Yang Lu Photography - Bear Lakes Basin, Eastern Sierra, California

We embarked on an 8-day, 7-night backpacking trip to the Bear Lakes Basin area in the Eastern Sierra mountains, commencing on September 3, 2022. This region is renowned for its exceptional beauty, and our journey was both challenging and rewarding.

Our itinerary included traversing three mountain passes – Italy Pass, Dancing Bear Pass, and BeaRoyce Pass – as well as summiting three 13,000-foot peaks: Mount Julius Caesar, Mount Hilgard, and Royce Peak.

A detailed account of our trip follows:

Day 1: We began at Pine Creek Trailhead, hiking 8.6 miles to Granite Park with heavy packs. The sunset was a highlight, despite our fatigue.

Day 2: We ascended Italy Pass, cached our packs, and climbed Mount Julius Caesar (13,213 feet). We then continued to Lake Italy, situated beneath Mount Hilgard.

Day 3: We summited Mount Hilgard (13,361 feet) via a Class 2 route.

Day 4: We crossed Dancing Bear Pass to Ursa Lake, discovering a scenic waterfall between Ursa Lake and Big Bear Lake, which offered exceptional photographic opportunities.

Day 5: We explored Bear Lakes Basin, visiting Vee Lake and Seven Gable Lakes, and relaxed at our campsite.

Day 6: We traversed BeaRoyce Pass to Royce Lakes, navigating steep and sandy terrain.

Day 7: We summited Royce Peak, finding the initial ascent to the saddle the most challenging part of the climb.

Day 8: We concluded our trip with a long downhill hike from Royce Lakes to Pine Creek trailhead.

Our GPS track, "bear-lake-basin-loop-2022.gpx," is available for download from the GPS Tracks Collection.

Vee Lake and Seven Gables at Sunset with Sunburst

Royce Lakes at Sunset

Sunset at Royce Lakes facing Merriam Peak

Sunrise at Ursa Lake (right) and Big Bear Lake (right) with background of Seven Gables

Sunset at Ursa Lake (right) and Big Bear Lake (right) with background of Seven Gables

White Bear Lake

Sunset at Lake Italy looking South

Panorama View on top of Mount Hilgard

Sunset at Lake Italy

Top of Mount Julius Caesar

Sunset at Granite Park looking towards West

Sunset at Granite Park looking towards East

Sunset at Granite Park looking towards West

On top of Royce Peak looking towards Seven Gables

BeaRoyce Pass on Royce Lakes side. The pass is very steep and sandy. Lake shore is rocky and challenge as well.

BeaRoyce Pass west side. Near to the pass it was very sandy and steep.

From Royce Lakes to the saddle was the most difficult part