07/06/17 Backpacking Fremont Trail (17.6 miles round trip to East Fork Crossing):
Here we go again, this time from the Big Sandy Trailhead. I had been backpacking in the Bridger Wilderness Area. The Popo Agie Wilderness Area is right next to it and I may be crossing into it during this trip. It gets kinda confusing with two different wilderness areas and two national forests and the Wind River Range spans all of them... and it doesn't make a lick of difference except on a map.
The Big Sandy Trailhead is back more than 50 miles of dirt road. There were about 40 cars already at the trailhead on Tuesday when I got there and about 60 on Monday when I left. They're getting into peak season so I can imagine the number of cars during the weekend. I saw nowhere near the number of people I would have expected in a couple of popular areas. I guess the backcountry absorbs them.
I've been on the Fremont Trail from Big Sandy before. I've been up to Marm's Lake on one trip and up to Big Sandy Lake and Deep Lake on another day hike.
Mean looking thunderclouds when I got to the trailhead. I waited 1/2 hour to see if they'd pass by. They did and I was on the trail at 8am.
.3 miles to the trail junction. Straight ahead for Big Sandy and left for the Fremont Trail. 5 1/2 miles to Big Sandy Lake in one direction and 5 1/2 miles to Dad's Lake in the other.
Made a left at the junction .5 miles down the trail and a right at the next junction .5 miles later to actually get on the Fremont Trail.
The trail turns rocky and only a brief view over the treetops into the sun and that was it for the next few miles. Pretty much just a walk in the woods through this section. Camping opportunities around a couple of meadows. Pretty steady incline picks up 800 feet in 3.5 to about 4 miles.
The trail opens up into a large meadow after that. That's pretty much the end of the incline and the beginning of some great views. Tons of people seemed to materialize at the meadow. Some popped out of the woods, so they must have been camping there, some were returning from their trips and some apparently were right behind me and ready to catch up.
.5 miles to Mirror Lake and another .5 miles to Dad's Lake with some good views. Had lunch at Dad's and the 800 feet and full backpack caught up with me. I almost made it to Marm's Lake when I saw a small trail on the other side of the lake's outlet stream. When I investigated I found a nice camp site and... camped at 1pm. I had little sleep the night before, I think, because of the 3000 foot change in altitude again and was really tired.
07/18/07:
Bugs weren't bad last night but a little worse this morning. Still nothing like the previous two trips. They did pick up around Marm's Lake and the meadows beyond.
Seemed to be a lot of camping possibilities around a number of meadows but except for a couple of small tarns near Marm's, no water until the East Fork River. Not many flowers either. I'm still around 10,000 feet and don't know why not.
Some good views but then the trail drops a couple hundred feet down into the East Fork basin. Looked to be a couple nice camping spots down river and up on a knoll.
Rocked hopped a small creek and then had to ford the East Fork (of the Green River). About 25 feet wide and knee deep, pebblely bottom but with a nice, easy current.
A climb of 800 feet in 1.2 miles begins on the other side of the ford. It starts out steeply but then levels off some. I climbed 200 feet in 1/2 miles or so. I stopped to take some pictures of the river valley and peaks beyond. Then I decided to take a break. I liked the break so much I called it quits at 10:30am. Found a nice campsite overlooking the valley. Even had a nice brook nearby for water... and that was it.
Still have a mile to climb but will start with fresh legs in the morning.
07/19/07 Hiking Fremont Trail (to Cross Lake):
Big boomers last night around midnight. Several times the difference between lightning and thunder was 1-2 seconds and once 1/2 second. That was a loud one and the closest I've ever been... or ever hope to be. Sporadic rain the rest of the night, sometimes heavy.
Not many mosquitoes last night but they were ready for me this morning.
Decided not to continue lugging the backpack. A wet tent had something to do with it but most of it dealt with the trail, my bod and mind set. I think the old bod could take more of the steady uphill grind but my mind rebelled. So today I continued onward, packless.
45 minutes or so to finish the 1 mile climb to 10,560 foot mark. Not too bad but I would've been pretty grumpy with the pack.
The climb tops out on a large meadow 2 miles long and 1 mile wide. I turned around and a whole line of beautiful peaks stretched across the horizon. If I had taken the time to turn around on the way up I would have had many variations of these views. Instead, I got to see them for the first time on the way back.
All the peaks were in the east and quite hazy, partially from the position of the sun but also because of a couple forest fires in the area. I didn't take any photos on the way out, hoping things would be a little better on the way back... they were and I got some nice ones.
The trail crosses another meadow and drops 200 feet to a lake in a shallow basin. Rock hopped a couple of streams and went up 120 feet along gentle incline to the junction with Cross Lake. 2 hours to the 12 mile mark point on the Fremont Trail.
Jagged peaks several miles beyond what I assumed was Cross Lake.
From this point the trail descends a few hundred feet to Dream Lake. That was my original destination with the thought I'd day hike to North Forth Lake from there. I wasn't about to climb back up from Dream Lake again though. When I saw clouds building up behind me I used that as an excuse to turn back. According to the guide book this was the last view anyway.
07/20/07:
Passed a group with llamas packing their gear. That's always cool. More boomers last night at 9pm. Very loud and very long ones but not too close this time. More rain than the previous night though.
Toddered on down to the East Fork crossing. A couple of tents had sprouted up since I was here last, one quite large. Glad I wasn't lugging that one. Got up the trail on the other side. Seemed like 400-500 feet on the way down but was only 200 feet or so on the way up.
Got back to Marm's Lake in two hours. Found a camp site spot near a tiny brook a couple hundred yards from the top of the lake overlooking the Pyramid Lake Trail.
I expected to hike up to Shadow Lake today, Pyramid Lake tomorrow and maybe one of the passes before my food runs out.
07/21/07 Hiking Shadow Lake Trail(4 miles round trip from Pyramid Lake junction):
Well, I didn't make Shadow Lake yesterday. Just layed around and watched a bunch of people heading up the trail. Hope they weren't going to Shadow Lake or Pyramid Lake. Also watched a couple of marmots scampering around doing marmot stuff.
The trail follows around the top of Marm's Lake and into a narrow corridor filled with yellow flowers, purple, daisy like flowers and mountain bluebells. Then up a sharp rise, a wider meadow and great views. Mosquitoes too, quite bad in the early morning.
Up another rise to a boulder filled meadow and even better views to the north. I passed a tarn before I saw it. I turned back hoping I might catch some of the nearby peaks in the reflection. Boy, did I? 5 different peaks plus shoreline spruce trees in a perfectly smooth surface. Great pictures.
1 hour of dawdling to the Pyramid/Shadow Lakes junction, a total of 2 miles from Marm's Lake. I swung right (east) into haze and descended to the Washakie River valley floor. Soon, peaks at the end of the long valley appear with Shadow Lake presumably at their base. Turns out these views weren't even the good stuff.
Peaks start to close in on the sides of the valley. Another 1 hour 15 minutes of dawdling to Shadow Lake, the back side of the Cirque of the Towers on one side, sharp, ragged, jagged peaks next to it and more cliffs to the left of them all rising directly out of the lake. The only open side was back down the valley. 3-4 acres of one of the prettiest lakes you'll see anywhere.
Met one couple on the way back from Shadow Lake but that was it. Not a soul up there and there was some decent camping. Guess everyone I saw yesterday was heading to Pyramid Lake (doubtful) or over the Continental Divide on some kind of loop.
07/22/07 Hiking Pyramid Lake Trail(7 miles round trip from Shadow Lake junction):
Made the 2 miles to the Pyramid/Shadow Lake junction in 40 minutes, not much dawdling this time. There's some possible camping on a knoll near the junction.
A short drop to Washakie Creek and a boulder hop across. Then begins a 300 foot climb in 1 mile thru a forest with good views at the top. Nothing along the way though. Then Washakie Pass junction after a short, flat stretch.
Shortly after the junction I caught up with the couple I had met yesterday and joined them for the rest of the hike to Pyramid Lake. I didn't make anymore notes so the rest of this report is from memory with a glance or two at the guide book.
The trail descends to Skull Lake with wonderful views of some peaks and some good camping. At the end of Skull Lake is a short steep climb that had me huffing and puffing. Beyond that is the junction to Hailey Pass and beyond that Maes Lake with Mount Hooker and Pyramid Peak rising up in the background. Good camping here too.
Pyramid Lake, at 10,5070 feet has camping but few trees for protection and is actually the least attractive of the 3 lakes.
We could see some really great peaks apparently rising out of a valley 1/2 mile away so off we went. Boy, was that worthwhile. It turned what was one of the better hikes in the Wind River Range into probably the best, for me at least. We stood on the edge of a long, steep decent to a couple of narrow, skinny lakes at the base of some awesome walls rising up 1000 feet or more. Great stuff. The only problem was storm clouds came in and wouldn't leave so those pictures turned out all shadowed.
Said goodbye to the couple where they were camped on the Washakie River near the Pyramid/Shadow Lake junction. As I started back to Marm's Lake a bald eagle flew overhead, a rare site at 10,000 feet.
07/23/07:
Hiked out today. Nothing exciting happened. Met another Continental Divide Trail thru hiker, sounded like an Aussie. He was 3 months into the trip with 800 miles to go. The trail goes up into Yellowstone and finishes in Glacier National Park. Different people on their way in stopped me asking about this and that. Made me feel like an old seasoned pro when I could actually answer questions for them.
07/29/07:
Started out this morning for another trip from the Big Sandy Trailhead. Thought I'd go back up to Pyramid Lake and explore that area and then maybe go up Hailey Pass and, if it didn't look to bad, go down the other side and explore around Baptise Lake.
Got up to within 1/2 mile of Mirror Lake in about 2 hours. I was talking down the trail and I stopped and said a dirty word. A little red squirrel in a nearby tree looked at me with a shocked and horrified expression. I flipped him the bird and he scampered off.
Out of the blue, it hit me I had left the back doors of the van open. I remembered thinking about closing them before I left camp but couldn't remember doing so. The last time I had left the front door unlocked. That was one thing, but an open door is an invitation to come in. So there was nothing to do but trudge all the way back and sure enough, the back doors were open.
9 miles for nothing kinda put a damper on my attitude. I decided I had been in the Wind River Range long enough and it was time to move on.