SEKI Wilderness Permit — Lodgepole — Pear & Emerald Lakes (Pass Through)

Lodgepole, Pear & Emerald Lakes (Pass Through): what makes it different

Pass Through is the Lakes Trail permit for hikers who walk past Pear and Emerald Lakes and camp somewhere else. You cannot sleep at either lake. The first legal camp is cross-country, about 7 miles from Wolverton, on the way to Moose Lake and the Tablelands.¹

Getting to the start

You park at Wolverton and collect the permit at the Lodgepole Visitor Center. The booking page shows 25 people a day and none reservable, so the permit is a walk-up: the Park Service issues walk-ups from 1:00 p.m. the day before at the desk for that trailhead.^1,2

The Lodgepole desk keeps quota-season hours of 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. An undated Tablelands guide also says Lodgepole is where you pick up a canister rental.^2,7

The first leg

For the first stretch you share the Lakes Trail with the overnight crowd: 6 miles one way to Pear Lake by the Park Service count, through Heather Lake (day use only) and either the Watchtower or the Hump.^4,3

Recreation.gov puts the first allowable camp about 7 miles from Wolverton and half a mile east of Pear Lake, in the upper Marble Fork Kaweah drainage. It says cross-country travel is required to reach it.¹

One Tablelands guide leaves the trail past the Pear Lake ranger station and heads north toward Table Meadows, then onto the Tablelands over mostly large granite slabs. It gives Wolverton to Big Bird Lake as about 12 miles and Big Bird to Moose Lake as about 5, and says to take the line of least resistance.⁷

Terrain and difficulty

Recreation.gov says the trail part is moderately strenuous and that accessing allowed camping needs cross-country travel from Pear Lake. It also warns about the Watchtower when snow, rain or ice are present.¹

An October 2008 group on their first off-trail trip went from Pear Lake straight to Moose Lake and reached it at dusk. A second poster in the thread called the descent to Moose Lake a piece of cross-country work.⁸

A June 2014 pair approaching Moose Lake from Alta Meadow found the hardest part was route-finding. They crossed large talus and picked up the old trail near 10,200 feet, where it was fairly well ducked.⁹

Quota at this entry point

• 2026 daily quota at Lodgepole, Pear & Emerald Lakes (Pass Through), overnight: 25 people a day. Recreation.gov lists 25 people a day for Pass Through, none reservable. The live daily calendar is closed outside the quota season, so this is the division text, not a daily count.¹

Rules specific to this entry point

No camping at Pear or Emerald Lake under this entry, and none at Heather or Aster Lakes or in the Marble Fork drainage below Emerald and Pear. No campfires, since the area is above 9,000 feet in the Kaweah drainage, and no overnight stock.^1,3

Party size drops once you leave the trail. The Park Service general limits are 15 people on trail and 12 off trail, so a group that fits the permit may still be too big for the Tablelands.³

Where it leads

Recreation.gov names Moose Lake and the Tablelands as the cross-country goals.¹

The Tablelands guide expects solitude at Big Bird Lake and company at Moose Lake, and says both hold fish. A 2008 party camped at Moose Lake one night and at Tableland Meadows the next.^7,8

The 2014 pair camped at Moose Lake in what they called a cozy, protected spot where the old trail rises to the lake.⁹

What trip reports say

An October 24 to 26, 2008 weekend started near Lodgepole, went by Pear Lake, then cross-country to Moose Lake, with a night at Tableland Meadows before the walk out. The thread describes good weather, and another poster who tried in mid-November had turned back for snow.⁸

The Tablelands guide covers 30 miles and 8,000 feet out and back with two nights, and reports basically no water after Pear Lake when the author went in September. That is the main planning risk on this entry.⁷

When to go from here

The Park Service conditions page, updated September 24, 2026, said the Marble Fork had stopped flowing as of August 13, while pools near Frog and Topaz Lakes and near Tablelands Pass still held water.⁶

Late summer is dry. Both the September guide and the August 2026 conditions entry point to water thinning out above Pear Lake, so count your water carries before you leave the trail.^7,6

The Watchtower leg of the approach is unsafe in snow or ice, and the Park Service sends hikers to the Hump instead.⁵

Compare with nearby entry points

• Pear & Emerald: Destination is the version that allows sleeping at Pear and Emerald, up to three nights, with a 15-person cap at each lake and no cross-country needed. Pass Through gives up the lakes for the high basins.^1,3
• Alta: Alta also reaches Moose Lake country but from the south, through Alta Meadow, on a reservable permit (20 of 25) with on-trail camps at Panther Gap, Mehrten Meadow and Alta Meadow.^1,9
• Twin Lakes: Twin Lakes goes north from Lodgepole to Cahoon Meadow and the Silliman Pass side. It is reservable and fully on trail.¹

Sources

1. Sequoia and Kings Canyon Wilderness Permit, Pear & Emerald Lakes (Pass Through) division, Recreation.gov. Read 2026-10-15.
2. Wilderness Permits & Reservations, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
3. Minimum Impact Restrictions, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
4. Lakes Trailhead, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
5. Wolverton Picnic Area, Trailhead, and Snowplay Area, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
6. Trail Conditions, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, National Park Service. Read 2026-10-15.
7. Backpack to Big Bird Lake & Moose Lake, The Outbound. Read 2026-10-15.
8. Moose Lake and Tableland Meadows, October 24-26, 2008, Backpacking Light forum. Read 2026-10-15.
9. Moose Lake via Alta Meadow in Sequoia National Park, Plutonic Love. Read 2026-10-15.

Safety & planning

Alternatives to a Pear & Emerald PT permit