Oram Outside

This was the first camping trip of the summer. Summer had been taken hostage by the additional teaching assignments at ISU, PRN shifts at the hospital, and homework for my Mather’s degree. The weeks leading up to the trip I was depressed with the lack of nature and adventure that my summer has had and was in no mood to go on a backpacking trip. Nonetheless, Connor was the driving force behind this trip and I’m so grateful for his determination.

This was a preparatory 3-day trip for the backpacking trip I would be taking over the Labor Day weekend. Because of this, we justified splurging on new sleeping bags, a backpacking tent, a new cooking setup, and other backpacking gear. It was a perfect trip to try new gears and determine if any changes needed to happen before my other, more intense backpacking trip.

The itinerary was a 3 day, 2 night backpacking trip to Sawtooth Lake. It was 10 miles round-trip with 1,818 ft of elevation gain. We left Pocatello Friday early morning for the three and a half hour drive to Stanley, ID. Stanley is an incredible mountain town with the Sawtooth mountain range as a pristine backdrop. Arriving at the the trailhead at 11am had us getting creative to find a spot to park the truck.

The hike up was breathtaking and enjoyable. The legs were burning with the elevation and we were able to enjoy some fair weather all the way to the top. The wildflowers were still in bloom in the higher elevations and made for incredible scenes as we approached the lower lake.

Sawtooth Lake is a large alpine lake with dramatic rock walls surrounding 80% of its’ shores. There is a small rock peak, separate of the surrounding rock walls that encroaches into the south side of the lake, which we determined was the ideal site to set up camp.

Mostly exposed, but with the grandest views, we enjoyed the remainder of our Friday. Since we planned to stay at Sawtooth Lake for two nights, we didn’t have to worry about waking up early to breakdown camp or anything like that. We got out hammocks set up, enjoyed the temperate weather of the morning napping and listening to some downloaded podcasts.

This trip we only packed our film cameras to document the views and nature. This allowed us to have lighter packs but forced us to be more intentional with our photos. It was great until my camera decided to tear the roll of film I had completed, requiring an improvised sleeping bag dark-room to attempt to salvage it (it was unsuccessful).

As the afternoon winded down, the weather began to get more interesting. We had anticipated some rainy weather and moved our hangout into the dryness of the tent. The evening was spent reading books and listening to the rain. We had a window of dry weather to filter some water and rehydrate some dinner, then took cover for the remainder of the night.

As we lay, preparing to fall asleep, we listened to a podcast episode of National Park After Dark episode 164: The Spark Ranger. Shenandoah National Park. Coincidentally, learning of Roy Sullivan who was struck by lightning way too many times, right before our own light show began. Being on top of the small rock peak, exposed, listening to the thunder bouncing off the surrounding rock walls was…intense. It was difficult to fall asleep, to say the least.

We survived the night and woke to clouds moving through the the lake’s valley, everything wet and quiet. With minimal rain, we decided it would be best to pack up camp and hit the trail, rather than trying our luck with the weather. We enjoyed a nice hike back down into the valley without getting too wet.

A quick stop for coffee in Stanley we enjoyed a moody drive back to Pocatello. This trip turned out to be exactly what I was needing. Feeling sorry for myself on how “lame” my summer had been would have kept me home and depressed. Though it didn’t solve everything, it certainly make me grateful for Connor, and all the adventures we share.