and one of which I nearly stepped on), dozens of lizards, half a dozen deer, a grouse, a turkey vulture and more different species wildflowers than I have ever seen in one place.
But I must say that after those first 2800’, I was definitely questioning my life choices. The trail was relentless in its ascent. Once the up began (and it began almost immediately) it did not stop until I reached you the 10,347’ pass overlooking Granite Basin the following day. There was little shade over the first four miles, and no water until mile three. Much of the up consisted of giant stone steps, each of which was 18-24” tall. Clearly, this trail was designed for much younger legs than mine. The only saving grace is that the views from just about every section of this trail were spectacular.
To the south rises the 8500’ sheer granite monolith of the Grand Sentinel, and to the southwest the equally impressive 9115’ Sentinel Dome. As you climb higher, the 10,071’ Avalanche peak comes into view, and beyond this the 11,254’ Palmer Mountain. The raging torrent of Bubb’s Creek dominates the base of the valley to the east, and to the left of this the 11,165’ Glacier Monument and 10,673’ Charlotte’s peak puncture the skyline.
But of course, there are more than just mountains to see here. There are waterfalls everywhere you turn, wildflowers galore, as well as massive old growth examples of Sequoia, Pine and Cedar to name just a few. There is also more wildlife than one would expect for a landscape so rugged.
I spied my first Black Bear at mile three, and a pair of dear at mile five. The next morning while going to collect water I surprised a young rattlesnake on the trail and experienced a brief moment of pure terror as he rattled threateningly and then (thankfully) slithered back under his rock. Two days later I would pass a grouse the size of a small turkey. The bird sat on a rock just off the trail and did not seem to be afraid of me in the least. If I had wanted to, I imagine I could have reached out and pet him (but did not).
As the ranger had promised, this trail offered everything I was hoping to find on the Rae Lakes Loop and more. I encountered spectacular scenery at every turn, it did not have to deal with the crowds I likely would have encountered on the much more popular trail to the east. In fact, I had both Grouse Lake and Granite basin all to myself the two nights I camped in these locations. I was also able to take a bath in Paradise and truly, what could be better than that?
