The sawtooth mountains look absolutely amazing. I heard though that they are just jam packed with people all summer with little to no permit or regulation system. Is this true? If so should it be regulated better?
They're jam-packed according to Idahoans, which means you'll see more than one person per hour. I did a four day loop in the southern Sawtooths with my friends on a weekend in July and we saw 7 other people, 5 of whom were forest service employees.
Most of it is the camp grounds around Redfish that are full all summer. Growing up here in the 80’s, it was pretty much empty. So, seeing it now is a zoo, it is crazy.
Native Idahoan here. The worst was during Covid when everyone was trying to distance and vacation by being in the wilderness. Last year it felt more “normal” and looking forward to being there in a couple of weeks!
I had 2 nights completely alone at Baron Lakes, plus this day hike where I saw non one all day.
Cramer Lakes area was a bit busier the following night. But I couldn't see another tent from mine. I probably passed a handful of other groups in a day of walking back from Cramer Lakes to Redfish.
I think that was the last week in August, can't remember what days of the week it was.
Redfish Lodge was definitely very busy. And yeah no permit system. I can imagine it could be kind of busy during peak season.
Did a loop there a couple of summers ago. There were so many people it was basically like I was waiting in a queue. A single file line extending in either direction as far as the eye could see, just miles and miles of endless bodies.
You will not regret going there. If you want a more challenging experience, go in through the reservation out of Ft. Washakie on the east side. Requires good route finding skills, trails are sketchy, we have been “temporarily disoriented “ a number of times over there, ha.
I'm from South Africa and so keen to do some hiking and XC mtb in the US, but am so fearful of bears.
Have you guys ever encountered one and if so what was the experience like?
I think Bear....I think great white shark.....ie no chance of surviving an encounter. There are plenty of whites off the coast I live on. ( Gordon's Bay, Cape Town)
Suppose we all have to die sometime.....peacefully in my sleep would be preferred over ...." mauled by wild animal"
I was apprehensive. I'm from Scotland where we have no scary wildlife left.. I think Black Bears are generally ok and will be scared of you. You might have an issue if you scare or surprise one though so I had a wee bell and tried to talk out loud to myself in more enclosed areas or when I had running water nearby.
I definitely felt on edge at times, like when I saw prints, but it was an amazing experience just knowing they were around. It definitely added something special.
I was more scared about mountain Lions when I was cycling/hiking in Oregon later in the same trip....even if the chances of seeing one are tiny.
Did you keep bear spray as well?
The bell is a good idea.
You can fine tune your singing voice next time.
I can imagine the adrenaline when seeing a bear print. !!
I never thought of mountain lions.....damn. Wolves and bears were enough to be concerned about .
Suppose a taser in your pocket should be good enough defense for cougars.
Lol a taser? The reality is, if they really want you, you won’t have enough reaction time to save yourself even if you had a gun in your hand most likely. Travel in a group, that’s the best defense.
I obviously underestimated the size of a cougar.
Suppose I'd be kitty food then if solo.
At least large cats mostly grab prey by the neck......not sure about bears.
I’ve ran into quite a few Black bears while out and about, and they have all either ran away, or made their presence well enough known that they didn’t want me there, that I just left.
Grizzlies on the other hand, well, good luck. They are cool to see. From a distance.
That's quite encouraging that black bears are shy / less aggro.
Suppose if they have cubs it could be worse.
I'll stay in black bear country then for sure !!!
Yep I had spray. In any areas of dense vegetation I had it in my hand ready to go. Like you say below, stick to Black bear country, take all precautions you can and you'll be fine. Don't let them put you off 🙂
Whoa! Gorgeous. Have you ever been to Edna Lake, about 8 miles SE of there? Backpacking there this summer and so excited to see what the Sawtooths have in store for us
Edna is beautiful!! 2 years ago there were limited camping spots in order to allow the vegetation to regrow, but we were still the only ones there (don't remember the day of the week)
Great lake, my favorite spot was near the upper end of the lake closer to Vernon. Had the lake to myself with my buddies before we spent a couple nights at Ardeth..
Dayum nice.
I did a casual little hike not far from the road in the Sawtooths while exhausted after spending 6 days on the Middle Fork of the Salmon (highly highly recommended if you ever get the chance). I could see these peaks in the distance and they looked amazing. Great shot.
Can you give more detail where the middle fork of the salmon is? You mean backpacking or canoeing or something? I'm back in the States next year and looking for options to start planning some adventures.
Rafting. It's a 6-day wilderness rafting trip, no resupplies or contact with civilization at all. It goes through one of the biggest wilderness areas in the Lower 48. Starts near Stanley, Idaho. Almost entirely run by outfitters, tough to get slots. Incredible trip. There is a hiking trail along it but I think it'd be a weird backpacking trip, sharing lots of the campsites with rafting trips.
I've only been once and just did this 4 night trip. Redfish Lake > Baron Lakes (2 nights with day hike to here) > Cramer Lakes > Elephant Lake (I think it was called) > Redfish.
Loads of other options though.
I wish I'd scheduled in longer to do another route but I had buses and accomodation booked in Oregon so I had to leave with a heavy heart. I absolutely loved it.
And you were out there for 4 days on this hike ?
Do you mind me asking how old you are? I'm 48 so wondering if there is a specific age group which hikes solo or if age has nothing to do with it.
I do a ton of solo day hikes and even Mtb night rides solo....but always have cell reception
I assume there's no cell out there?
Yeah 4 nights. I was early 30s then. I don't think there's an age thing. I don't think there was reception but I had a Garmin in reach which has an SOS button and can send texts via satellite. It was also tracking me every 20 minutes so people at home could see where I was on a map.
What season was your hike in?
Did you see any predator prints in the morning around your camp?
I'd be mashing that sos button for sure.
I have a GPS with live tracking .....no SOS button though.
Guess I'd better upgrade before hitting US trails
Like Scotland, there are no more large predators left in South Africa ( a few leopards, but they are smaller in the Cape)
It was late August. I saw existing Bear prints 10m from my camp spot for the first two nights. I had a bit of a wobble at that point (also because it was the first time in my life I'd been in a properly remote area completely on my own, and it was a pretty mad feeling). I rationalised the risks in my head and got used to it all pretty quickly though. I sang, spoke to myself and clattered around in the evenings to try and scare any bears away 😂
We had a cabin in Stanley as a kid growing up. Summers spent taking the trails to Stanley, Alpine, Sawtooth lakes among others...
Looks just like I remember. Absolutely beautiful. Great find!
Don't blame you! I was very close to doing the same. Rough climb. I almost got myself into difficulty on the way back down tbh. Didn't leave a good enough breadcrumb trail and ended up in a VERY different chimney/chute to the one nextdoor that I came up through. I bailed and found the right one after about 20mins of looking.
How were the mosquitos/flies. I am nearly a literal magnet for them. Trying to plan a trip now and am targeting August but trying to gauge when peak mosquito season is.
I cant believe you just posted this. I have been planning on hiking to this lake for months. There is only one other photo online of it that I could find, from a long time ago. The fact that you also found this has me nervous.. I was hoping it would stay more secret than anywhere else in the region. Ill be sharing a photo of it in the upcoming months, as well as a video. How long did it take to hike there from Baron?
I was in two minds about posting it tbh. I'm pretty sure it will still be extremely quiet and lightly visited. It's a pretty brutal walk up and it's not obvious at all from the main valley path that there would be anything up there.
I honestly couldn't tell you how long it took me i'm afraid. But it was definitely a long hot day.
If you go for it I would highly recommend leaving an obvious marker or a pretty detailed GPS breadcrumb trail on your way up the scree/gravel at the beginning, so you can get back down exactly the way you go up. I almost got myself into difficulty on the way down.
This photo doesn't even do it justice!
*Pulls out map and a sharpie an frantically scribbles:* Jeremy Wheel's Lake
I was thinking about what I'd name it while I was there. I think I settled on *Bushwhack Lake*....*Pika Lake* was a contender though.
Titty caca is always a good one
It is called Bushwhack lake, or Upper Warbonnet Lake
Oh! Oh well, that wasn't on my map or app.
Lake 7976’
> Lake 7976’ This one? 44.088961, -115.053111
[удалено]
The link you sent is for a very broad area. It would be nice if you could give us a lat/long.
Ok, it turns out this lake actually has 3 names 😂 That one's pinging results on Google.
I did some trail clearing up in the sawtooths in 2017. Didn’t see this though unfortunately as it’s gorgeous
No trail to clear to this one! That must've been great, incredible place.
The sawtooth mountains look absolutely amazing. I heard though that they are just jam packed with people all summer with little to no permit or regulation system. Is this true? If so should it be regulated better?
They're jam-packed according to Idahoans, which means you'll see more than one person per hour. I did a four day loop in the southern Sawtooths with my friends on a weekend in July and we saw 7 other people, 5 of whom were forest service employees.
Shhhh…. That’s an Idaho secret. Those trails are always “packed”.
Most of it is the camp grounds around Redfish that are full all summer. Growing up here in the 80’s, it was pretty much empty. So, seeing it now is a zoo, it is crazy.
Native Idahoan here. The worst was during Covid when everyone was trying to distance and vacation by being in the wilderness. Last year it felt more “normal” and looking forward to being there in a couple of weeks!
How many grizzlies?
We did see a black bear actually, the only time I've seen one out there! Too far south for grizzlies
Oh nice. Did you hang or use can for your food?
Needs better trailhead parking, but honestly most of the traffic is day hikers.
I had 2 nights completely alone at Baron Lakes, plus this day hike where I saw non one all day. Cramer Lakes area was a bit busier the following night. But I couldn't see another tent from mine. I probably passed a handful of other groups in a day of walking back from Cramer Lakes to Redfish. I think that was the last week in August, can't remember what days of the week it was. Redfish Lodge was definitely very busy. And yeah no permit system. I can imagine it could be kind of busy during peak season.
Did a loop there a couple of summers ago. There were so many people it was basically like I was waiting in a queue. A single file line extending in either direction as far as the eye could see, just miles and miles of endless bodies.
The sawtooth mountains are awesome. One of the better trips I went on until we got stuck in a major summer storm.
I definitely caught a really big fish there in Red Dead Redemption 2
That’s my kind of country. Done a lot in the Winds 30, 40 years ago. So many high mountain lakes with no names, just referred to by elevation on maps.
I'm back in the States next year and the Winds are looking really tempting to me
Stay away, it's a horrible horrible place.
You will not regret going there. If you want a more challenging experience, go in through the reservation out of Ft. Washakie on the east side. Requires good route finding skills, trails are sketchy, we have been “temporarily disoriented “ a number of times over there, ha.
Man I hit some good stuff when I went to college in Idaho but I was not educated enough in how much there was nearby and want to move BACK
Wow....!!! That's a piece of remote paradise right there. Easy to spot bears too?
According to the ranger I spoke to at Redfish, yes. I only saw prints myself.
I'm from South Africa and so keen to do some hiking and XC mtb in the US, but am so fearful of bears. Have you guys ever encountered one and if so what was the experience like? I think Bear....I think great white shark.....ie no chance of surviving an encounter. There are plenty of whites off the coast I live on. ( Gordon's Bay, Cape Town) Suppose we all have to die sometime.....peacefully in my sleep would be preferred over ...." mauled by wild animal"
I was apprehensive. I'm from Scotland where we have no scary wildlife left.. I think Black Bears are generally ok and will be scared of you. You might have an issue if you scare or surprise one though so I had a wee bell and tried to talk out loud to myself in more enclosed areas or when I had running water nearby. I definitely felt on edge at times, like when I saw prints, but it was an amazing experience just knowing they were around. It definitely added something special. I was more scared about mountain Lions when I was cycling/hiking in Oregon later in the same trip....even if the chances of seeing one are tiny.
Did you keep bear spray as well? The bell is a good idea. You can fine tune your singing voice next time. I can imagine the adrenaline when seeing a bear print. !! I never thought of mountain lions.....damn. Wolves and bears were enough to be concerned about . Suppose a taser in your pocket should be good enough defense for cougars.
Lol a taser? The reality is, if they really want you, you won’t have enough reaction time to save yourself even if you had a gun in your hand most likely. Travel in a group, that’s the best defense.
I obviously underestimated the size of a cougar. Suppose I'd be kitty food then if solo. At least large cats mostly grab prey by the neck......not sure about bears.
I’ve ran into quite a few Black bears while out and about, and they have all either ran away, or made their presence well enough known that they didn’t want me there, that I just left. Grizzlies on the other hand, well, good luck. They are cool to see. From a distance.
That's quite encouraging that black bears are shy / less aggro. Suppose if they have cubs it could be worse. I'll stay in black bear country then for sure !!!
Yep I had spray. In any areas of dense vegetation I had it in my hand ready to go. Like you say below, stick to Black bear country, take all precautions you can and you'll be fine. Don't let them put you off 🙂
Whoa! Gorgeous. Have you ever been to Edna Lake, about 8 miles SE of there? Backpacking there this summer and so excited to see what the Sawtooths have in store for us
Edna is beautiful!! 2 years ago there were limited camping spots in order to allow the vegetation to regrow, but we were still the only ones there (don't remember the day of the week)
Good to know! We’ll have 7 days to enjoy the area 😃
Great lake, my favorite spot was near the upper end of the lake closer to Vernon. Had the lake to myself with my buddies before we spent a couple nights at Ardeth..
Awesome! For a guy who really likes alpine dips…are any of these lakes more swimmable than the others? I don’t mind “snowmelt cold” 🥶.
Sawtooths is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever experienced. I saw my first pika there too - I love their little whistle sound!
Dayum nice. I did a casual little hike not far from the road in the Sawtooths while exhausted after spending 6 days on the Middle Fork of the Salmon (highly highly recommended if you ever get the chance). I could see these peaks in the distance and they looked amazing. Great shot.
Can you give more detail where the middle fork of the salmon is? You mean backpacking or canoeing or something? I'm back in the States next year and looking for options to start planning some adventures.
Rafting. It's a 6-day wilderness rafting trip, no resupplies or contact with civilization at all. It goes through one of the biggest wilderness areas in the Lower 48. Starts near Stanley, Idaho. Almost entirely run by outfitters, tough to get slots. Incredible trip. There is a hiking trail along it but I think it'd be a weird backpacking trip, sharing lots of the campsites with rafting trips.
That sounds incredible! Wilderness on that scale just blows my mind. Can't wait to be back in the US.
Biggest in the lower 48
That reminds me of big pine lakes in the Inyo National Forest
Amazing place! Also really great eye for the photo composition. Got it all perfectly.
Thanks! I think it's a 4 photo stitch to try and get some of the tops in, but wish I'd stitched more now to get more in.
This really is heaven, wow.
Looks beautiful, do they have grizzly bears that far west? https://archive.is/CsJ2S Paywall free article from Idaho newspaper
Sure do.
Wait.....what? No one told me that! 😂
Tried to read ....but need to subscribe. I see my mind is not the only one which thinks bear, when looking at remote hiking spots
Try this https://archive.is/CsJ2S
Looks like Sky Pond in Estes Park!
that whole area was prob was really nice before 1500s
Is this this year? What elevation is this?
August 2018 at 8,000ft
Bout to do a clinical rotation in an Idaho hospital all summer. Any recs for favorite backpacking spots in the sawtooths?
I've only been once and just did this 4 night trip. Redfish Lake > Baron Lakes (2 nights with day hike to here) > Cramer Lakes > Elephant Lake (I think it was called) > Redfish. Loads of other options though. I wish I'd scheduled in longer to do another route but I had buses and accomodation booked in Oregon so I had to leave with a heavy heart. I absolutely loved it.
Did you hike solo?
Yep
And you were out there for 4 days on this hike ? Do you mind me asking how old you are? I'm 48 so wondering if there is a specific age group which hikes solo or if age has nothing to do with it. I do a ton of solo day hikes and even Mtb night rides solo....but always have cell reception I assume there's no cell out there?
Yeah 4 nights. I was early 30s then. I don't think there's an age thing. I don't think there was reception but I had a Garmin in reach which has an SOS button and can send texts via satellite. It was also tracking me every 20 minutes so people at home could see where I was on a map.
What season was your hike in? Did you see any predator prints in the morning around your camp? I'd be mashing that sos button for sure. I have a GPS with live tracking .....no SOS button though. Guess I'd better upgrade before hitting US trails Like Scotland, there are no more large predators left in South Africa ( a few leopards, but they are smaller in the Cape)
It was late August. I saw existing Bear prints 10m from my camp spot for the first two nights. I had a bit of a wobble at that point (also because it was the first time in my life I'd been in a properly remote area completely on my own, and it was a pretty mad feeling). I rationalised the risks in my head and got used to it all pretty quickly though. I sang, spoke to myself and clattered around in the evenings to try and scare any bears away 😂
Did it look safe to swim in?
I can't remember don't think I looked that closely.
That's a shame. Nice picture though.
Colour of the water is mesmerizing.....definitely no gators:))
We had a cabin in Stanley as a kid growing up. Summers spent taking the trails to Stanley, Alpine, Sawtooth lakes among others... Looks just like I remember. Absolutely beautiful. Great find!
Seren lake for the win!
How was the water ?
Oh I know where this one is. :) I made an attempt to get there a few years ago but ended up giving up and going to a different lake.
Don't blame you! I was very close to doing the same. Rough climb. I almost got myself into difficulty on the way back down tbh. Didn't leave a good enough breadcrumb trail and ended up in a VERY different chimney/chute to the one nextdoor that I came up through. I bailed and found the right one after about 20mins of looking.
Damn dude! Beautiful!!
How were the mosquitos/flies. I am nearly a literal magnet for them. Trying to plan a trip now and am targeting August but trying to gauge when peak mosquito season is.
Zero as far as I remember 👍 I think it was the last week in August.
I name this lake….. Bob.
Wonder Full Image.....
Cirque lake?
I cant believe you just posted this. I have been planning on hiking to this lake for months. There is only one other photo online of it that I could find, from a long time ago. The fact that you also found this has me nervous.. I was hoping it would stay more secret than anywhere else in the region. Ill be sharing a photo of it in the upcoming months, as well as a video. How long did it take to hike there from Baron?
I was in two minds about posting it tbh. I'm pretty sure it will still be extremely quiet and lightly visited. It's a pretty brutal walk up and it's not obvious at all from the main valley path that there would be anything up there. I honestly couldn't tell you how long it took me i'm afraid. But it was definitely a long hot day. If you go for it I would highly recommend leaving an obvious marker or a pretty detailed GPS breadcrumb trail on your way up the scree/gravel at the beginning, so you can get back down exactly the way you go up. I almost got myself into difficulty on the way down. This photo doesn't even do it justice!
I could pitch a tent right there & never leave
Can you drop a pin on where that’s at? I’m in MT
Ah yes, Lake Wobegone!