I talked my daughter Jane into hiking the Rae Lakes Loop (see map and profiles) during the summer of 2003. She had proven herself a capable hiker on several other trips so we decided to stay out a little longer than our usual trip. It had rained earlier in the week so the trail was firm and dust free. We stopped at Baily Bridge for a morning brunch break. It was more humid than usual because of the recent rain but hiking conditions were not uncomfortable. We took a leisurely lunch break at Mist Falls then proceeded to our first camp in Upper Paradise Valley.
After a quick breakfast the next morning, we crossed the South Fork of the Kings River on logs and ascended Woods Creek. We took a lunch and photo break at Castle Domes Meadow. We crossed the suspension bridge over Woods Creek in the early afternoon. As we ascended the John Muir Trail (JMT) toward Rae Lakes we took many water breaks and photo breaks. It was as hot as I can ever remember for this elevation. Finally, Woods Creek began to widen and Fin Dome came into view. We found a camp spot at Arrowhead Lake, joining a dozen or so other groups.
After packing up the next morning, we began the most scenic day of the trip. We spent time taking a lot of photos of the spectacular scenery and had a chance for a brief visit with Ranger George Durkee. Finally, we left the beauty of Rae Lakes and began our ascent toward Glen Pass. We stopped to take photos of flowers and took a long break at a lovely spring. Trail crew had particularly well engineered the trail around this ice cold spring. The climb to the pass was steep so we stopped now and then to admire the scenery and rest. Once atop Glen Pass, we had to cover up against the wind while we took a lunch break. Soon we headed down the south side of the pass toward the day's destination, Charlotte Lake. We left the JMT above the lake and took the old trail, which was in pretty good shape in places considering it has been abandoned for decades. Jane threatened to eat my share of Oreos at dinner but I managed to prevail on her sense of fair play.
The next morning, we rejoined the JMT and discovered we had another 18 miles to hike. Jane looked pretty confident so I figured it wouldn't be a tough day. It wasn't, at least for her. She sprinted down the trail, stopping now and then to pose for a photo. We had lunch at a beautiful Bubbs Creek waterfall just above Junction Meadow. I had a hard time keeping up with her but she let me catch up as we crossed one of the Bubbs Creek bridges and again at Baily Bridge.
