Lofty Lake Loop, Uintas- June 2012

I had originally planned a weekend long trip with a friend of mine, but he got food poisoning, so he backed out last minute. I was thinking maybe my weekend was a wash? Not to be, I decided to get back to basics, going solo like I used to years ago. I got up Saturday morning and headed out to the Uintas to do a solo trek on the Lofty Lake Loop. I had heard that this trail was pretty busy, so I has some plans to beat the crowds. I started in and there was no one around. As I kept climbing, there was still no one out here. Had the reputation of this trail been false all along? I had read on several sites and books saying this was a particularly heavily used trail, but not on this day. I was solo all the way up to Picturesque Lake, Scout Lake, and to the pass to Lofty Lake. The hike in was so much fun, and very beautiful. As I climbed to the pass, the view just kept getting better.

I got to the top, and shot a pretty nice pano. I walked the shot distance over the pass, and there was Lofty Lake in my view. What an awesome lake tucked back in this high elevation basin. I took some shots and walked around the lake, but decided to push on as the wind was pretty strong up here. As I started to descend the switchbacks, I had a familiar site in my view, Cutthroat Lake down in the basin to the north. I did not know how the campsites were at Kamas Lake, being that I had never been there, but I had hiked to Cutthroat last August while camped at Jewel Lake, so I figured this was tucked back in, and better for photos. I climbed down to the lake, and found a nice camp spot with a lake view and was tucked into the trees. I set up shop, and then started fishing.

Had one on in about 10 minutes of tossing a fly out there. They were attacking everything that was on the surface. I fished until dusk, then got out the camera, took some shots and made dinner. Since there is a state wide fire restriction in place, alas no fish for dinner on this trip. Dehydrated backpacker meals to the rescue! As night settled in, the stars and some fire smoke crept into the sky, and I settled in with my frosty beverage I packed in as I took tonz of pics as the night sky shown bright with the stars. Finally, I was tired and ready to crash out. Some great sleep for sure. I woke as the sun was up over the ridge and shinning down on the lake. Made coffee, and enjoyed the view. Breakfast and a quick pack, and I was off to complete the loop past Kamas Lake and out through Reids Meadow. It was perfect temps for this hike. A few log jams to get to the meadow, but nothing too difficult. I actually made super good time and was standing back at my car before I knew it. I am gonna do some more solo adventures in the future.

I was on my own time, and only had to worry about myself while out there. It was quiet, peaceful, and I really felt relaxed. Good times, enjoy the pics- more adventures soon!