This 47 mile hike is Trip 9 in Sierra South, in which it is listed as a strenuous trip requiring five days of hiking. If you are in good shape you can do the trip in three days and have a little time left over for fishing and exploration. I walked 20 miles the first and last days and seven on the easy day. A map shows the approximate location of the route.
A "jeep" road branches off the pavement up Bear Creek Valley to the trailhead which is next to the dam. If you do not have a four wheel drive but you are a skillful and careful driver you can make it to the dam in a conventional vehicle.
I was on the trail at 9:45 and hiked next to the enchanting green pools of Bear Creek until around 1:00 when I stopped for lunch. At around 2:00, I had made the John Muir Trail (JMT) and stayed on it until reaching the Sandpiper Lake trail at 4:40. I arrived at my campsite on Medley Lakes at 6:20. I tried my luck fishing but caught only smallfry which I threw back.
I took an early morning side trip to Three Island Lake and I was ready to continue on the hike, now off trail, at a little before 8:00. I made the pass to Seven Gables Lake at about 10:00 where I met a group from the bay area. We decended in to the valley together then went our separate ways after spending lunch together.
I fished Seven Gables Lake a little without luck then ascended the use trail to Vee Lake where I fished until my reel broke. I continued deeper into the basin past Black Bear Lake and up to White Bear Lake. The area around White Bear was too exposed for camping, so I returned to a creek I had passed on the way up. After dinner, I hiked out to a point overlooking Big Bear Lake and saw three large groups camped around it and I was glad I hadn't stopped there. There was a nice view of the Seven Gables.
The final day, I was on the trail around 7:30. At 8:00, I began an ascent of Peak 12,756 and arrived at the top a half hour later. Views of the area, including Lake Italy, were marvelous. It may have been the high point of the trip (no pun intended.) I decended to Jumble Lake (nice fish), rock hopped by some lovely columbines, and by 10:30, I had made Lake Italy. I was now back on trail which followed the Hilgard Branch of Bear Creek down to the main branch of Bear Creek. I retraced the trail, passing emerald pools and falls and made the trail head at Bear Dam at 6:40.
1997