Regensburger Photography

Tag: backpacking

  • Lake Charles, Holy Cross Wilderness

    My son and I backpacked to Lake Charles in the Holy Cross Wilderness recently. The lake lies at the head of a glacial valley in the Holy Cross Wilderness near Eagle, CO. After spending the night at the lake, we hiked the mile up to Mystic Island Lake, another pretty lake in the chain.

    The trail starts at the end of a Forest Service Road. It ascends steeply for about a quarter mile and then levels off for the next mile as it passes through aspen forest. It crosses a small boulder field around the 1 mile mark. Around 1.75 miles, you enter the Holy Cross Wilderness. You pass through a couple of small, marshy meadows. You will then pass small streams on the left and after the third stream, around the 2.75 mark, the trail begins to steadily gain elevation. Over the next 2 miles, the trail seems to relentlessly ascend the rocky terrain. The main stream will come back into view and the trail passes by some small cascades. Finally, you will reach the lake around the 5 mile mark. It is a sight to behold. The mountains soar above the lake. It is one of the prettiest valleys in Colorado.

    The continues around the left side of the lake and then ascends about 200 feet to Mystic Island Lake. There is only a small steep section to reach the lake.

    If you are patient, try your hand at catching the small cutthroat trout that live in both the lakes.

    The weather was a mixed bag on the trip. It was humid on the hike in and then it poured after dinner as we were trying to set up camp. Nothing like water, mud, and pine needles coating a tent. The clouds parted just before sunset lighting up the mountains in the distance. A very special moment. The clouds cleared and I was treated to a star show and a great view of the Milky Way.

  • Alice Lake/Toxaway Lake Loop Hike

    I’ve had the Alice Lake/Toxaway Lake loop hike in the Sawtooth mountains of Idaho on my bucket list for a number of years now. I finally got to do the hike this past week.  It was well worth the wait. My son and I spent three days in the wilderness here. The hike has any number of features a photographer could want–beautiful alpine lakes, gorgeous waterfalls, and some midsummer wildflowers.  It also has a number of lakes stocked with brook trout. The trail is located about 20 miles from Stanley Idaho or 50 miles north of Sun Valley. 

    Trail Description

    The trailhead starts near the Petit Lake campground. In about 1/4 mile, the trail splits–go straight to Alice Lake or veer right to Toxaway Lake. I choose the Alice Lake route because the Toxaway trail can be steeper in portions going in the uphill direction. The Alice Lake trail is fairly benign for its first 3 miles. Not too bad for carrying a 40 pound pack.  Around mile 2.5, you come to the first of 6 stream crossings. The crossings either have to be waded or you can look for logs that have been placed across the stream by other hikers.  In July, the stream crossings weren’t too bad and we found logs just upstream from the main crossings in all cases. After the second stream crossing, the fun begins.  The trail climbs steeply above the creek and switchbacks up the hillside. The trail goes through a rocky section and features a few nice fields of Mariposa lilies. Up in Idaho, these flowers are white with purple centers as opposed to green ones found in Colorado. The trail continues to zig zag through the forest and finally comes to a bridge at crossing number 5.  The last crossing brings you across the lake outlet and to your probable destination for the night–Alice Lake.  Alice Lake has a number of good camping sites along its shoreline that borders the trail.  Two arms jut out into the lake each of which has several camping spots.  The second makes for a great spot to shoot the sunrise from.  At least 4 peaks surround the far side of the lake and light up a brilliant orange at sunrise and are reflected in the calm waters of this part of the lake.  Alice Lake has a decent fishing for brook trout although it is shallow in many spots (great for reflection photography but not so good for growing big trout). 

    If you follow the shoreline of Alice Lake to the end of the lake off trail, there is a small creek emptying in to the lake.  There are some spots to get good waterfall photos here. Backtracking to about mid lake to rejoin the trail, the trail begins to climb high towards Twin Lakes.  This pair of lakes lies about 1 mile farther up from Alice Lake.  The trail continues up to the pass or drops about 100 feet to the lakes to the left. You can also camp here if you choose.  It is not quite as scenic as Alice Lake but is beautiful nonetheless.  Twin Lakes also sports much better trout fishing than Alice Lake. Above Twin Lakes, the trail climbs steeply up to the pass. From the top of the pass, you get commanding views of the Twin Lakes basin as well as the Toxaway Lake basin. Savor the view here before descending steeply to a couple of unnamed lakes just below the pass.  We stopped for lunch along the shore of the larger of the two lakes.  Below this lake, the trail passes by the creek which descends over the light colored granite in a series of cascades.  These made for some gorgeous waterfall photos. The trail crosses the creek just below one of the large falls and skirts the opposite short of Toxaway Lake. My advice is to continue just past Toxaway to camp. there is also a good site just before the waterfall above the lake.   The trail veers about 1/2 mile above the shoreline for much of the lake. The terrain is also rocky and steep.  There are a few camp sites off a spur trail below the junction with the Edna Lake trail. This leads to an arm that juts out into Toxaway Lake about halfway around the lake that contains a few camping spots.  We did camp here, but the walk back to the main trail was long and the mosquitoes were awful here. The worst I have seen outside of Alaska. 

    Below Toxaway Lake, the trail passes a couple of small tarns and the pretty Bowknot Lake. There is a large cascade at the back of one of the tarns but it was difficult to reach.  I had to hop logs and negotiate a large marsh to reach the falls.  It was pretty but harder to get to than it looked. From Bowknot, the trail descends steeply through a rocky boulder field and avalanche zone as it makes its way to Farley Lake. The trail passes by a large waterfall just past the boulder field.  A short spur trail brings you to the base of the waterfall but several large bushes block the view from being better than it is. Back on the main trail, you will pass a large field of wildflowers before reaching a view of Farley Lake. The trail is a good 1/4 mile from the shore, so while people do camp here, it is an effort to reach the sites. 

    The trail once again descends rapidly for the next couple of miles before coming to the last major obstacle–a crossing of the creek.  This one wasn’t logged, so we had to deboot and wade. It was rather easy but a minor inconvenience still. After another mile of walking the flats along the creek, you come to a junction with the spur to return to Petit Lake. After 17.5 miles of hiking, here’s the bummer with hiking the trail in this direction–you have to ascend the mountain 500 feet to the right and then descend it 500 feet to reach Petit Lake. It was the last thing I wanted to do on a hot afternoon, but I grudgingly made it up and over the small mountain.  Two long series of switchbacks get you up the mountain.  The descent is even steeper going down to Petit Lake so maybe I wasn’t so disgruntled with my choice of going to Alice Lake first. At long last, we reached the shores of Petit Lake at the end of our three days in the Sawtooth Recreation Area. 

    One word of caution: don’t expect to be able to get a spot in a campground in the Sawtooth Recreation Area without a reservation well in advance of your trip.  Reports were that Redfish Lake fills in January and we did not find a spot in the campgrounds around Petit or Altura Lake either. All hope is not lost, however, as there are several dispersed camping spots in the area, including several along the Salmon River. 

    Getting There

    Petit Lake is located 17 miles south of Stanley off of Highway 75. It is about a two-hour drive from Twin Falls, Idaho.  The trailhead is found the end of the campground.  There is a large parking lot to accommodate the growing number of hikers on this trail. You will need to fill out a free permit at the wilderness boundary to hike here (and yes a ranger checked my permit on day 3 so do stop to fill out one). 

  • Gilpin Lake/Gold Creek Lake Loop

    I backpacked the Gilpin Lake/Gold Creek Lake loop in the Mt. Zirkel Wilderness otherwise known as the Zirkel Circle over the 4th of July. The trail is strenuous at times but provides some wonderful views and beautiful scenery for most of the hike. The NFS lists the distance for the loop at 11 miles but it is at least 2 miles longer than advertised so be prepared if you hike the entire loop.  I chose to hike the loop from Gilpin Lake to Gold Creek. The trail up to Gilpin Lake is generally steeper but converts the long uphill section from the trail junction  if you go the other way to a downhill section.  I started out from the Slavonia trailhead about 20 miles north of Steamboat Springs. I reached a trail register and the trail junction with the Gold Creek trail after .1 mile.  I signed in and headed left up to Gilpin Lake.  The first part of trail rambles through aspen forest.  A few large clumps of paintbrush grew close to the trail.  My next milepost was the wilderness boundary at 1.6 miles.  The trail follows a creek through open meadows and a wide glacial valley at this point. Hundreds of columbine were blooming near the trail at around the 2.5-3 mile mark. The trail climbs steadily but not too steeply thorough most of this stretch. Finally, I reached a stream crossing at around mile 5. From here, you been a steep ascent to Gilpin Lake over the next .75 mile. There is really no good camping spots from the water crossing to the lake due to the steepness of the terrain.  Finally, I reached Gilpin Lake after 4 hours of hiking.

    Gilpin Lake is one of the jewels of the Rocky Mountains. It surrounded almost entirely by mountains.  The lake is relatively shallow which made for great reflection shots at sunset and sunrise. I wandered around the near shore of the lake and found a primitive trail that led down the back side of the lake past the outlet. Some beautiful cascades can be found here. I set up my tripod on the far side of the lake and waited for sunset.  I was not disappointed. The mountains above the lake glowed red in the setting sun, aided by smoke in the air from forest fires burning in southern Colorado. I also cast out a fishing line and snagged a couple of small brook trout while I took int he view. In the morning, I walked along the east side of the lake and watched the sun light up the peaks to the south. What an amazing scene.

    Around 8:30, I headed up to the saddle above Gilpin Lake. It its a steep, half-mile ascent to the saddle but not nearly as bad as some passes in Colorado can be. The view from the top is spectacular.  Big Agnes mountain looms large behind the lake when viewed from this direction. I then headed down the pass toward the Gold Creek trail. This is a long, steep descent as previously noted.  After about a mile, I came to the junction with the Gold Creek trail. The trail then follows the creek down valley to the right. Gold Creek is a narrower, tree-filled valley. The shade was welcome given the heat of the day beginning to build. I came to Gold Creek Lake after 2 miles. It is a pretty, forested lake. It has excellent fishing for brookies, BTW. The long slog bak to the trailhead now begins. The trail descends along Gold Creek and passes a couple of large waterfalls.  There are also a couple of difficult stream crossings along the way. There are logs but if you don;t like the tight rope act with a pack on, wading might be the better option. On one of them, I ended up fighting a fir tree near the start. After a seemingly endless 4 mile hike, I reached the trailhead, exhausted.

    Directions to the trailhead. 

    Drive 18 miles north of Steamboat on RD 129. Then turn right onto Seedhouse Road.  Drive 12 miles along the half paved, half dirt road to the end to reach the Slavonia trailhead.  Trail 1161 leads to Gilpin Lake.   Although many people hike the trail, few backpack it.  Solitude can be found while camping.  One word of caution. Camping is restricted 1/4 from the lake. You’ll have to head out a ways from the trail to find camping spots.   

  • Coyote Gulch

    I backpacked into Coyote Gulch in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in southern Utah this past week.  I had been wanting to do this trip for the past ten years or so.  I failed once trying to squeeze my pack through the crack-in-the-wall route so this time I simply hiked in through Hurricane Wash.  I walked 25 miles in two days but it was worth the effort.  Coyote Gulch is an amazing place.  It features several waterfalls, a large arch, and towering canyon walls. It is also a very peaceful walk through a verdant canyon in the middle of a desert.  Below is the trail description.

    Hurricane Wash

    The guidebooks warn that this hike is rather dull to start and I think that is a little unfair.  While the first couple miles are rather unremarkable, parts of Hurricane Wash are actually pretty scenic.  The wash itself is 5.5 miles long to the confluence with Coyote Gulch.  The wash is sandy for the first four miles.  Luckily, an overland trail avoids the wash for the first couple of miles, meaning you’re walking in sand for only about 2 miles of the trip.  The canyon walls pop up after about two miles and this is where the hike starts to get interesting.  The trail passes the Glen Canyon boundary at mile 3.0.  Shortly thereafter, the canyon enters a short narrows section which is quite pretty.  At mile 4.0, the landscape changes.  Tamarisk and reeds dominate and a trickle of water becomes evident.  You pass by a large rock in thee stream bed that looks like it has been blasted from the hillside and then a fenced gate at around mile 5.0.  Finally, you come to the confluence.  This area features a much wider stream and and several canyon faces greet you downstream to the right. On the way back, I found out how the wash got its name.  The wind rips through it when a front is approaching.   

    Coyote Gulch

    The wading in the stream now begins in earnest.  The trail criss-crosses the stream multiple times throughout your journey through the gulch.  You’ll need wading shoes unless you want to get your boots wet.  I opted to hike in tennis shoes and neoprene socks.  You pass a couple of very large rock alcoves which have a nice orange color to them.  At around mile 7.0, you come to the first main feature of Coyote Gulch–Jacob Hamblin Arch.  The Arch towers above you to the left.  The arch is a good photo around two hours before sunset or at an hour after sunrise on the reverse side (but alas I went through it around 1pm).  There are multiple campsites on either side of the arch and one directly below it.  This is a good spot for a star shot, but I didn’t bring my Canon on the trip due to weight.  I continued downstream from here and soon came to the Swiss Cheese falls.  This is an area in the stream with some great fluted rock that the stream flows through.  I camped here under another large alcove.  Watch for falling rock here.  The rubble pile is impressive!  

    The next main feature in the canyon is Coyote Natural Bridge another mile or so downstream.  This is another large arch (bridge since it is over the stream).  This is more of a midday shot since the light doesn’t reach down into this part of the canyon except for that time.  At this point, my recommendation is to turn around and go back to camp unless you are up for a very long walk.  If I had to do it over agin, I would have stopped here and turned around and done the waterfall section as a day hike from Crack in the Wall.  Why? To be blunt, the next section of canyon is very dull and a long walk through reeds and tamarisk, and reeds and tamarisk, and reeds and tamarisk.  There is nothing to see for 2.0 miles.  Finally, you come to the first of the waterfalls past Cliff Arch.  To reach this place requires hiking around a boulder field to the left and then crossing the stream and scrambling above the boulder field to the right.  It is a pretty waterfall to be sure.  Some trees frame it and the canyon provides an amazing backdrop.  The trail then continues for about .75 miles to the next falls.  To reach this one, you need to descend the boulders to the right.  I then walked to another waterfall a short distance from this one.  I stopped here.  The route down below this falls looked difficult and I had hiked almost 12 miles to this point and had a 4.0 mile walk back to camp.  I will have to do the rest of the 2.0 miles of the gulch next time.  

    Driving Directions

    To reach Hurricane Wash, take the Hole in the Rock Road 5.0 miles east of Escalante or 18.0 miles south of Boulder.  Drive 33 miles down the worst washboarded road you’ve ever seen until coming to the parking area for Hurricane Wash.  Follow the trail down the wash and have fun! You don’t need 4×4 for the road, but a tougher vehicle may be nice for the bumps.  

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