Chain Lakes Loop — Friday, Sep. 5, 2025

Smoky but gorgeous overnight. Hiked the recommended route CCW from Artist Point. Trails all in great condition, and passed WTA crews clearing overgrowth at several points along Upper Bagley Lake—thank you trail workers! Lots of smoke aloft obscuring some of the longer views but thankfully air wasn't too bad at surface level, though certainly could have been better. If like me you mostly hike below the treeline and are used to tree cover and mostly packed dirt trails, expect the ascent to Herman Saddle to feel longer than you'd expect from the topography; between sections of loose rock trail and full sun exposure definitely felt half again harder than I'd expect for similar elevation gain over distance walking in the foothills.

Camped at Hayes Lake, had my choice of sites arriving around noon and while the rest filled in over the afternoon the sites are spread out enough that it never felt crowded. Got an early start the next morning and hiked the rest of the way around the loop, views from the traverse on the south side of the loop are truly spectacular and it really is impossible to capture on camera how enormous these landscapes are, you can see why they call it Artist Point because every view looks like a painting.

The charismatic wildlife of the alpine meadow biome was also on full display—saw many pikas and heard even more, as well as yellow pine chipmunks and spotted one marmot in the far distance uphill along the south traverse. Lots of ravens making themselves heard and seen in the sparse woods around the lakes, as well as colorful hoary comma butterflies.