8/11/18 Day 1 (Just under 9 miles): We began our trek around 10:30am from the Rockbound trailhead at Wright’s Lake. There is a significant amount of parking, at the trailhead, along with overflow parking just prior. At 10:00am, we were taking some of the last spots available in the main lot. Also at the trailhead are two pit toilets.
The trailhead is easy to find and meanders, with a slight incline around the edge of Beauty Lake within the first mile. Wright’s Lake is not visible from the trail. I would consider the trail partially shady, at this point, as it makes its way in and out of forested areas. It’s a beautiful trail transporting you from areas of granite and boulders into lush areas of green ferns and foliage. The changing terrain draws you forward. While the trail is a bit rocky, and makes a steady climb, it is in no way difficult at this point.
At about the 2 mile mark, you will officially hit Desolation Wilderness and the terrain turns significantly more rocky. The trail, though, is still mostly groomed and can be maneuvered easily. Within a short distance, you will be crossing granite fields, with little shade found only around the occasional tree tall enough to cast a shadow. The trail, here, is marked by rock lined edges and cairns strategically placed by those who trekked before. Given the exposure, it can be hot, but you will be rewarded with moments where you drop down into secret little garden spots where the trail is surrounded by green foliage and wildflowers (at least when we were there). These spots almost seemed like part of a Sesame Street “Which one does not belong” skit. Breathtaking to say the least.
You will climb, again, just before dropping down to Maud Lake. This trail is on granite, can be hard to find, and consists of switchbacks that move you up a pretty significant climb. Thankfully, you will quickly drop down into yet another green oasis just prior to reaching Maud Lake at about 4.4 miles.
Maud Lake is a gorgeous spot nestled in the bowl of the surrounding mountains, Rockbound pass lies straight ahead and can look a little intimidating….. exposed and hot if nothing else. The ducks in the water were a nice surprise and the area was quite popular for camping. Arriving here around 1pm, we took off our packs, cooled off our feet, and enjoyed lunch. This was a great place to replenish our water supply for the trip out of the canyon and over Rockbound pass.
Almost immediately, after Maud Lake, you will start the climb over Rockbound pass. This climb is no joke. It is steep, rocky, and totally exposed. While climbing to 8650 feet, just under 1000 feet in about a mile, is manageable, be prepared with plenty of water. Upon reaching the summit at approximately 5.5 miles, though, you are rewarded with views of the Sacramento valley to your back, and Lake Doris and beyond to your front. Most importantly, there is a perfect flat rock, just beyond the summit, with plenty of room to drop your packs and take a breather while soaking in the scenery. We watched as others splashed in Lake Doris. It was there where you begin to realize you are now removed from the hustle of life.
As you pass over Rockbound Pass, there is a fairly steep descent on trail consisting of rocks and significant step downs. Watch for the switchbacks, as some of the turns are easy to miss. As you approach Lake Doris, at approximately 6 miles, you will find yourselves once again in a green and easily maneuverable meadow. Lake Doris is a bit off the trail, so we didn’t stop, but others were finding it quite refreshing.
Shortly after Lake Doris, the trail will split with Blakely Trail taking you to the left. It is this trail that will take you past Lake Lois, at approximately 7 miles, and on to Lake Schmidell. The hardest part of the trek, the pass, is behind you and the remainder of the trip will take you through some easy to manage terrain.
Lake Schmidell was reached at approximately 9 miles and was stunningly situated in a granite bowl. Being we had 4 tents for our group, we took the first big campsite just to the left as the main trail came to the lake. We were able to set up camp, have our kitchen in a granite alcove a bit closer to the water, with sloping granite granting us direct access to the lake. Stunning. There are not a lot of campsites around this lake, but some of the best ones we found were right around where the main trail meets the lake. There were more smaller available sites to the right. We were blessed with gorgeous weather, cooler but not cold nights, and clear skies that were perfect for watching the meteor showers.
8/12/18 Day 2 (around 9 miles): Side trip on the McConnell Lake (loop) Trail. This trip starts with an immediate climb out of the Lake Schmidell basin and is a steep, narrow trail, with loose footing. Hiking poles are definitely recommended for this loop. The initial climb is steep, about 800 ft in just under a mile, but man is it spectacular. The views of the lake are awesome, but as you cross the creek there is a stunningly beautiful “meditation” area with wildflowers, an abundance of tall green grasses, and a waterfall. If the entire loop doesn’t sound appealing to you, a trip to this spot for a breather is well worth the time. Upon reaching the ridge, you will drop down the other side and be once again into rocky terrain. Switchbacks will ease the descent, but they can be hard to follow so watch for the cairns and be prepared with a GPS mapping device. This entire loop was beautiful with the variety of lakes, granite expanses, and occasional meadows. It was, though, very difficult to navigate, particularly on the granite as there are no defined trails. What trails you can find, are often completely overgrown. Were it not for the Cairns, and our GPS (I was following the Alltrails route), we would have NEVER found our way. A paper map alone, will do you little good. The Lakes were evenly spaced, making replenishing water fairly easy. It is hot and exposed, at times, and there is a moment where you crest a hill with nothing but granite as far as the eye can see. It was at this moment where I actually wondered how on earth we would ever make it back to camp. Giving in to the heat, we did make a stop at one of the lakes to take a dip. My poor dog was tired, as we were, and he was ready for a rest. This is a loop which took us about 7 hours to complete and landed us, amazingly so, right back at Lake Schmidell. We saw not one person until about 1/2 mile from camp at the end of the trek. As you sit at Lake Schmidell, look out at the ridgeline that essentially forms the basin…… McConnell Lake Loop takes you entirely around the backside of that basin. Not a particularly easy day hike, but glad I did it, as we saw terrain we would have never seen otherwise. Not sure, though, that I would do it again.
8/13/18 Day 3 (about 9 miles): We opted to get an early start this morning, to avoid the blazing sun on the pass. Leaving camp just as the sun was rising was an amazing choice. Sadly, given the 18 miles covered the previous two days, my dog Tyson was struggling. His feet were torn up from the granite, and he was having difficulties maneuvering on the rocks. I carried my stuff, his stuff, and him for much of the way. As we began our descent out off of Rockbound pass, we strung him from a walking stick and sherpa’d him down the mountain (see pic below). I highly recommend making the trip over this pass (either direction) early to avoid the heat. Hitting it around 10:00am was MUCH nicer than doing it at 3pm. Beautiful trip.
- Total Mileage: About 27 (9 each day)
- Overall Elevation Gain (about 4500 ft per alltrails)
- Highly recommended trails
