Packard Lake

[DrNed]

The last few years on my birthday I've done some of the shorter routes in the Uintas as day hikes.

My wife, Nancy, whose attitude about camping and backpacking has been, "I've got a house, why
would I want to sleep in the woods?"

Surprisingly, this year she said, "I'll backpack with you for one night."

So I turned my day hike to Packard Lake into an overnighter with my wife.

We arrived at the Hayden Pass Trail head at Mirror Lake Highway mid morning on the Friday before
Labor Day.



After getting out of the car I noticed this car and knew it was going to be a great hike.


As we're getting our packs together, I decide to visit the outhouse. I get in, close and lock the door. The stench is
so bad I have to swallow the quickly rising contents of my stomach. I go to unlock the door and get out
except the handle on the dead bolt just spins.

You have got to be kidding me!

I gag again and quickly pull my Buff up and over my nose to try and filter the stink.

I start pounding on the door, hoping Nancy, or anyone, would hear and rescue me from
this foul prison.

Then I remember, I've got my multi tool on my belt!

I quickly undo the screws on the deadbolt, take off the cap and expose the locking mechanism.



Even with the cover off it took some prying on the lock to be able to get out.

With that embarrassment behind me, we were off.


You have to keep a sharp eye out or you'll hike right past the turn off.


I wanted to do this hike for one reason, this view


Same spot, looking up the drainage.






The smoke in the background is the Murdock Basin fire in its early days.


I had also recently upgraded my phone to an iPhone 8 and I did some playing around with the camera features.




Back at camp


Recently I picked up two Helinox Chair Zeros.

I've liked it.

Agreeing to do this hike my wife required that I get her a STP (Stand To Pee) device.
She went with the Tinkle Bell and after one overnighter she gives it high marks.

Lastly, if you decide to do this hike be aware that maps and reality don't match.


I spent way too much time trying to find the trail from Wyman Lake to Packard as marked on the map.

I could not find it.

I marked the trail as it exists in reality.

Overall, the hike is pretty bland, but the views from the cliff on the southwest end of
Packard lake of the Duchesne river drainage are pretty spectacular.

 

[Miya]

So glad your wife decided to come with you! Hopefully she had fun too.

Glad you escaped the bathroom! Pretty cool you saw a backcountrypost sticker! I am always hoping to see one in CA and make a friend! Lol

Thanks for sharing! I have been back and forth about getting one of the Helinox Chairs. Good to hear you like yours.

 

[Titans]

Nice! Do you think your wife will join you every year from now on for an overnight backpack birthday trip?
Glad you escaped from the stinky outhouse.

 

[DrNed]

I have been back and forth about getting one of the Helinox Chairs.

I think it's a good investment. They come in at 1 pound.

The only downside for me is that they sit very low to the ground and thus
getting in and out can be a little bit of effort. Also, unless the ground is
firm the legs will sink in making the getting out a tid bit trickier. But realize
that's the 50 year old me saying that not the 30 year old me.

 

[DrNed]

Nice! Do you think your wife will join you every year from now on for an overnight backpack birthday trip?
Glad you escaped from the stinky outhouse.

I'd always have to take her late season, when the bugs are gone. She would NOT tolerate
swarming mosquitoes experienced earlier in the summer.

She liked taking pictures and having a massive three lake region all to ourselves.

Short answer long, by creating the right circumstances, she would.

Thanks!

 

[Parma]

Thanks for sharing! I have been back and forth about getting one of the Helinox Chairs. Good to hear you like yours.

I have the REI chair and it weighs 1.7 lbs. I consider it my luxury item I bring and consider it a must now. For meeee, it's so worth the weight. They now have the Chair Zero that weighs 1 lb.

 

[Miya]

I think it's a good investment. They come in at 1 pound.

The only downside for me is that they sit very low to the ground and thus
getting in and out can be a little bit of effort. Also, unless the ground is
firm the legs will sink in making the getting out a tid bit trickier. But realize
that's the 50 year old me saying that not the 30 year old me.

Gotta be a little easier than getting up from the ground, right?

 

[Ugly]

Too bad we didn't cross paths.
The magenta moneypit is happiest when she's at a trailhead waiting for me....

Maybe it was I who broke the outhouse door? Tho it was working when I was in there...

I always think I want to detour to Packard and co, but haven't yet. I'll have to next time. Very cool report and pics too.

I am interested to see how the trail looks post murdock, even after seeing @Perry report. Maybe the views down the Duchesne are even more open.

 

[Perry]

Too bad we didn't cross paths.
The magenta moneypit is happiest when she's at a trailhead waiting for me....

Maybe it was I who broke the outhouse door? Tho it was working when I was in there...

I always think I want to detour to Packard and co, but haven't yet. I'll have to next time. Very cool report and pics too.

I am interested to see how the trail looks post murdock, even after seeing @Perry report. Maybe the views down the Duchesne are even more open.

I just checked my pictures to see if I had anything looking down the drainage from the Scudder Lake area but didn’t find any. I thought I had taken some but I’m guessing I shot video of it. If I can get a work project finished I might finally have time put a video together.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[wabenho]

Packard is a fun overnighter. Love that view. Thanks for sharing!

The only hesitation I have had about taking my wife or other noobs on that one is that it is almost all downhill on the way in and almost all uphill on the way out. I could see that producing some complaints. Sounds like it was not an issue for you guys.

Good idea to post that trail info. I remember being confused at that point and then just continuing down the east side of Wyman because I knew that good view point was at the south end of Packard anyway.

 

[DrNed]

Packard is a fun overnighter. Love that view. Thanks for sharing!

The only hesitation I have had about taking my wife or other noobs on that one is that it is almost all downhill on the way in and almost all uphill on the way out. I could see that producing some complaints. Sounds like it was not an issue for you guys.

Good idea to post that trail info. I remember being confused at that point and then just continuing down the east side of Wyman because I knew that good view point was at the south end of Packard anyway.

I should have said in my report that is was your images of the Duchesne River that put this on my to-do list.
Thanks!

 

[Outdoors24]

That was an excellent view! I'm glad both you an your wife a great time. Thanks for sharing!

 

[bentley]

The last few years on my birthday I've done some of the shorter routes in the Uintas as day hikes.

My wife, Nancy, whose attitude about camping and backpacking has been, "I've got a house, why
would I want to sleep in the woods?"

Surprisingly, this year she said, "I'll backpack with you for one night."

So I turned my day hike to Packard Lake into an overnighter with my wife.

We arrived at the Hayden Pass Trail head at Mirror Lake Highway mid morning on the Friday before
Labor Day.
View attachment 73747


After getting out of the car I noticed this car and knew it was going to be a great hike.
View attachment 73744

As we're getting our packs together, I decide to visit the outhouse. I get in, close and lock the door. The stench is
so bad I have to swallow the quickly rising contents of my stomach. I go to unlock the door and get out
except the handle on the dead bolt just spins.

You have got to be kidding me!

I gag again and quickly pull my Buff up and over my nose to try and filter the stink.

I start pounding on the door, hoping Nancy, or anyone, would hear and rescue me from
this foul prison.

Then I remember, I've got my multi tool on my belt!

I quickly undo the screws on the deadbolt, take off the cap and expose the locking mechanism.

View attachment 73745

Even with the cover off it took some prying on the lock to be able to get out.

With that embarrassment behind me, we were off.
View attachment 73746

You have to keep a sharp eye out or you'll hike right past the turn off.
View attachment 73755

I wanted to do this hike for one reason, this view
View attachment 73748

Same spot, looking up the drainage.
View attachment 73753



View attachment 73749

The smoke in the background is the Murdock Basin fire in its early days.
View attachment 73750

I had also recently upgraded my phone to an iPhone 8 and I did some playing around with the camera features.
View attachment 73751

View attachment 73752

Back at camp
View attachment 73754

Recently I picked up two Helinox Chair Zeros.

I've liked it.

Agreeing to do this hike my wife required that I get her a STP (Stand To Pee) device.
She went with the Tinkle Bell and after one overnighter she gives it high marks.

Lastly, if you decide to do this hike be aware that maps and reality don't match.
View attachment 73757

I spent way too much time trying to find the trail from Wyman Lake to Packard as marked on the map.

I could not find it.

I marked the trail as it exists in reality.

Overall, the hike is pretty bland, but the views from the cliff on the southwest end of
Packard lake of the Duchesne river drainage are pretty spectacular.

Great that you got your wife to go with you. My generation of women just don't dig camping out. Yes there is that one great view but overall I would have to say that Packard Lake really isn't worth the effort. It is a boring non scenic hike that is mostly all downhill on the way in and all uphill on the way out and the lake itself isn't much. I have been there four times and the fishing was lousy all but one time. It is very shallow and hard to fish with downed trees all around the lake except in the meadow area where it is generally pretty wet and hard to get near the water; and the opposite side from the trail is one pain in the butt to even walk around. Wyman and Wilder are lousy fishing lakes with very small fish. Wilder Lake is much deeper than the other two and has a few excellent campsites.

 

[WasatchWill]

Awesome that your wife opted to make it an overnight with you. What a pleasant surprise. Those kind of simple trips are always among my most favorite when my wife is able to join along. Wild story about that lock! Those things stink so bad, I often prefer to wait till I'm further up trail before going off to do my business just for the sake of fresher air and now, not having to risk the lock malfunctioning.

It was cool to see more pics of that view down over the drainage I hiked up this last year on my big trip. I bought my wife one of those STP/FUD devices (Go Girl) years ago thinking it would be a game-changer for her. Nope...she couldn't bring herself to get comfortable and confident with it and reasoned that to use it, she still had to lower her pants and expose her self all the same that it just wasn't worth what she says was more of hassle for her to use it and has opted to just keep to the old-fashioned way rather than fuss with something extra to pack and the sanitary maintenance of it.

 

[DrNed]

Awesome that your wife opted to make it an overnight with you. What a pleasant surprise. Those kind of simple trips are always among my most favorite when my wife is able to join along. Wild story about that lock! Those things stink so bad, I often prefer to wait till I'm further up trail before going off to do my business just for the sake of fresher air and now, not having to risk the lock malfunctioning.

It was cool to see more pics of that view down over the drainage I hiked up this last year on my big trip. I bought my wife one of those STP/FUD devices (Go Girl) years ago thinking it would be a game-changer for her. Nope...she couldn't bring herself to get comfortable and confident with it and reasoned that to use it, she still had to lower her pants and expose her self all the same that it just wasn't worth what she says was more of hassle for her to use it and has opted to just keep to the old-fashioned way rather than fuss with something extra to pack and the sanitary maintenance of it.

Ha!

My wife said that hardest thing was relaxing her bladder while standing.