Trapper's Peak & Wall Lake

 

Check out that awesome gaggle of backpack-laden boys and dogs, all shined up and ready to hit the trail!

This gang was ready to hike up a mountain, set up camp by the lake and spend the next 3 days hiking around Wall Lake, including a summit of Trapper's Peak at 12,002 feet!

And who, you might ask were the adults in charge of this rag-tag group of backpackers?

John (tour guide), Kris (camp expert) and me

And so... off we went! We left Monday morning and enjoyed about a 3 hour climb to get to our camp site at Wall Lake. The boys carried their own stuff - including sleeping bags and sleeping pads, clothes and some water and food. Hamp's pack weighed about 15 pounds... just enough for a first time backpacker! The adults carried tents and cooking supplies - with packs weighing from 30 to 50 pounds! (Hmmm... wonder whose was only 30?!) Oh, and Gabe carried all the dog food!

taking a break on the trail!

After braving a lightning storm and being pelted by sleet at 10,000 feet, we made it - albeit a little wet and a little cold and a little tired! - to the campsite. The sun came out and made the rest of the afternoon perfect for setting up our tents, getting a campfire going, collecting firewood and checking out the lake and the view!

Gabe & Lola - best buddies!
They were such great camping dogs - and their friend Micah came too (but was too shy to get in the picture!)

We woke up Tuesday morning and took advantage of the clear sky for some amazing hiking and views of the Flattops. We headed around the lake, through a field, up a faint trail through the trees, across a scree field, and up the rocky East side of Trapper's Peak. The views were extraordinary, the boys were amazingly agile and energetic, the dogs were great and the photographer was out of breath most of the way! ☺

A thumbs up from Kris = "you're almost at the top Mandi! You can do it!!!"

At the top of Trapper's Peak at 12,002 feet.
So proud of these boys!!! They were amazing.

A beautiful photo of the view of Wall Lake from the top - courtesy of Mountain Photography by Jack Brauer

Funny thing is - once you get to the top, the adventure is not over. Getting down is almost as difficult sometimes as the hike up! In this case, the rocky side of the peak was a challenge... but the boys (and the dogs!) were like little mountain goats skirting down the hillside in no time.

Gabe eagerly waited his turn to head down the hill!

There were more rocks to climb down once we hit the "wall" of Wall Lake (seen in the background below) but again, nothing deterred these adventurers!

A quick break for lunch (and a 30 minute trail run for the other adults - I volunteered to hang back and watch over camp☺) and we were all ready for another hike!

This time, the goal was an overlook above Trapper's Lake.

But to get there, you had to climb some more... wait for it... rocks.

Kris at the overlook (we didn't allow the kids to get that close!) of Trapper's Lake

Here's what we did in between hikes!



We must have sufficiently worn everyone out, because we all hit the sack before dark.

Which was good, because we all woke up before dawn to break camp and head down the mountain!

Ice on the tent Wednesday morning... guess it got pretty cold at night!

Headed out on the trail!
Had to have Gabe on leash just in case - there were sheep grazing in the area and we wouldn't want him getting curious and invoking the ire of one of those notoriously protective sheep dogs!

(For a view of ALL the cool pictures from the trip, check out my Shutterfly album)

A beautiful 2 hour hike back down to the trail head and finally, the backpacks were off and we could all share in the satisfaction of a truly fun, accident-free, exhilarating pack trip.

To be honest, I'm not even sure I was ready to come home! Besides sleeping on the ground (which gets more and more uncomfortable the older I get...) I absolutely LOVED being in the middle of nowhere, with no cell service and nothing to entertain me besides my thoughts, nature's beauty and the excellent dynamic of six boys aged 9 to 14 (aka lots of fart jokes)!

But the best part for me was the pride I felt watching Hamp carry his own pack, keep pace with the older boys, jump in the cold lake, hike up a mountain and scurry over boulders... and especially when his very slow but persistent mother finally made it up the rocks to Trapper's Peak (where Hamp had been happily resting with his friends for several minutes already!) and he ran towards me, gave me a big hug and said, "Good Job, Momma!". Totally worth it.