Skinny Dipper Lake

One night while I was dorking out on Google Earth retracing my steps from a previous hike, I zoomed waaaaay in and noticed a lake that I had never seen before on any trail maps for the area. Google showed the lake was named, "Skinny Dipper Lake." How had I not heard of this lake when I worked as a Backcountry Ranger for the Forest Service? This must be one of those secret places that we always hear about! Yet, I've never heard about it! Not a peep! The next day I asked one of my friends, a long time Teton Valley resident and hiker if she knew anything about this lake. "Skinny Dipper Lake! I haven't been there in years! It's beautiful! Let's go! I hope I can remember how to get there," she exclaimed. A few more days passed and we sent out for the lake venturing off trail several times and scrambling over some rocks to pick up a faint trail to the lake. This lake was absolutely magnificent! I can't believe I've lived here for 7 years and just now discovered my favorite lake on the Western side of the Tetons. What an absolute gem! 

The secret isn't out because of this post. It's impossible to give directions to this lake I promise. I already tried. 

Earliest Wind River Backpack Trip

What a low snow year means is the start to an early backpacking season! We hiked in on July 13th! I expected to see a lot more snow but that wasn't the case at all! No lingering snow here! Just plenty of mosquitoes! But we brought a mosquito net and plenty of deet to keep them away. Both worked well enough to make dealing with the swarms, bearable. 

Gros Ventre Wilderness

We went backpacking about a month ago in the Gros Ventre Wilderness in Wyoming near Jackson Hole. Our hike was supposed to be a two night three day loop but plans changed after hitting a high creek crossing that we couldn't cross with all three dogs. Water was raging high. We changed our route to backpack in to Shoal Falls and only stayed one night. The weather was so bad all night. Intense booming thunder and lighting kept me up most of the night. Little did we know there were tornado warnings for the area! Haha! Weather forecasts for the mountains can change on the minute! The following day made the sleepless night worth it. Here are a few highlights from this trip. 

Some lovely day hikes

These photos are some highlights from several different day hikes in May. We had a lot less snow this past winter which opened up the backcountry earlier than usual and I'm okay with a longer hiking season! 

This photo was taken June 3rd. All north facing slopes hang onto winter snow the longest.