East Lake Trail

East Lake is a very long wilderness out-and-back from Road’s End, about 26 miles round trip by the best combined mileage evidence. Published totals vary: the mapped centerline works out closer to 24 miles round trip, while route descriptions are around 25½ to 27 miles. Treat 26 miles as a planning estimate, not a promise from every map. This is an exceptionally strenuous, high-elevation hike; allow roughly 13–16 hours of walking, plus breaks. An overnight trip makes more sense if you want time at the lake.

Follow Bubbs Creek Trail up the canyon. The early miles pass forest and open meadows; farther in, steep switchbacks and stair-like pitches climb above the creek, with views toward the Sphinx and the canyon opening behind you. The grade eases in stretches beside Bubbs Creek before the route reaches Junction Meadow, roughly ten miles from Road’s End by the park’s mileage chart.

At Junction Meadow, leave the Bubbs Creek route, cross the creek, and take the East Lake branch uphill along East Creek. The climb continues through forest and meadows into more open, rocky high country. East Lake sits around 9,500 feet. The mapped route ends at the lake; the rough continuation toward Reflection Lake is a separate, poorly defined extension and is not part of this hike.

The Bubbs Creek ford at Junction Meadow can become dangerously high. Check current park conditions before setting out, assess it in person, and turn back if the flow is unsafe; do not rely on an old water-level report. Overnight trips require a wilderness permit, and bear-resistant food storage is required in the Rae Lakes corridor. Pets are not allowed on park trails. Start at Road’s End in Cedar Grove, at the end of Kings Canyon Scenic Byway; there is no food service along this remote route.