Sawtooths or Uintas?

Duke said:
Goat Lake in the Sawtooths is the most beautiful lake I have ever seen.
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I've got to agree. Last time I was up there it was simply breathtaking.

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markoboston said:
I have pretty much decided to stick with the Sawtooths, at least this year. I've already done a fair amount of planning, and it still seems like an awesome place to go. Maybe on a future trip I will go to the Wind River Range. It looks awesome, too. I will write up a report on my trip for this forum.
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I just barely got back from the Sawtooth Range for my second time. Gorgeous. Cramer Lakes were cool for my first trip up there. This last time I spent two days and one night at Baron Lakes. Very pretty. We saw plenty of people but were able to find a nice quite site away from everyone. Skeeters were definitely there but not the worst I've seen (Winds and Uintas have been worse for me. I'm sure it depends on time, location, snow pack, weather, etc.) I agree with others here - Goat Lake is a jewel. My friend bagged Alpine Peak (above Sawtooth Lake) and loved it. Plenty of good stuff there.

That said...the Winds are AWESOME, too. Have fun in the Sawtooths!
 
I really think you can't go wrong with either range. I thought the Sawtooths were quite beautiful, in a different way than the Uintas are. I love that each range has it's own flavor. You have lots of great options available in either one, so do some trail research and find a place that speaks to you. Happy trails!
 
markoboston said:
I am flying to Salt Lake City next week and renting a car, planning a 1-week wilderness solo trip from there. I had been planning to drive up to the Sawtooths in Idaho because I had read that it might be the most beautiful US wilderness area (outside of Alaska anyway). I have even more or less figured out where I think I want to camp there (Upper Redfish Lakes). But then I read a trip report elsewhere online from a Utahan who felt that the Sawtooths were mosquito-infested and overrated and that he'd rather backpack in the Uintas. I hadn't heard much about the Uintas before that (living in New England), so I looked into it, and they look pretty nice, too. Can anyone who's been to both mountain ranges comment on which of the two I should visit? I don't mind a couple extra hours driving (after flying all that way), so that is not a big consideration. Which mountain range is more likely to awe me? Which mountain range is less likely to horrify me with clouds of mosquitoes? And if you recommend the Uintas, can you recommend a beautiful spot or two where I might head? Since I will be solo and do not travel ultralight, I have a heavy pack, so I like to hike far enough in to get a pretty but solitary site for a base camp, and then explore from there on day hikes. (I've done this on several solo trips in Colorado and the Sierras.) I'd like my base camp site to be no more than 9 miles in from the trailhead with up to 2000 feet of elevation gain. If the site is closer to the trailhead, I can handle a little more elevation gain. Thank you in advance for your helpful advice!
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wait......................... changed my mine. There is nothing to see in the Sawtooth's ............ ;) ;). I want it to myself in the solitude....
 
I like the Sawtooths a lot. Less elevation, while not as spectacular allows for less altitude acclimatization. You are from sea level so starting @ 10K in the Winds is going to slow you down. Most of the guys on this site are very use to high elevation changes, so 10 K is easy to them. I know when I fly into SLC I can feel the altitude, never get altitude sickness but I breathe a little heavier. Be ready for that especially in planning your routes. My experiences in the Unitas goes back too many years to be useful but I did love playing and growing up in the mountains.
All of the choices though are excellent.
 
Decent route. Sept is a good time. Up to camp two is popular. The rest is not a well traveled.
 
I'm doing Redfish Lake to Iron Creek via Baron Lakes and Sawtooth Lake next week. I'll post a report and see what all yall think of it. it looks like it should be a fun route.
 
I would very much like to see a TR from the Sawtooths Parma. Bob, What route or lakes would you suggest? I might not make it up this sept, but Its on the radar.
 
Check out the resources section above on this forum. I have a Sawtooth trip posted there with links. And GPSr link posted. Personally we go for off trail stuff as much as we can. I'll dig my map out and give suggestions. Sawtooth's off trail is not for the faint of heart. They are not like the Winds or Uintas, they are in your face up and down constantly.
 
Thanks Bob, Ill check out the TR and keep to the marked trails. I dont mind some moderate scrambling or using gear to get around, but it takes me some time to go do some climbing and trust the people im with not to do stupid things when scared lol. Just havnt been in those circles since I left Alaska.
 
Off trail is not really actual climbing. Lots of scree, boulder hopping, steep inclines, narrow ledges, snow fields......
 
Gotcha, thats not bad then. Just good route finding and navigation which I can do. Thanks agian Bob.
 
Obviously if you go to Island Lake in the WInds you have to dayhike to Titcomb Basin- stunning do not miss it. I was at Island Lake and there were people around, but everyone was pretty spread out. Island Lake is a great base camp. You have Titcomb Basin, Indian Basin, The Big Water Slide, and an offtrail route to Wall Lake to explore. I'm like you- I want solitude at camp, but Island Lake is worth it. The Winds are great in general- I'm heading there for the third year in row this September.
 
Consider fire season, check Inciweb. Sawtooths always seem to have a greater risk from smoke causing problems. We did the Sawtooths last year, came in at the lake south of Redfish lake, made a big horseshoe type loop, ended with getting on the boat at Redfish lake. Bad fire season as people know had a big fire around Haily and impacted our trip. Another thing to consider is the elevation. The Uintas are at a generally higher elevation than the Swatooths 10,500 -12,500 v/s 7000-10000. For the Sawtooth,s I would say stay away from going in Grandjean TH, and unfortunately there is no easy way to work Sawtooth Lake into your route unless you start or finish at that TH. Personally, I prefer the Uintas, lots of above treeline hiking, the passes vary, more chance of seeing big wildlife, lots of oppurtunity for off trail adventures. Scenery is different as far as rock landscape, i'll give that to the Sawtooths, but the Uintas are interesting in thier own right. For the Uintas a car shuttle, is more diificult, we are looking at a 4 hour shuffle just to get us setup for our hike this year. But, it will be 7 days on the Highline trail staying high the whole time, can't beat that. I can give you our trip route from last year, it was like 6 or 7 days though .
 
Fire season in Idaho affects everywhere from the Sawtooth's across the Teton's and across the Winds...... This year shouldn't be as bad fires have been staying small so far.
 
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