isleroyaleguy
Member
- Joined
- Jan 23, 2014
- Messages
- 167
Great pics and TR. We only had one day in the Tetons after our Winds trip. But it now heads the list for next year's trip.I did this short, 3 day backpacking trip about a week ago in Grand Teton National Park.
I started out from String Lake, and headed towards Cascade Canyon. The weather was perfect, and the leaves were starting to turn colors as I hiked around Jenny Lake.
The fall colors around Jenny Lake
The trail was surprisingly busy for September, and several people told me about all the moose on the trail. But I had no such luck seeing them. After about 6 miles of hiking, I reached the trail split in Cascade Canyon, and headed up the South Fork.
video of Cascade Canyon
A few miles into the camp zone, I settled on a camp spot I've used a few times before. I set up my tent on a ledge overlooking the river.
Several cascades along the trail
video hiking up the South Fork of Cascade Canyon
Me at camp the first night in South Fork Cascade Canyon
video of camp the first night
Day 2, I was slow to move, and didn't leave camp until almost noon. I leisurely hiked up the canyon, following the stream.
The river below camp
Views from the trail day 2
video of hiking up Cascade Canyon
A few hours later I reached a trail junction , where I headed off towards Avalanche Divide, and enjoyed some spectacular views.
The trail heading up towards Avalanche Divide
Table Mountain
Views from the trail
The Grand Teton, Middle Teton, and South Teton
video of hiking up to avalanche divide
I reached the divide, just below the South Teton, and had more great views on the other side, looking down towards Kit and Snowdrift Lakes.
Avalanche Divide
Looking over towards Hurricane Pass
Kit Lake and Snowdrift Lake in the background
The South Fork of Cascade Canyon behind me. My tripod blew over right after this, chipping my lens. Super windy
I originally had bigger plans of climbing some peaks this day, but found myself worn out, and decided to just relax. I sat at the pass for nearly 2 hours, just enjoying the scene.
Along the divide, looking up towards the South Teton
video from the pass
I dropped down to Snowdrift Lake, and set up my tent near its head, up a bit overlooking the water. To the west is a cirque headwall known as "The Wall". It is visible from HWY 89 as you drive past the airport heading north through Grand Tetons NP, and divides the park from Alaska Basin. You can actually get up and walk on the wall.
Kit Lake with the South Teton above it
Me at camp at Snowdrift Lake
The view of Snowdrift Lake from the foot of the lake
video from the foot of the lake
Snowdrift Lake from its west side
I explored the lakeshore the rest of the afternoon. There was still a bit of snow hanging around the lake.
Snowdrift Lake
I found black bear tracks, along with cub tracks at the head of the lake. Great night.
Black Bear tracks in the mud
video of bear tracks
The South Teton
Camp at Snowdrift Lake
Day three I again took my time. I dropped down Avalanche Canyon, passing a waterfall, and made my way down through boulders over to Taminah Lake. I sat at the lake for a few hours, catching up on some journaling.
First light hitting The Wall on the morning of day 3
Morning video from camp day 3
Looking back at the lake before dropping down into Avalanche Canyon
video looking down at Taminah Lake
Taminah Lake
video hiking down to the lake
Video from the foot of the lake
Taminah Lake actually has campsites by its foot, and has a beautiful outlet stream running out into the canyon below. There is an old trail, no longer maintained, that drops down into the canyon from here on the north side of the creek. A second waterfall is coming from Taminah Lake.
The outlet stream dropping out of Taminah Lake, Taghert Lake in the distance
The waterfall below Taminah Lake.
video of the stream coming out of Taminah lake, overlooking Taghert Lake
Soon I was out of the open, and hiking in the woods. It felt like fall. The colors changes aren't dramatic like the lower elevations, but after hiking here for several months, I definitely notice the difference. Lots of yellow and gold colors.
Avalanche Canyon
video hiking down Avalanche Canyon
Several sections of the route were covered in avalanche debris, and the trail was hard to find at times. Eventually I reached Taghert Lake, and joined up with the main trail. I hiked the last few miles to the trailhead, enjoying the hike out.
Taghert Lake, with Avalanche Canyon in the background
video of Taghert Lake
Hiking out to the trailhead
The end
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Nice job.
Thanks for sharing.
IRG
