| September 19: Lonesome Lake | |
As I was heading back to my camp and frozen tent, the snow was just starting to melt on the trail and the sun had peaked up warming my bones. I got back to camp to find that my tent and everything else was still frozen solid. I took care of business there for a while to get things thawed and dried before heading down off the ridge and back to the field. I shouldered my pack and headed back through the field and over to the Highline Trail. Actually, at this point, the Highline Trail really isn’t a trail, just a recommended route through this seemingly endless field. This provided the most MAGNIFICENT mountain views that I have ever seen – truly inspiring.
After walking (and talking photos) for over a hour on the Highline, I got sick of not having a trail to follow, so I cut over to the Fremont Trail once again, where a well-defined treadway exists. The views were not as good over here, since Fremont runs along the base of the divide, but I was happy to be making good time and on a real trail once again. All this off-trail navigating really hurts your brain after a while.
So I am strolling down the Fremont Trail, happy as I could be, and then the trail starts a gentle climb up to the top of an open field. After reaching the crest of the hill, I find myself staring at the craziest, sharpest, gnarliest mountains since about an hour ago. This area is called The Cirque of the Towers. There they were, looming large right in front of me, just unbelievable.
After diving back down into the treeline, I headed off trail to a side trail that leads to Shadow Lake, another large mountain lake sitting right up again the Cirque. Yup, this sight blew me away once again. The thing about this lake is that it is on the backside of the Cirque. To get a full view of the Cirque, you need to be inside the semi-circle, which means being on the OTHER side of the Continental Divide. I really wasn’t planning on heading over the divide, but I bumped into a NOLS group of about 10 hikers at Shadow Lake that had just crossed over via Texas Pass. I asked them a few questions about their route, how much snow, how hard it was to find the pass, and decided to give it a shot.
After passing the lake I headed out, again off trail, past three more small mountain lakes pressed right up against the divide. After cruising past the fourth lake, I looked up and saw the pass – ouch! According to my map it was about 1200 feet in a half-mile, straight up over boulders with no breaks. When I was on that climb, Texas Pass was all that existed in my world. There was nothing else but the climb in front of me. Breath, step, drink, repeat. Keep the legs moving at all costs. After I have no idea how long, after my legs were burning more than I thought possible, after trudging through half a foot of snow, I finally reached the top of Texas Pass. What a great feeling, looking back down on the lakes that I went past, staring at the sign marking the divide, and looking ahead to the other side. What a cool thing to do, what a great feeling. I was exhausted and my feet were soaked to the bone, but I felt great!
After a short celebration I headed down the backside of the pass and descended to where I am writing this journal, Lonesome Lake. I am camped out tonight right on the lake looking into the Cirque of the Towers, which is a very humbling scene. Despite the lack of sun, which long ago dipped behind the mammoth towers, it is warmer here than I expected. Hopefully, tonight will be a nice night and I can get an early start tomorrow morning. I’ll follow an actual trail tomorrow past Lonesome Lake and up over Jackass Pass, a much easier pass that will again put me west of the divide. From there, it is an easy six miles down to the Big Sandy trailhead and the conclusion of this fantastic trip.
-Chomp