Route Advice: Roads End Loop

[GraceC89]

Next week, I'm heading out on a loop out of Road's End. My planned route is Lewis Creek Trail > Kennedy Pass > Volcanic Lakes > Horseshoe Lakes > SHR to Marion Lake > leave the SHR and cross Cartridge Pass > JMT south > leave the JMT right before Arrowhead Lake and cross Basin Notch to 60 Lakes Basin > through 60 Lakes Basin to cross 60 Lakes Col > old trail through Gardiner Basin > descend Charlotte Creek > Bubbs Creek trail. Cal Topo route is here: https://caltopo.com/m/63L4

Any thoughts or comments on the route are of course appreciated, but I had a few specific questions:

1) Once I reach Kennedy Pass, I've seen various routes to the Volcanic Lakes. Some people descend to Kennedy Lake and climb back up the slopes northeast of the lake. Another trip reported showed a route that stays high on the ridge where Kennedy Pass crosses. I'd prefer the ridge walk because I'm sure that the views will be spectacular (plus less up and down!), and it looks like a fairly broad ridge on Google Earth. But does anyone have first hand experience with this route? It looks like the ridge might get dicier the further you get from Kennedy Pass.

2) Once I cross Gardiner Pass, I'd like to shoot straight down the first tributary coming off Charlotte Creek to get down to the main creek and then down to Bubbs Creek. Does anyone know if that's possible or is it a miserable bushwack / crazy steep? Currently I have my route plotted so that I follow the climbers' trail toward Charlotte Lake and descend the second tributary down to Charlotte Creek, but I have no idea if that's the best route. I know that the manzanita in this area will eat you alive, and I'd prefer not to spend hours thrashing around in it .

3) Are the Volcanic Lakes worth it? I know that "worth it" is completely subjective, but I'm a bit worried that I'm not going to have time to finish my whole route. If I start at Lewis Creek and do the Volcanic Lakes to Horseshoe Lakes, I might end up needing to cut out the Gardiner Basin area and just go straight through 60 Lakes Basin, reconnect with the JMT at Rae Lakes, and cross Glenn Pass to the Bubbs Creek trail. But if I started at Cooper Creek and went straight to Horseshoe Lakes, then I'm confident that I'd have enough time for Gardiner Basin. So any thoughts on Volcanic Lakes v. Gardiner Lakes Basin? Of course, there's always a chance that I'll have enough time for both, and then I'd be grumpy if I missed the Volcanic Lakes for no reason....decisions!

Thanks!

[kpeter]

Hi Grace,

It has been 20 years since I hiked from Charlotte lake to Gardiner pass. When I followed the "trail" marked on the USGS it did not amount to much help, but it was obvious that hiking high enough up to avoid the willows was preferable to a miserable bushwhack, which I still sometimes got into. I remember willows more than manzanita being the issue anywhere along the valley bottom. Willows love moisture, so following a side stream seems like a bad idea. I remember wondering how possible it would be to contour down and around Charlotte Dome to Bubbs Creek but it was a fantasy I did not act on.

Someone here has remarked about doing it, so I'm sure you will get an answer.

[cgundersen]

Hi grace,
First, it has been a LONG time since I did Lewis Creek, but one suggestion, given that I've been up Copper Creek a couple times (most recently about a decade ago), would be to head in via Copper Creek (Granite Lake is a long first day, but doable if you hit the trail early). For me, the views are much better along Copper Creek, and although Volcanic Lakes are nice, I think you'd be better off keeping Gardiner basin in your itinerary rather than the Volcanics.
Second, I know that folks have done better than I have finding the remnant trail once you bottom out on the south side of Cartridge Pass, but if you miss it, the going can be painstakingly slow, and I've hit swarms of mosquitoes there like no other place. Keep the DEET handy!
Third, if you check the photos of Gardiner Pass (xc trail write-ups) that Rogue posted, you'll see that there was a fire a few years back. This makes the initial downslope trucking pretty wide open and although I headed for Charlotte Lake on my way through there a couple years ago, doing a direct shot down to Bubbs creek looked perfectly fine. Oh, and although most of the lakes in the basin preceding Gardiner pass are down in pretty thick forest with limited views, the lake at ~3,400 meters has some great campsites and makes for an easy approach to the pass.
Cameron

[steiny98]

To further Cameron's advice above, I was able to find the use trail on the south side of cartridge pass. I'd suggest not crossing the creek as some of the maps, and your route, show, but rather stay on the north side of the creek (ie on the cartridge pass side) and you will eventually find the trail. Trick is to stay close to the creek. There is some minor bushwhacking and walking through forests, but you should find the trail once you pass the final rock avalanche area (there are three). Also if fishing, Marion lake and lake basin in general have some dynamite fishing.

[GraceC89]

Thank you all for your great advice. Sounds like it shouldn't be too much of an issue to contour around Charlotte Dome and shoot straight down to Bubbs Creek, and thanks for the pointers on camping before Gardiner and the route along the Kings after Cartridge Pass. Now just to decide on where to start... I'm leaning toward Copper Creek based on Cameron's advice and because it'll save me from having to find a ride back to my car when I finish.

[maverick]

Would not drop Volcanic Lakes, worth seeing, use the pass going over the northeastern end of the lake. Make sure you don't miss the upper part of VLB. Getting down to Bubbs Creek is not that bad, descend the western side of the creek, and not to close to the creek. Lakes Basin will be fun.

[webdweeb]

I second the vote to keep Volcanic Lakes in your itinerary-it is a beautiful area and definitely worth at least a day to explore. When I did the LC-VL-CC open loop back in the 80s, we could not traverse the ridge from Kennedy Pass to the VL because of the snow level and had to continue north on the trail, camping along Kennedy Creek just before the trail turns eastward toward the VL. This area was mosquito HELL in early July 1983, so I would definitely recommend continuing past to the VL or camping at one of the Kennedy Lakes after a night at Frypan Meadow.

[webdweeb]

GraceC89, did you decide to go for your trip as described here? If so, I'd be interested in your observations for the Lewis Creek-Kennedy Pass-Volcanic Lakes section. Thanks in advance.