Wind River Trip 2, August 8 - August 18, 2023, Elkhart Loop
Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2024 2:51 pm
Day 1, August 8, 2023 - Elkhart Trail Head to the Highline Trail
We left Elkhart trail head at around 9 a.m., at the same time as about five other large groups. We played leapfrog with the groups as everybody needed to stop and take off layers of clothing on the continuous up hill trail. There were many day hikers.
We passed two backcountry rangers on their way out. They had been working in the backcountry for the past eight days. One ranger was female, and the other was male. They both looked very fit. They gave us a little talk about using the “Bearmuda Triangle” for camping, cooking, and food storage.
The day started out partly cloudy. Along the way, we met a friendly group of hikers from Washington, D.C. and enjoyed talking with them. We stopped at Barbara Lake with the D.C. group and enjoyed a long water and snack break with them. The D.C. group was planning to summit Fremont Peak.
The trail was busy throughout the day, with people coming and going. We met several southbound CDT hikers. Steady rain started to fall at around 2 p.m. We were not happy to be hiking in the rain again. The trail was very muddy. The rain continued as we climbed the long hill toward Seneca Lake. Finally, the rain stopped, and we found a flat, grassy campsite on the Highline trail, near its junction with the trail to Island Lake. We set up camp just in time for another rain shower.
We started dinner at about 6 p.m., and while were waiting for our meal to rehydrate, we had a fun chat with a CDT flip flopper (trail name “Rock”). He was looking for any food he could get, as he was getting low on food. Compass was gracious and gave him a bar and a nut butter packet. We could not really spare more, since our trip was just beginning.
Sunset on the nearby peaks was very scenic. Marmots, pika, and golden-mantled ground squirrels were active nearby. It was cold during the night.
Rainy Day at Seneca Lake
Day 2, August 9, 2023 – Highline Trail to Indian Basin
We woke to a frosty, damp tent. The grass was wet from heavy dew. We put on our Sealskins socks to keep our feet dry and warm while we packed up camp and cooked breakfast. On our way out of camp, we met another High Sierra Topix member, pylepacker. He said that he lived in CA and hiked often in the John Muir Wilderness with his dog. It was nice to meet you, @pylepacker.
We made our way to Island Lake. I was feeling slow today, so we plodded along toward Indian Pass. A couple of hikers told us that they had just been up to Indian Pass and did not see snow at the top of Indian Pass. Mmmm, that did not seem right, but we thanked them for the information.
We continued into Indian Basin and were happy to find a flat, slightly wind-protected campsite at 11,000 feet. We wanted to camp high to get an early start over Indian Pass. We were worried about afternoon storms. We were early to dinner and early to bed. The wind was not too bad during the night.
Indian Basin
We left Elkhart trail head at around 9 a.m., at the same time as about five other large groups. We played leapfrog with the groups as everybody needed to stop and take off layers of clothing on the continuous up hill trail. There were many day hikers.
We passed two backcountry rangers on their way out. They had been working in the backcountry for the past eight days. One ranger was female, and the other was male. They both looked very fit. They gave us a little talk about using the “Bearmuda Triangle” for camping, cooking, and food storage.
The day started out partly cloudy. Along the way, we met a friendly group of hikers from Washington, D.C. and enjoyed talking with them. We stopped at Barbara Lake with the D.C. group and enjoyed a long water and snack break with them. The D.C. group was planning to summit Fremont Peak.
The trail was busy throughout the day, with people coming and going. We met several southbound CDT hikers. Steady rain started to fall at around 2 p.m. We were not happy to be hiking in the rain again. The trail was very muddy. The rain continued as we climbed the long hill toward Seneca Lake. Finally, the rain stopped, and we found a flat, grassy campsite on the Highline trail, near its junction with the trail to Island Lake. We set up camp just in time for another rain shower.
We started dinner at about 6 p.m., and while were waiting for our meal to rehydrate, we had a fun chat with a CDT flip flopper (trail name “Rock”). He was looking for any food he could get, as he was getting low on food. Compass was gracious and gave him a bar and a nut butter packet. We could not really spare more, since our trip was just beginning.
Sunset on the nearby peaks was very scenic. Marmots, pika, and golden-mantled ground squirrels were active nearby. It was cold during the night.
Rainy Day at Seneca Lake
Day 2, August 9, 2023 – Highline Trail to Indian Basin
We woke to a frosty, damp tent. The grass was wet from heavy dew. We put on our Sealskins socks to keep our feet dry and warm while we packed up camp and cooked breakfast. On our way out of camp, we met another High Sierra Topix member, pylepacker. He said that he lived in CA and hiked often in the John Muir Wilderness with his dog. It was nice to meet you, @pylepacker.
We made our way to Island Lake. I was feeling slow today, so we plodded along toward Indian Pass. A couple of hikers told us that they had just been up to Indian Pass and did not see snow at the top of Indian Pass. Mmmm, that did not seem right, but we thanked them for the information.
We continued into Indian Basin and were happy to find a flat, slightly wind-protected campsite at 11,000 feet. We wanted to camp high to get an early start over Indian Pass. We were worried about afternoon storms. We were early to dinner and early to bed. The wind was not too bad during the night.
Indian Basin