Evolution Basin (via Bishop Pass)
Kings Canyon NP / John Muir Wilderness · near Bishop · Eastern Sierra
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- expert
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 45 miles
- Elevation gain
- 9,500 ft
- Time needed
- multi-day · long-haul
- Best season
- Late July–September
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- Yes
- How the permit works
- Inyo National Forest permit via Recreation.gov for the Bishop Pass (South Lake) trailhead, 60% of quota released 6 months ahead at 7am. This is a side-entry to the JMT corridor through Dusy Basin and over Muir Pass into Evolution. Bear canister mandatory.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 4 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Evolution Lake & Basin — the JMT's crown jewel · Dusy Basin & Bishop Pass · The stone Muir Hut at Muir Pass · Peaks named for evolutionary thinkers
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Not permitted
- Good for a first timer
- No
Hiking detail
- Nights
- 4–6
- Resupply
- None needed. Bear canister required the entire route.
- Intl tip
- The Bishop Pass trailhead at South Lake sits at 9,800 feet — spend a night at the nearby forest campgrounds or in Bishop to acclimatize before tackling the pass on day one. Muir Pass holds snow longest of any point on this route; in a big year it can be a slushy, cornice-lined slog into August.
The guide
Evolution Basin is, by wide agreement, the most beautiful stretch of the entire John Muir Trail — a chain of shimmering alpine …
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Evolution Basin (via Bishop Pass) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.102, -118.557