In the Winds: Bridger-Teton Summit Loop
When planning out the order of my adventures for this Summer, I had a basic decision to make: Do I start with the old or the new? I found it much more exciting to kick things off with a place I’d never been before, which meant my first stop would be Wyoming. I have, of course, heard more than my fair share about all of the amazing outdoor spaces Wyoming has to offer. Knowing that I would probably have about two weeks of my Summer to spend in the state, I narrowed the long list of places down to the Western part of the state. I knew I wanted to explore the Greater Yellowstone area, and that would begin with a backpacking trip in the Wind River Range in the Bridger-Teton National Forest. What follows is an account of that trip.
Day 0: The Drive
Whenever I recount trips, be they 120 days or three days, I always start with Day 0. It seems to me that just getting there is always a part of the adventure. Be it a plane, train, drive, or something else, it’s as much a part of the trip as any other day - though it’s often less eventful. In this case, for me, it was a 750-mile drive from my home in Northern Arizona to the Elkhart-Pole Creek Trailhead north of Pinedale, Wyoming. Nothing to scoff at. I don’t particularly enjoy long drives as some folks do, so I felt the best strategy for this one was to grind it out as quickly as I could, obeying speed and traffic laws, of course.
So I forced myself out of bed at a quarter to 5, grabbed a cold coffee out of the fridge, and got into my already packed up car. This would be the first trip of a series over five weeks, so I had a lot of packing to do. It had probably taken me three hours the evening before to get everything organized for backpacking, bikepacking, car camping, and whatever else I might need. Fortunately, I had still gotten to bed at a reasonable hour, so I actually felt pretty rested and alert as I set off at 5 AM.
I will spare the details of the drive itself - mostly spent on highways through Utah. The primary purpose of this Day 0 is to account for the end of it. Though uneventful, it still served as a good launch point for my trip. I made it up to the Trailhead around 6 PM local time, 12 hours after I had left my house that morning. There was a small car campground there called Trail’s End. Much to my luck, there was exactly one spot left. I settled in and made camp, talked to a few other campers, then went to meet the campground host.
She was a very nice woman named Barb, who lived in Minnesota in the Winters but stayed out to work for the National Forest in the Summers. I told her about my planned loop: 40ish miles out the Pole Creek Trail, up the Highline Trail, then back down the Pine Creek Trail. She seemed surprised at how ambitious the hike was, which I found funny because it didn’t feel too ambitious. But she communicated to me that 90 percent of folks starting off at this particular Trailhead only go a few miles out to Photographer’s Point on a day trip.
Barb quizzed me on my preparedness to go backpacking in the National Forest. Despite my experience, I appreciated her making sure I knew all of the local regulations and guidelines. It’s great to have people out in the National Forets, at the trailheads, making sure backpackers are going out there prepared to Leave No Trace and be safe. She made sure I had proper bear storage (I did, and Ursack) and asked if I had bear spray. I told her I didn’t, and she seemed pretty concerned at my answer but still gave me her blessing to go out. Her concern maybe gave me a little of my own, but I still figured I would probably be OK. I was still pretty far south to encounter any Grizzlies.
I bid Barb goodnight, then cooked up a nice dinner of steak, potatoes, and onions. Car camping sure has its perks. I read a few chapters of one of my books before turning it in. Already I noticed that it didn’t get dark until after 9:30 - much later than Arizona. I was excited.
Day 1: Into the Mountains
I woke up eager to get on with the backpacking. 12 hours of driving wasn’t the most fun way to spend the day prior, and I was excited to spend much more time walking today. After breakfast, it was only a 400-yard drive from the campground over to the trailhead parking lot, where I prepared myself. I took my bike off the roof rack and managed to cram it into my car, where I figured it would be safer from weather, sun, and potential theft while I was gone the next few nights. After that, it was a matter of putting on my pack and heading off!
Right away, I noticed the wildflowers - blooming in colors of purple, yellow, red, and every shade between. I knew I had picked the perfect time of year to be out in the Wind River Range. Of course, the perfect time of year, unfortunately, also means peak mosquito season, a struggle I had known would be present going into this trip. About five minutes into my walk, I begrudgingly stopped for a moment to cover my exposed skin with deet. I never really liked using it, but on the PCT in Oregon in 2018, I learned that there was almost no other alternative quite as effective. So, with my new chemical shield against the mosquitos, I hiked on.
After a bit, I reached Photographer’s Point and stopped to take in my first breathtaking view of the Wind River Range. This was a cool vantage point for my hike in particular as it had a perfect view out to the ridge I’d be hiking on the last day and the valley I’d be climbing down into and back up to reach my car when I finished. The backdrop, of course, was the range itself, jagged, pronounced peak with patches of snow still in spots stretched as far as the eye could see. I stopped at the point and talked to two other hikers for about 30 minutes, happy to not really have any pressure on myself as far as time went. I was carrying four days of food for a 40-mile loop, which I was fairly sure I’d end up doing in three days.
The fantastic view - and preview of my hike - from Photographer’s Point
It was a leisurely, gradual grade up towards the Highline Trail for the next few miles. Before reaching the intersection, I took a short detour down to Pole Creek Lake, which I figured would be spectacular. Right I was, and I was glad to have opted for the slight detour. After fording the Lake Inlet, I set up right on the banks of the massive, sparkling alpine waters for a lunch break. I took the opportunity to swim out to an island within an easy swimming distance, thoroughly taking in the sun, scenery, and the moment.
Pole Creek Lake - where I took a nice lunch and swim
When I reached the Highline Trail (a section of the CDT), I knew I was way ahead on time, so I opted for another slight detour. It was only a three-mile loop to walk around the Cook Lakes, and Barb had told me this would be worth it. It took me about an hour and a half to make the loop, which was beautiful but had plenty of major blowdowns blocking the trail. There was a massive wind event in this area last year, so I knew this might be an issue in sections. Nevertheless, I patiently navigated my way around the huge trees, sometimes on sections of trail that basically didn’t exist anymore.
Right away I had some stunning scenery - and so much green!
Cook Lake, with the storm clouds quickly forming behind it
Towards the end of my little Cook Lakes detour, the puffy white clouds in the sky turned into much darker, wider, stormlike clouds. I figured I’d be dealing with afternoon storms on this hike. As I pushed my way up towards Lester Pass back on the Highline Trail, the clouds became ever more threatening. At Tammy Lake, only a mile south of the Pass, I called it for the day and quickly set up my tent to take shelter from the coming rain and swarms of mosquitos. It was a relaxing afternoon as my tent kept me perfectly dry from a massive downpour. I comfortably relaxed, read my book, cooked dinner, journaled, and drifted off to sleep.
Day 2: All-day Alpine
I was happy to awake the next day to sunlight reflecting off the lake I camped by. The morning scenery was fantastic. It was cool, but not too cold as I packed everything up. I had to do so hurriedly as the mosquitos were eager for breakfast; I broke out my head net for the first time on the trip as I packed up my tent.
Lester Pass wasn’t too difficult of a climb to start the day, particularly on fresh legs. The climb also brought me fully into an Alpine environment, where I would spend almost the entire day. I walked past pristine alpine lakes all day long, had towering views over each valley, and climbed numerous passes from 10.5k to 11k feet. I only met three hikers that day which was a pleasant surprise. I had expected the trail to be really crowded, so I was happy to actually get a lot of solitude on this section.
The view from Lester Pass - the high point of this hike
Fremont Creek
My favorite part of the day - and the entire trip - was winding my way up the highest parts of Fremont Creek along with Lower Jean and Upper Jean Lakes. These rivaled any alpine lakes I’ve ever seen as far as their beauty and inspiring nature went. I smiled all the while taking in the scene.
Lower Jean Lake
I stopped for lunch at Elbow Lake, a massive, deep blue lake at around 10.5k feet. Against my better judgment, I dove straight into the deep water and was hit right away with an icy sensation. I immediately swam right out and enjoyed basking in the sun on the rocks while eating lunch. Much to my luck, there weren’t really any mosquitos present, and I could relax and take my time.
If you knew how cold it was, would you still dive in?
Elbow Lake - a perfect lunch spot
After a few more miles on the Highline Trail, I reached my turn off onto the Pine Creek Trail towards Trapper Lake. Goodbye to the CDT for this trip. The trail quickly brought me back down below treeline, and sure as they had the day before, the clouds turned dark. I took a little afternoon detour out to Heart Lake, just off the trail and where I was sure to find solitude. I set my tent up just in time to beat the rain for the second day in a row!
After waiting out the storm and reading, I got back out and went down to the lake. I took in a special scene. Blooming, yellow wildflowers on the opposite bank; the Wind River Range’s high peaks in the distance ahead of me, reflecting off the sparkling water. Total quiet and calm, exactly what I had come out there for.
Day 3: Blowdowns Galore
Even with my little Heart Lake detour, I had finished the day before, only about 11 miles from the car. As anticipated, I was going to finish the loop in three days rather than four. No matter, as I had plenty more to look forward to over the next few weeks. So I decided to take my time and enjoy the last day of this particular trip.
The trail back around the other side of Heart Lake down to the main trail was basically non-existent. So I put on my route-finding hat and found my way down, with some wet feet from crossing through dew-soaked meadows to show for it. Back on the main trail, however, it didn’t get any easier.
Heart Lake is the exact sort of campsite I always look for
I had been warned the day before by another hiker about the blowdowns between Trapper Lake and Glimpse Lake; he was not exaggerating. The wind event from the year prior had pulled down countless trees - huge trees, some I estimated to be 200 years old. They were strewn every which way across the landscape; the trail was non-existent. I had to climb over, under, and often walk far around the countless blowdowns. Fortunately, I knew I basically had to walk due South, so using the morning Eastern sun as a guide was pretty easy; the 2.7 miles between the lakes took me almost two hours!
Once at Glimpse Lake, I took in the view of the Fremont Creek valley from the opposite side of Photographer’s Point. The view was much better from this side. I could see the entire path of the creek down to Fremont Lake and Long Lake straight below me, where I would be in about three miles. I quickly descended down, happy to be past the worst of the blowdowns.
The view back across; Long Lake visible to the left, with Fremont Creek flowing down from it and out eventually to Fremont Lake on the right.
I took one last lovely break on the creek. I found a great spot where it opened up wide before descending into a beautiful, cascading waterfall. I splashed in the water, washed up, and took down a liter of water before heading out for the steep, long climb back to the car.
It would prove to actually be the hardest part of the entire hike, and I was thoroughly drenched in sweat by the time I finished. I was a happy camper, though, satisfied from a fantastic few days of backpacking. I ran into Barb again in the parking lot, and she was happy to welcome me back. We caught up at her A-frame cabin for a few minutes before I drove off, ready for the next adventure.
My last little break spot
