Duck Lake, Uinta Mountains- 6.24/25/26.2016

I finally made it out to the Uintas this year. We have had to wait because the snow was melting off really slowly with how cool May was. We started on Friday afternoon and headed in on the trail. It was dry, and the Forest Service had gone in and cut down all the trees that had fallen on the trail. I made a quick pace and found myself on the pass before I knew it. After arriving on the pass we descended to Long Lake. We hiked past Long Lake, and then moved on down the trail to Duck Lake. We arrived to the other half of our party, who had nabbed our site because this was a busy weekend out in the Uintas. We got shop set up and settled in for a nice evening. I shot some photography, then called it a night.

I awoke to blue skies and warm temps. I decided to try to fish in the morning before the winds that were predicted to kick up got out of hand. After fishing for a bit, we all made breakfast and put it together to hike up to Fire Lake. It is a steep but short climb up to Fire Lake, and one that gets more scenic as you head up. We arrived at Fire Lake to find it ready to go for summer. We all tried our hand at fishing, but alas no one had any luck up there. Not sure what the deal was, but they were very picky. We eventually moved on to hike back to Duck via some ponds above Fire Lake and down past Island Lake. The hike back was a nice walk in the woods. The wildflowers are just coming alive so that was awesome to see. Eventually I found myself back at camp, and put in for some more fishing which landed a nice Cutthroat for dinner. Evening settled in and we got a fire going and made dinner. The temps were much colder as a cold front was forecast to come into the area. I stayed up as long as I could, and ended up with a nice shot of the Milky Way.

I awoke on Sunday to really hot temps. I actually slept in a bit, which is unusual for me as I am a early riser. I got up, made some coffee, hung out with the crew, then packed it up to head out. The hike out was a warm one, but very nice to see Weir and Pot Lakes, having hiked most of this basin in one weekend. After four miles of hiking I found myself standing at the car. It was a great first trip of the season out in the Uintas. Enjoy the pics, more adventures to come.