High Sierra Topix

Giving this thread a bump, as I am headed out in a week.

If anyone has any recommendations or notes about this route, I welcome them.

Got a permit headed out of Onion Valley, and we've decided to the loop counter-clockwise over 8 days. Going that direction, it may not be the most logical choice to start at Onion Valley, but i've always wanted to start from the East, and we got a campsite to acclimate there as well.


As for the stretch of trail heading N from the intersection of Kern-Kaweah and Kern Canyon, is the Kern Canyon up toward Kern Basin and L. S. America going to be more enjoyable/scenic? Or should we consider just join up the on-coming JMT and go through Bighorn Plateau? Assuming we don't plan to go off trail in these areas, what would you prefer?

Milestone, Upper Kern, and Wallace/Wales Lakes Basins are all absolutely special and worth the add'l hiking.

If you can't do all of them, I recommend visiting Milestone Basin and Upper Kern Basin - best scenery-to-slog ratio.

"Casper Lake" is just below treeline and has wonderful shaded campsites on its northern end. It's off-trail but easy hiking up from Lake 10660.

Thanks, BigMan. I am pretty certain we will visit Casper Lake. The basin directly W of it looks interesting as well.

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Hi Aaron, we did this hike two years ago from out of Onion Valley. Please see the link to the trip report above.

Great hike! Enjoy!