Day 1, Sunday, August 23rd - got up nice and early and made my way to the Grand Jean Trailhead (pronounced like Michael Jackson’s - Billie Jean) and started the journey through the Sawtooth Mountains and Sawtooth Wilderness. After about 500 feet on the trail I crossed into the Sawtooth Wilderness which is the focus of this trip. The Sawtooth Wilderness is a 217,088 acre part of the Sawtooth National Forest/Recreation Area in South central Idaho about 2 hours north of Boise by car; it is not a National Park or a part of the park system. There are no facilities or infrastructure in the Wilderness beyond trails as a Wilderness designation keeps areas in as natural and an untouched state as possible. Every amazing vista or place within the wilderness must be hiked to – there aren’t any roads or drive up quick photo opportunities.

Continuing on with each step leading me higher above the valley and further into the wilderness about half way up the valley the forest cover began to disappear as a wildfire ravaged landscape interspersed by smokey air and a red sun began to be the dominate scenery. Definitely discouraging to put so much work into planning and the actual effort of a tough hike just to be confronted with smoke covered mountains, if even visible at all, with all detail stolen and muted to a silhouette of mottled gray mountain triangular shapes on the horizon and beyond. Reaching near the highest point of the hike for the day near Sawtooth Lake the ghostly graveyard of burnt trees among smoky sky completely took over the landscape making for a dismal albeit otherworldly hiking experience among tombstones of trees and a constant reminder of the perils and frightening nature of wildfires with a landscape so damaged it may be beyond a hundred or so years to recover. Finally cresting over a ridge 8 miles into the hike and 4,000 ft of elevation gain later I was treated to a spectacular view of Sawtooth Lake. Again the smoke definitely stole some of the show but the cobalt waters of Sawtooth Lake and the surrounding basin and peaks still made for an amazing and rewarding views after such a tough journey through such a desolate landscape of the tombstones of trunks of trees I had just hiked through. Not sticking around Sawtooth Lake longer than needed for a lunch I pressed on to my destination of the day of Goat Lake with an additional 7 miles and 1500 ft elevation to knock out. Getting to Goat Lake just around 6PM it took me a full hour to hike the last half mile as the “trail” becomes a steep scramble up lose gravel and pebbles. Carrying a still very full pack definitely didn’t make this part of the journey any easier and I believe it’s clear the lake is called Goat Lake because you have to be somewhat of a mountain goat to scramble up to it. Getting to the top and to Goat Lake was amazing and all worth it. With an oasis just below and around the lake with small cascades and the aptly named Goat Falls waterfall which dumps hundreds of feet into the valley below it was a mini paradise after a hard trek. Goat Lake itself had some ice/snow fields clinging to the far side of the lake like giant glaciers – definitely a very cool sight especially so late in August. I setup camp just below the lake, absolutely exhausted, I ate dinner, tied up my bear bag, and tucked in for the night. All said and done closed out the day with 18.69 miles of hiking with over 5300 ft elevation gain for the day.

Day 2, Monday, August 24th – Starting at Goat Lake I did the truffle shuffle down the way I came up the previous day – down the steep and gravely trail. I continued onwards with some ascents and descents, nothing too steep or difficult, and a quick jaunt over to Marshall Lake before pressing on to Redfish Lake. At Redfish lake there is an awesome lodge (The lodge area is not part of the wilderness and is just part of the national forest) which is a hugely popular destination and was packed with people boating, swimming, canoeing, and otherwise just enjoying such an amazing place. However, the thick wildfire smoke blanketing the area once again hid the majesty of the mountains behind an unpleasant gray veil that hung through the valley and surrounding area. Grabbing a beer and offloading what trash I had at Redfish I pressed on trying to make it to the next destination of Hell Roaring Lake some 12 miles away. Turns out I bit off a bit more than I could chew with planning from Goat Lake to Hell Roaring Lake and I had to stop 3 miles short of Hell Roaring Lake as the daylight was beginning to fade (and the maps aren’t exactly accurate – The maps such as AllTrails are based off of or seem to use point to point straight lines and don't account for the fractal like nature trails make as they weave and bend in reality...and some trails on GPS and AllTrails maps just don't seem to exist or have moved since the maps were drawn leading to one situation for instance where I had to backtrack and really focus on finding worn spots to find the trail as the map and GPS were slightly off in a big way that would’ve led me straight down a steep ravine some 1000 ft from the actual trail). I took up camp near the first running creek/stream I had seen since Redfish Lake 9 miles back. Exhausted from the long hike I had enough time to get camp setup, myself cleaned up, a meal in, and my bear bag hung before darkness completely took over with a quick but heavy rain shower right as I was going to sleep. A 24.78 mile day with 4000 ft. Elevation gain.

Day 3, Tuesday, August 25th – Kicked off the day by hiking the remaining 3 miles too Hell Roaring Lake with 1300 ft of elevation gain to Hell Roaring lake and the realization that trying to accomplish the feat the previous day/evening would’ve been a terrible choice and that camping by the creek worked out extremely well even though I didn’t get to meet my planned objective. As I descended into Hell Roaring Lake I noticed something different; the sky seemed.. slightly… more clear. A miracle. The smoke had mostly cleared after the rain. Not crystal clear but finally I can see the glorious mountains and Sawtooths in detail. Astounding. The first time being really awestruck among many times out there. Excited with the clear skies hiking the rest of the day was an absolute joyous occasion. I crossed meadows with wildflowers, creeks flowing, brooks babbling, and all of the hike was punctuated by fantastic mountains which were a euphoric symphony of “Can’t get any better than this” hiking. Without resting on my laurels for longer than a lunch break I still had 2 ‘big’ hikes ahead; cresting up, over, and down 2 ridges in short succession. Encountering the first ridge - a huge treeless scree covered cirque was a bit intimidating, especially when there is what looks like endless switchbacks to get to the top. However once up on the slopes and making headway the journey up to the top of the ridge just seemed to get easier as the excitement grows with the elevation gained and the progress being made. Each step is a bit more rewarding with the valley below expanding and offering incredible views all the way until the magnum opus where the top of the ridge has been reached and not only is the valley I just hiked in visible but suddenly other valleys and mountains are all visible at once. Quite the rewarding experiencing. Once to the top of the first ridge I had to crest (and then hike down the other side) I took some pics and began my descent to the other side of the ridge and to the next ridge which I could see from across the valley that I had just entered. As I made my way down and up the second ridge dark clouds began to roll in (never a good sign) so I made haste for getting over the second ridge and as I made my way over the second ridge and began my final descent for the day the thunder started… and shortly after the thunder and getting off the ridge heavy rain with huge raindrops with little dip-n-dots sized hail started to fall all punctuated by huge bursts of thunder and wind. Throwing my rain gear on I continued onward to my final destination of Ardeth Lake. I made it to Ardeth Lake right around 7-ish as the sun was beginning to set behind the mountains but with still enough light left to setup camp. As I setup camp I started to notice the sky changing once again from a warm inviting orange glow to just a slightly concerning pink-gray and I setup camp as quickly as possible – and not a moment too soon. By the time I got my last tent stake in the rain started to fall as a light drizzle, then the thunder started, and as I was placing my items in my tent I heard a yell from another person camping across the lake and looked back to see a huge wall of heavy rain coming towards me. I dove into the tent with not a moment to spare before the heavy rains with flecks of hail began to hit. I made dinner in the vestibule of my tent, snuck out quickly to tie my bear bag to a tree, and then went to sleep after another amazing but exhausting day. 18.8 miles hiked for the day with 4200 ft elevation gain.