Trip Date: July 29 – August 4, 2024

2024 IDAHO & WYOMING ADVENTURE VACATION

Wind River Traverse: Knapsack Col to Hay Pass

Seneca Lake & Island Lake
Shannon Pass
Stroud Peak (12,198 ft)
Knapsack Col
Titcomb Basin
Indian Pass
Alpine Lakes Basin
Camp Pass
Golden Lakes Basin
Hay Pass
North Fork Canyon

Trip Report Summary

Region: Wyoming Rockies

Sub-Region: Wind River Range

Areas: Bridger Wilderness & Fitzpatrick Wilderness

Starting Point: Pole Creek Trailhead in Elkhart Park at end of Skyline Drive / Road 154 (Elev. 9350 feet)

Way Points: Miller Park & Photographers Point & Barbara Lake & Hobbs Lake & Seneca Lake & Island Lake & Fremont Crossing & Lower Jean Lake & Upper Jean Lake & Shannon Pass & Peak Lake & Knapsack Basin & Knapsack Col & Titcomb Basin & Indian Basin & Indian Pass & Knife Point Glacier & Alpine Pass & Alpine Lakes Basin & Camp Lake & Camp Pass & Golden Lakes Basin & Dennis Lake & Hay Pass & North Fork Canyon & Lake Victor & Valley Lake (trail hike & off-trail hike & rock scramble & snow climb)

High Point: Knapsack Col (Elev. 12,250 feet)

Continuation Way Points for Team A: Pipestone Lake & Sandpoint Lake & Bobs Lake & Dream Lake & Raid Lake & East Fork River crossing & Marms Lake & Dads Lake & Mirror Lake (trail hike)

Continuation Way Points for Team B: North Fork Lake & Edmond Lake & Coyote Lake & Cross Lake & Lovatt Lake & Blueberry Lake (trail hike)

Ending Point for Team A: Big Sandy Trailhead at end of Big Sandy Opening Road (Elev. 9100 feet)

Ending Point for Team B: Boulder Creek Trailhead at end of Boulder Lake Road (Elev. 7300 feet)

Campsites: Sheepeater Camp at Island Lake & Upper Knapsack Basin & Upper Indian Basin & Lower Alpine Lake & Lake 10322 in Upper North Fork Canyon & East Fork River Valley (Team A) / Coyote Lake (Team B)

Summit: Stroud Peak (rock scramble via Southwest Slope—Southeast Ridge)

Approximate Stats (Team A): 74.5 miles traveled; 14,550 feet gained; 14,800 feet lost.

Approximate Stats (Team B): 64.0 miles traveled; 12,800 feet gained; 14,850 feet lost.

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Trip Overview

Eileen, Andrew, Kevin, Steven, Brooke, James, and I spent a hot mid-summer week in the Wind River Range of west-central Wyoming. For most of us, this was the first time visiting the “Wind Rivers,” and we were suitably awestruck. There are dozens of granitic peaks towering above 13,000 feet, countless meadows that go on forever, and an unfathomable number of lakes, ponds, and tarns. In fact, it became a surprise if we turned a corner and did NOT see some sort of water body!

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Trip Vision: The idea for an off-trail alpine traverse through the central part of the Wind Rivers was originally suggested by Andrew. Without hesitation, Eileen took on the role of a trip architect, creating an eight-day, J-shaped traverse route that encompassed many of the range’s highlights. These included Stroud Peak, Titcomb Basin, Indian Basin, Alpine Lakes, Golden Lakes, Europe Peak, and Cirque of the Towers. A few mishaps along the way cut our itinerary down to seven days and significantly altered our route, but we still managed to see an astounding variety of terrain. Parts of our route followed the famous Continental Divide Trail (CDT), which runs from Canada to Mexico.

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Vehicle Logistics: Our overall plan was to begin our trip at Pole Creek Trailhead in Elkhart Park, near the west-central side of the range, and then end our trip at Big Sandy Trailhead, near the southern end of the range. Both trailheads are located within a reasonable driving distance from the outdoorsy town of Pinedale. (Many trekkers begin or end at Green River Lakes Trailhead near the northern end of the range, but this requires a much longer drive from Pinedale.) The day before our trip, we dropped two vehicles at the ending trailhead, and hired Gotco Shuttles to drive all seven of us up to the starting trailhead on Day 1.

Route Terrain: Over the course of 65 to 75 miles, we traveled over well-maintained trails, unmaintained trails, vague bootpaths, trail-less meadows, scree and talus slopes, boulderfields, glacial moraines, rock slabs, snowfields, and even a few ice patches. The terrain was moderately challenging in places and very tedious in other places (we must have hopped over a million boulders in the remote lake basins). Most of the snowfields were either sun-softened, making them easy to boot up and down, or were avoidable by taking detours onto adjacent rock slopes. The most notable exception was the Knife Point Glacier between Indian Pass and Alpine Pass; crossing this remnant glacier required traction devices in combination with careful footwork.

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Altitude & Heat: In addition to rugged terrain, we were all affected to varying degrees by the high altitude. The vast majority of our traverse occurred between 10,000 and 11,000 feet, and we crossed three passes (Knapsack Col, Indian Pass, and Alpine Pass) exceeding 12,000 feet. For those of us who live close to sea level, these altitudes really took a toll on our aerobic capacity. Furthermore, the adverse effects of altitude seemed to be greatly compounded by the intense sunshine. The air temperature probably never went above the mid 70’s, but we frequently found ourselves feeling sun-broiled and dehydrated, and desperately seeking shade.

Horse Packing: Early in the planning process, Eileen committed to hiring a horse-packer to take herself, her gear, and some other gear into our first camp. This would not only eliminate a long approach hike for her, it would greatly reduce the Day 1 payload for the rest of us. She made arrangements with Bald Mountain Outfitters in Pinedale, and they handled the task very efficiently. In the end, we were each able to transfer approximately 15 to 20 pounds of our payload to the stock train. This is not an inexpensive option—the total cost for three horses, one mule, and two wranglers was approximately $700—but it turned out to be worth the shared cost.

Water Availability: If any of us envisioned the Wind Rivers being an arid range with scarce water, that idea was quickly dispelled. In fact, this might be the most water-rich mountain range I’ve ever visited. Above 10,000 feet, there were lakes, ponds, tarns, and streams everywhere. Whether on-trail or off-trail, it was rare to travel more than ¼ mile without crossing a stream of some size. Below 9000 feet, however, there were fewer lakes, and many of the smaller creeks were dried up; as such, we had to be more diligent about carrying water. Regarding drinkability, we generally filtered (or chemically treated) water from any lakes or streams located near horse-accessible trails, as well as water from stagnant lakes. In contrast, we never filtered or treated water from high-elevation creeks, springs, lakes, or tarns.

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Wildlife: We heard from local sources that grizzly bears inhabit the northern part of the Wind River Range but rarely venture into the central and southern parts, where we would be trekking. Instead, we would be more likely to see black bears, which are smaller and less-aggressive than grizzlies.  It was even more likely that we would encounter curious marmots and pikas in camp.  To protect our food from these various furry foragers, we used a combination of canisters and kevlar sacks. It was also recommended that we hang our trekking poles to keep small critters from chewing on the salty handles.  By the end of our trip, we had zero bear encounters but one chewed trekking pole.

Full Trip Report

Day 0: Gear Sorting & Car Shuttle

The day before heading out, our group of seven rendezvoused at Gannett Peak Lodge in Pinedale. We sorted our gear into four different piles according to its intended disposition or destination. Some gear would be carried up to Camp 1 by the outfitting company, some would be carried up in our backpacks, some would be driven up to Big Sandy Trailhead for use at the end of the trip, and some would be left in Pinedale. It was a chaotic scene as we took over the lodge’s parking lot!

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After the gear was organized, Kevin, Andrew, James, and Brooke drove up to Big Sandy Trailhead, where they left two vehicles and returned to Pinedale in a third vehicle. There had been initial concerns about the condition of the Big Sandy access road, but it was found to be recently improved and (for now) easily navigated by a standard passenger car. Later in the day, Eileen and I drove over to Bald Mountain Outfitters with our “horse gear.” The owners, Barbara and Terry Pollard, weighed everything (it totaled 118 pounds) and charged us accordingly.

Day 1: Pole Creek Trailhead to Island Lake

On a chilly Monday morning, we all met our Gotco Shuttle driver (Vic) at Gannett Peak Lodge. James had already left his vehicle at a nearby public parking lot (permit required) and returned on foot. Backpacks and bodies were crammed into a big SUV, and Vic drove us up to Elkhart Park. Eileen was dropped off at the outfitter’s corral, where her wranglers were waiting, and the rest of us were taken to Pole Creek Trailhead. Shortly after 8:30am, we were ready to go.

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Eileen’s pack train consisting of three horses and one mule quickly disappeared up the trail, leaving the rest of us to enjoy the approach hike with our sub-30-pound backpacks. We soon entered the Bridger Wilderness in Miller Park and later made a mandatory stop at Photographer’s Point. Some of the mountains that we would be traversing through were visible in the distance.

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We stopped for lunch at Seneca Lake—the largest lake encountered on our traverse—before continuing onward to Island Lake. Along the way, we passed the wranglers heading back to the trailhead. They gave us directions to Eileen’s campsite at the southeastern end of Island Lake.

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The sun was still high in the sky when we arrived at Eileen’s campsite (7.6 hours + 2600 feet from TH), located on a large grassy bench 200 feet above lake level, with a sweeping view of the Wind River crest. The outfitters call this Sheepeater Camp, as a reference to a mutton-eating subgroup of the Shoshone Tribe who once frequented the area. We just called it fabulous!

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Day 2: Island Lake to Upper Knapsack Basin

Eileen and I were up before everyone else, knowing that we had a long day ahead of us and that we would be moving more slowly than our younger contingent. The soft morning light on the surrounding mountains and the glassy surface of Island Lake created a magical scene as we left camp.

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We hiked around the southwestern shore of the lake and then angled northwesterly through lush meadows until intersecting the CDT, which we then followed across Fremont Creek and through beautiful Jean Lake Valley. North of Upper Jean Lake, we left the CDT and continued toward Shannon Pass on a separate trail.

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Andrew caught up to Eileen and me just as we arrived at Shannon Pass in late morning (4.7 hours + 1300 feet from Camp 1). Because all three of us wanted to climb nearby Stroud Peak, we quickly prepared summit packs and headed up the peak’s southwest slope.

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The lower half of our ascent involved a tedious boulderfield, whereas the upper half involved an enjoyable ridge of slabby rock. Andrew raced ahead and topped out just after I started up the ridge. We passed each other several hundred feet below the summit, and he gave me some beta regarding the final Class 3 scramble.

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I stepped onto the 12,198-foot summit and ogled the surrounding peaks, none of which were at all familiar to me. Unfortunately, the hazy midday air limited views to 10 miles or so. Directly below was the unimaginatively named Peak Lake, where our afternoon route would take us.

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I encountered Steven during my descent, and he led me down a better route to Shannon Pass. Once everyone had gathered at the pass, we continued northward down a rocky trail to Peak Lake. An easy rock-hop got us across the outlet stream, and then an improbable path led us around the opposite shoreline.

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From Peak Lake, we headed due east into Knapsack Basin, following a crude trail through meadows and past interconnected ponds. In late afternoon, with dark clouds forming overhead, we made camp in the upper basin at 10,950 feet (9.7 hours + 1900 feet from Camp 1). It was interesting to realize that this basin serves as the source for the Green River—one of the major water courses in Wyoming.

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Day 3: Upper Knapsack Basin to Upper Indian Basin

We awoke to find that yesterday’s clouds and haze had been replaced by blue skies. Morning sun highlighted the walls of the cirque surrounding our campsite. Our day was shaping up to be both scenic and hot.

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Our morning began with a 1300-foot hike and easy scramble up to 12,250-foot Knapsack Col—the highest pass reached on our entire traverse route. From there, we descended a steep, loose talus slope, and then a sun-softened snowfield, and finally a long rubble slope that took us down to the upper reaches of Titcomb Basin in time for lunch (3.7 hours + 1300 feet from Camp 2).

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A crude trail led us down-valley to Upper Titcomb Lake, which sits below the cliffs of Mt. Sacagawea and Fremont Peak—two 13,000-foot giants in the Wind Rivers. The early-afternoon sun was now very hot, so we all stopped and took a dip in the crystal-clear water.

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We continued hiking down through Titcomb Basin until arriving at a marked junction with the Indian Pass Trail. Here, we turned eastward and made a wandering ascent into Indian Basin. This gorgeous basin contains more than a dozen lakes and tarns of all sizes and shapes.

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It was nearly 7:30pm when we found a good campsite at 11,450 feet in the uppermost meadow of Indian Basin (10.3 hours + 2250 feet from Camp 2). This scenic location put us a mere 700 feet below Indian Pass.

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Day 4: Upper Indian Basin to Lower Alpine Lake

We were out of camp at 7:00am and, 45 minutes later, were gathered at 12,150-foot Indian Pass. From here, we could look across the Knife Point Glacier and see Alpine Pass on the opposite side of the large cirque. The traverse between these two passes was expected to be one of the most difficult parts of our entire trek, and that proved to be true in more than one way.

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A short descent of loose talus gave us access to the Knife Point Glacier at a moderately sloping snow bench sandwiched between two icefalls. We donned traction devices (some of us had microspikes, others had full crampons) and headed across the snow bench. Based on advice from several Wind River locals, we had made an advance decision to not bring ice axes except for one emergency axe. This meant using our trekking poles and careful footwork to avoid a long slide down the lower icefall. There were a few unnerving slips and slides along the way, but we eventually got across without any serious incidents.

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Once off the glacier, we began contouring across the cirque on alternating rock ribs and snow chutes. Because we needed to keep our traction devices on for the snow chutes, crossing the rock ribs was more awkward than normal. At one point, Brooke got thrown off balance and keeled over sideways. We all watched in horror at she tumbled 20 feet down the bouldery slope, rolling over three times before coming to a stop with her head against a rock! I instantly had the gut-wrenching thought that she would leaving us in a helicopter. She amazed us all by immediately jumping to her feet and shouting, “I’m OK!” Her only injuries were two bruised knees and some shin lacerations. There was no doubt that her helmet had prevented a concussion—or worse. A short time later, Andrew and James each took a fall in the boulders, resulting in a sore tailbone and a sprained thumb.

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With renewed caution, we continued across the slope until directly below Alpine Pass. A series of faint trekking paths then delivered us to the 12,150-foot pass in mid-morning (3.6 hours + 1150 feet from Camp 3). Knife Point Cirque had extracted a hefty fee in exchange for our crossing, but at least we were all still moving under our own power. Far below to the south were the inviting, deep blue Alpine Lakes set in a valley of gray talus.

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We picked our way down the long couloir on rock and snow to reach Upper Alpine Lake. A lot of boulder-hopping took us around the western shore until encountering a large outcrop that appeared to block our path. Here, Kevin and Steven elected to go over the top of the outcrop, which involved an ascent and subsequent descent of 250 feet. Andrew, Brooke, James, Eileen, and I chose to attempt a lower route across the face of the outcrop.

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Our lower crossing option turned out to be a nifty little adventure route that went up to a grassy ledge and then down slabby rock to the lakeshore. The crux was a Class 3+ dihedral below a small overhang. Given our heavy backpacks, we used a short handline to protect the down-climb.

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By coincidence, our group arrived at the lake outlet at the same time as Kevin and Steven, who reported that their up-and-over route was very straightforward. We then all continued down past Middle and Lower Alpine Lakes, generally staying close to the western shorelines. This involved more tedious hopping from one car-sized boulder to another.

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After curving around the southwestern portion of Lower Alpine Lake, we were faced with a large cliff that extends into the water. This obstruction forced us to ascend a short, bouldery draw leading to a large tarn situated directly south of the lake, and the afternoon heat forced us to stop for a dip in the tarn.

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From the tarn, we turned east and hiked through a broad saddle, then descended northeasterly to the outlet of Lower Alpine Lake. Camp 4 was established in a boulder-strewn meadow adjacent to the lake (11.3 hours + 1900 feet from Camp 3).

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Day 5: Lower Alpine Lake to Lake 10322

From Lower Alpine Lake, we descended alongside the outlet stream until encountering a swampy thicket of arroyo willows. (Andrew had warned us that these scraggly willow bushes are prevalent and feared in the Wind Rivers.) We crashed through the willows, heading southward past a pair of lakes to gain a low ridge saddle overlooking Camp Lake. Our next objective, Camp Pass, was barely visible in the ridgeline far to the right.

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A well-defined trail led us down to Camp Lake’s outlet, around the eastern shore, and up a grassy draw. We passed two large tarns and crossed over 10,950-foot Camp Pass shortly after noon (3.6 hours + 900 feet from Camp 4). A sweltering hike down the southern side of the pass delivered us to Upper Golden Lake in time for a long lunch and swim.

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The remainder of our afternoon was spent hiking down the Golden Lakes Valley and then up past Dennis Lake to Hay Pass (8.8 hours + 1900 feet from Camp 4). The intense sun greatly slowed our pace and demanded a stop at every bit of shade that we could find on the sparsely treed hillside.

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Upon crossing over Hay Pass, we began a gradual descent into North Fork Canyon. The broad, gentle, grassy slopes and large, shallow lakes of the upper canyon were strangely reminiscent of the terrain I saw throughout Peru. We stopped for the day at an attractive meadow adjacent to Lake 10322 (9.8 hours + 1900 feet from Camp 4).

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Day 6: Lake 10322 to Coyote Lake / East Fork River

We headed out at 8:15am, knowing that we had another hot day in front of us. A combination of unmaintained and maintained trails led us down North Fork Canyon, through grassy meadows, forest groves, and willow patches, continuously paralleling North Fork Boulder Creek.

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We were now making good time on easy trail, but Brooke was suffering due to her knee bruises sustained on Day 4 and a weird toe laceration sustained on Day 5. By the time we reached Valley Lake Junction in mid-morning, it became clear that she would be in misery if we continued all the way to Big Sandy Trailhead. A group meeting was held on the trail, and a two-pronged bail-out plan was hatched.

The first component of our plan involved transportation: Kevin, Andrew, and Steven (Team A) would make a southerly beeline on the CDT, covering the remaining 25 miles to Big Sandy Trailhead by tomorrow afternoon. Meanwhile, Brooke, James, Eileen, and I (Team B) would bail out to Boulder Creek Trailhead, located 15 miles to the southwest. Team A would then retrieve our two vehicles from Big Sandy Trailhead and pick up Team B at Boulder Creek Trailhead.

The second component of our plan involved footwear: Because Brooke’s stiff mountain boots were painfully pinching her lacerated toe, Team B executed a complicated four-way footwear swap. Brooke put on Eileen’s soft trail boots, Eileen put on James’ mountain boots, and James put on my trail shoes. Any incompatibilities between foot size and shoe size were resolved by wearing extra socks. Improbable as it seems, this actually worked!

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After redistributing some of our group gear, Team A hustled off down the Fremont Trail (CDT), ticking off an additional 15 miles before stopping for the night in the East Fork River Valley. Team B angled over to the Highline Trail and ticked off an additional 8 miles before making camp at Coyote Lake (10.4 hours + 1250 feet from Camp 5)

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Day 7: Coyote Lake / East Fork River to Trailhead

Having struggled through four consecutive days of intensely sunny weather, it was a relief to wake up to cloudy skies for our 6½-mile exit hike. Eileen, James, Brooke, and I had a pleasant morning as we marched past Lovatt Lake and Blueberry Lake, and we didn’t even mind the thunder showers that drenched us during our last 2 miles before arriving at Boulder Creek Trailhead in mid afternoon (4.6 hours + 250 feet from Camp 6)

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Simultaneously, Andrew, Kevin, and Steven made a 10-mile exit hike down the CDT to Big Sandy Trailhead, where our two vehicles were parked. By 3:30pm, Team A and Team B were reunited at Boulder Creek Trailhead. We all stopped for hamburgers in Pinedale before scattering in three different directions.

Although our traverse had not played out as originally planned, we had an amazing mountain experience nonetheless. Those of us who had made our first visit to the Wind River Range were left with indelible memories and a desire to see more. Brooke later summed up our feelings in a few emphatic words: “OK, Wyoming, we get it: you’re incredible!”

Equipment Comments

During our trip planning process, we debated about what footwear and snow gear we should take to handle the alpine portions of the traverse. Our decision hinged on the size, steepness, and firmness of the snowfields and glaciers that we would encounter along the way. Ultimately, some of us chose to wear stiff mountaineering boots (to facilitate step-kicking), whereas others chose to wear softer trail boots (for overall comfort). Similarly, some of us carried microspikes (for moderate traction), whereas others carried full crampons (for maximum traction). As a weight-saving tactic, we elected to take only one ice axe among the seven of us (for emergency use), relying instead on our trekking poles to maintain stability on steep snow.

In retrospect, I don’t think that anyone had the perfect combination of footwear and snow gear, but we each managed to make our choice work—even on the Knife Point Glacier, which was the most difficult snow crossing of our traverse. My personal recommendation to future trekkers would be one of the following gear combinations: (A) moderately stiff to stiff trail boots with microspikes and an ice axe, or (B) moderately soft to moderately stiff trail boots with crampons and trekking poles. Obviously, different snow conditions would affect the choice of gear, but these recommended combinations would likely be appropriate for an average trekker under typical mid-summer conditions.

Because the Wind Rivers are notorious for mosquitos, gnats, and other annoying insects, we took a variety of chemical repellents, such as DEET, picaridin, and permethrin. These all proved to be effective when reapplied regularly. For use in camp during mealtime, Eileen and I brought a Thermacell Backpacker Mosquito Repeller. This relatively new device utilizes a standard propane/butane fuel canister to heat a chemical pad that emits an odorless, invisible cloud of allethrin to repel insects within a claimed 15-foot zone. Under calm conditions, we found that it did perform as advertised. It was less effective under windy conditions, but insects are naturally less prevalent in a wind anyway. Given the social tendency of our group, we felt that the 4-ounce device was well worth carrying.

Route Maps & Profiles

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Photo Gallery

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