Greetings from 110 degree Las Vegas! I am escaping the blast furnace next week to take my boys on a pack trip to the Uintas. Anybody been on the trails yet this year that would be willing to give me a condition update? I've heard that the snow is melting fast, but some eyes on the ground to give me a snow/river update would be much appreciated.
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I am sure the lakes on the Mirror Lake Highway are pretty much open. I am headed into Grandaddy basin in the morning. I am pretty sure it is open now. I will post when I get back (Thursday).
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Thanks, Brookie! I understand Hades Pass is open, but I don't know about the Highline Trail. Cordell Andersen, the 84 year old backpacking dynamo, is in the Grandaddies right now. I'll be watching for your report.
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Hiked into Grandaddy Lake yesterday (Wednesday). Lake was open, the cutts were spawning and it was a beautiful day. There were small snowbanks on the lake edge and on some of the north facing slopes. From the pass I could look up into the Naturalist and 4 Lakes areas. There is still some snow but it is going fast. I would think the Highline Trail will be passable by the middle of next week with the possible exception of some of the highest passes (Rocky Sea etc.). Ice out in the High country is upon us.
Will post photos when I get home from work this evening
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Here are a couple photos from the pass above Grandaddy looking north. The first is looking up toward Naturalist Basin and the second toward 4 Lakes Basin. They were taken yesterday (6/17/15). Still some snow but going fast.
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Thanks for the recon, Brookie! That view from Hades Pass is beautiful. We're heading in Tuesday. If we can get over Rocky Sea Pass, we'll do it. If not, it looks like Grandaddy Basin and even Four Lakes Basin will be good backup plans. How was the fishing the day you went in?
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Well, it is almost like cheating, fishing ice out on Grandaddy. There is a stream on the west end, where all the cutts spawn. You cannot bother them by regulation in the stream, but they stage to go up the stream there in the lake. If you cast a bubble and a grey hackle peacock (fly) out over the hundreds of fish in the lake, you can catch one almost every cast. It is a great place to take a kid. My brother in law took his 9 yr old grandson. It is hard to believe, but the boy got bored catching fish. We lost count, but it was not uncommon to go 7 or 8 casts in a row with a fish caught each cast. Rarely did you have more than 2 casts without a fish. We pretty much catch and release - I think the boy wanted grandpa to carry a few out for him - spawners are not great to eat. So yeah the fishing was spectacular.
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We went in from Tuesday through Friday, and the Highline Trail was muddy but open. We did get across Rocky Sea Pass, but we had to go over a large snowfield on the East side of the Pass. Fishing in the lakes just beyond the Pass was pretty fast. Mosquitoes are really bad this year, however. Thanks again for the intel, Brookie!
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Glad you had a good trip. Those early trips into the high country can be really enjoyable. Any photos?
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Not of the fishing. I'm the world's worst dad when it comes to taking out the camera or phone . . . Love the early season up there, though.
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