Hiking North Lake to South Lake Loop in August 2014

[tucker0104]

I wanted to do this hike last year but just never had time. I have the vacation and am going to head out there early August and take my time to do the hike. I have tons of questions.

1) How can I get out there without renting a car? My wife is going to fly out and pick me up when I am done, and we are going to vacation in San Fran.
2) Where and how soon do I need to make my reservations?
3) How many days should I take to do the trail? 53 miles so I am thinking 6 to 7 days so I can take my time.
4) Is there anything I need to know about the trail? Are there blazes or is it just bring a map and compass?
5) Can I fit 6 to 7 days worth of food in a bear canister? I have never used one before. I hike in North Carolina and Virginia and always bring my dog so I never have to worry about bears.

Thanks for the help.

[Dogwood]

That hike has been amply covered answering all your questions in multiple places( not on WB). It has become an increasingly popular hike.

[Coffee]

A trip report I read last year regarding this loop: http://www.highsierratopix.com/community/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=6758

I hiked the JMT last summer but didn't have the chance to hike over Piute or Bishop Passes. I would like to someday.

[Dogwood]

Here's an idea what comes up when you do a search for north lake south lake sierras loop. Leave a car at S. lake(it's a relatively safe TH w plenty of parking and activity or at Parson's Resort. No public transportation goes to S lake but I've easily hitched to/from this TH bunches of times. Parsons Resort is a nice place to utilize on this typically 4-6 day hike. http://www.parchersresort.net/southlake.htm

In addition two books describe this hike well. http://www.trails.com/catalog_product.aspx?productfamilyid=10077;
http://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Sierra-Nevada-Regional-Series/dp/1560447249

http://www.abovecalifornia.com/routes/intro.php?id=32

http://dunbarsm.wordpress.com/2008/06/24/sierras-north-lake-to-south-lake-loop/

http://www.catchafallingstar.com/sierra2002/sierra2002day1.htm

http://www.summitpost.org/south-lake-north-lake-loop/812676

http://www.rei.com/guidepost/detail/california/hiking/south-lake-to-north-lake-backpacking/4465

http://www.abovecalifornia.com/routes/description.php?id=32&page=1

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/576979-Trip-Report-North-Lake-South-Lake-Loop-Kings-Canyon-NP

http://eventful.com/menifee/events/bishop-passnorth-lakesouth-lake-loop-kings-cj-muir-/E0-001-035876804-4

http://www.boredfeet.com/mappages/map1877689688.php

http://www.amazon.com/Bishop-North-Lake-South-Evolution-Valley/dp/1877689688

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=68161&skip_to_post=582428

http://www.backpackthesierra.com/home/destinations

[CarlZ993]

I haven't done that entire hike... but I've done most of it (didn't hike from North Lake to the Piute Trl/Pine Creek Trl Jct). You can to to the Inyo National Forest website & get info about getting permits in advance. As noted, this is a popular area for hiking. I believe you can get permits 26 weeks in advance. I've showed up at one of the Forest Offices & gotten an available permit with not too much problem (mid-week; often not the starting TH I wanted though).

The nearby town is Bishop, CA. I've never had to use public transportation to get there. Can't help you there. There is a good backpacker store there. You can give them a call & I'm sure they have some info about that as well as how to get to the TH.

#days on the trail? Lot of factors to consider. How early you start hiking the first day. Fitness. Packweight. Acclimation to altitude. Being a flat-lander, altitude will be a $*@&!. Piute Pass (from N. Lake) is 11.4K & Bishop Pass (headed to S. Lake) is 11.9K. If you're able to camp at altitude at a nearby campsite the night before you start hiking, it will help some.

The map you want to take is the Tom Harrison 'Bishop Pass Trail Map.' A compass with the map & you're good to go. Lots of signs in the Sierras. You shouldn't get lost.

Bear Canisters - Lots of canisters out there: Garcia Machine, Bearicade, Bearvault, etc. If you're able to rent the Bearicade, I'd go w/ that one. It's the lightest of the bunch. The Bearvault has the most volume. If volume is an issue, go w/ the larger one. Repackage your food, carry calorie-dense food, and you might be able to get 7 days of food in them. Remember, you won't be carrying the first day's food in the canister (lunch snacks & supper). You'll eat those first. If you got some money to spend, you could mail yourself a food cache to Muir Trail Ranch (google it; very expensive & they have specific instructions on how it is to be mailed - 5-gal paint bucket w/ handle attached). You could pick it up on the end of day 2.

Bears are a serious problem in the Sierras. You MIGHT be able to hang food using the PCT method & not lose it to the bears. On my JMT thru-hike, I couldn't fit all my food (8-9 days worth) from Muir Trail Ranch to Whitney Portal in my bear canister. I had to hang extra food for a couple of days. I was hiking w/ a friend. We piled rocks around the tree that we hung our food on, perched our metal cook pots on the rocks, and had our hiking poles leaning against the tree. We also had a pile of rocks by each of our tents. The plan was the bear would knock over something & wake us up. We'd get up and throw rocks at the bear and run him off. If that happened (which it didn't), we then have to take turns staying awake as the bear would return later to try & get the food.

This is a spectacular area to hike. Absolutely stunning. Enjoy.

[tucker0104]

Thanks, dogwood and RN-PCT2015. Dogwood, I know there are a lot of post on the hike and I have read most of them, but I am a big believer that there is always more to learn. I am really trying to avoid having to rent a car to get out there and it just sit out there for a week. I would need it for a 4 hour drive for a day and then would be paying for it for 7 days.

[Dogwood]

From San Fran to Bishop: You have several options/combinations of options Amtrak to Merced/Ghound/Privately chartered tour buses/YARTS, to Merced etc where you jump on the YARTS bus lines taking you to Lee vining on the side of the Sierras that S lake is on. From there you can take Eastern Sierra Transit Bus lines to Bishop. There are other ways from San Fran I'm sure. That's just what I know. From Bishop there are cab companies I believe that will take you to S lake but S lake is the site of a busy TH, marina, fishing spot, private homes, nearby FS campground, hunting fishing/convenience store(limited resupply)/bar, Parsons Resort(bunkhouse/private rooms($$), meals, hold packages, etc) all at a dead end road; ie there's traffic to hitch, people are going your way! You certainly could rent a car in SF and probably drop it off in Bishop to save do re mi and to possibly save public transportation traveling time. This is part of HYOH - figuring out what works best FOR YOU with YOUR HIKING AGENDA.

[Dogwood]

Look on a map. You'll see N. Lake and S. Lake in relation to paved well used rds, where the rds split to N Lake/S lake, and how to do the loop w/ access to Bishop. Bishop is a good sized town where you have access to most anything a hiker/traveler could want. Take the honey to Parsons for a nice dinner or perhaps in Bishop and to Morning Light gallery for some awesome Global Photography. Plenty of nice places to stay in Bishop too. If she's doing all this for you (flying out, picking you up, etc) think about what you can do for her and you together. There are some hot springs not extremely far away either. Mammoth lakes can be another post hike time with the sweetie hotspot as well.