(Non-skiing) Backpacking Uinta Mts, UT 6/24-25/06

It was a wild and crazy week. After returning home Friday night from summer skiing on Mt. Hood, The Kid and I packed up, joined friend Stephan on Saturday and headed for the Uintas.

Our goal: a quick overnight backpacking trip to Clyde Lake, atop a mountain pass at timberline at 10,436 feet. The first image below is a map. I wanted to keep it easy a) because we were pretty beat from skiing and traveling on Friday, and b) because it was The Kid's first backpacking trip.

The weather was rarely beautiful with barely a cloud in the sky with no risk of afternoon thunderstorms as we hit the trailhead and headed north late at around 4:30. Our easy 1.75-mile hike in was made nearly a mile longer by a wrong turn early in the hike, but we still reached our camp site in the shadow of 11,521-foot Mount Watson by 6:00 or so with plenty of afternoon sun left to pitch our tents, make dinner, get a camp fire going, and relax as the sun went down. We had the place to ourselves.

Last night I saw more stars than I've ever seen in my life. With no light pollution anywhere around, the stars literally stretched from horizon to horizon -- I've never before witnessed the ability to see stars right to the point where sky meets land. We relaxed by the campfire and watched the trout surface in the lake until around 10:30, when the last light finally disappeared from the western sky and we bedded down for the night.

I awoke at 8 am to the gorgeous scenes that you see below. It sure makes you feel lucky to be alive.

We packed up and headed back out by 10:00 this morning. Like I said, what a week!

Last night I saw more stars than I've ever seen in my life. With no light pollution anywhere around, the stars literally stretched from horizon to horizon -- I've never before witnessed the ability to see stars right to the point where sky meets land.

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this happened to me one night in minnesota in the middle of nowhere. it is an amazing experience, you will never forget that moment if you memory works anything like mine.

One more map. For those who are unfamiliar with the part of Utah we were in, I've placed a red flag near the center of the map below to denote where we were. Having wonders like that a mere hour from home is another reason that I just love living here.

Beautiful pictures Marc. There is nothing like a clear night sky at altitude. Great thing to do with the kid. My sons are 27 (Army) and 30 (Navy). I am so looking forward to getting out there and taking some "walks" with each of them. My younger son is pretty hard core considering his experiences with the infantry as part of a UN peace-keeping mission in the mountains of Macedonea (much of it in winter snows). If you are ever looking for company in the future, I'd be pleased to be on your short list for an invitation. Of course, I still have to sell the house and move west, but that could happen any day.

tirolerpeter":1z94p244 said:

If you are ever looking for company in the future, I'd be pleased to be on your short list for an invitation.

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Absolutely, Peter.

BTW, I sent you a rather lengthy PM right after you joined, but I'm not sure whether or not you've noticed it as I haven't heard back.

Marc....amazing pictures. D@mn man. I hope you've got some big, high-resolution files of the lake with mountain in the background plus one awesome reflection. You should take 'em somewhere and get one made into a poster or something. Haven't seen shots like that in a TR in a long time.

Also, the stars thing is pretty cool isn't it? Twice I've been to an Apache Indian Reservation in the middle of nowhere Arizona...5 hours from Phoenix in a high elevation desert at 7,000ft...near Ski Apache or whatever ski area it is, but man, stars from horizon to horizon and more than you'd ever, ever think were out there.

Here in the east, even well away from everything, you can't get the true effect...the higher elevations and desert air out west add that extra clarity that is mind boggling.

powderfreak":392rk3q6 said:

I hope you've got some big, high-resolution files of the lake with mountain in the background plus one awesome reflection.

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But of course! :wink:

So where are the photos from your ascent of Mt. Watson?
:wink: :wink: :wink: 8)
So now I know why you didn't make it to the Utah Arts Festival this weekend!

Marc_C":2dxkimbw said:

So where are the photos from your ascent of Mt. Watson?
:wink: :wink: :wink: 8)

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We'd actually been thinking about it, and it was suggested by the owner of Samak Smoke House when he heard that we were heading for Clyde Lake. However,

1. We were pretty beat after lapping high-speed quads for 6.5 hours non-stop plus 3 hours of driving and plane travel the day before; and

2. There was no obvious good route up Watson that we could see, although the topo showed the pitch to be slightly shallower on the west side.

Admin":2onclgzw said:

2. There was no obvious good route up Watson that we could see, although the topo showed the pitch to be slightly shallower on the west side.

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Um, there are no good routes pretty much anywhere in the Uintas! All the peaks are chossy slag heaps!!

The following is from summitpost.org:

There are many routes available to climb the Mount Watson, and the peak can be climbed from almost every direction.

The easiest route is from Watson Pass and the South Ridge. The route heads west from Crystal Lake to Watson Pass, and then follows the ridge north to the summit. This route is about 4.5 miles round trip with 1700 feet elevation gain.

The second easiest route is probably the Northwest Ridge from Clyde Lake. The route follows the Notch Mountain trail north, past Wall and Hope Lakes to the base of the Notch. The route then heads west to Clyde Lake and climbs the NE Ridge of Watson to the summit. This route is about 8 miles round trip with 1700 feet elevation gain.

Perhaps the most beautiful route, and my favorite one, is from the West Ridge and Middle Fork Weber River. This is the longest route described and is climbed very seldom. The trails in the Middle Fork Basin are not well defined and route-finding skills are needed. The round trip distance is 16 miles for this route.

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The full Mt. Watson entry at SummitPost

Marc_C":2xftko52 said:

The second easiest route is probably the Northwest Ridge from Clyde Lake. The route follows the Notch Mountain trail north, past Wall and Hope Lakes to the base of the Notch. The route then heads west to Clyde Lake and climbs the NE Ridge of Watson to the summit. This route is about 8 miles round trip with 1700 feet elevation gain.

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We took a more direct route to Clyde Lake, but still...ick! I sat at camp staring up at that NE ridge of Watson and decided...um, nope. It looked like one ugly climb, especially in the shape that we were in.