Sawtooths Backpacking Trip -- Day 3

July 30 -- I got up early and walked around Rock Slide Lake, taking photos as the sun rose. It was refreshing to be bug-free for a few hours. We left Rock Slide Lake at 8:15 a.m. taking an optional route out to Ardeth Lake. It was a steep descent to the lake and a steep one out, but the vistas were beautiful. From there we proceeded on to Edna Lake. We found a much better site than the last.

My heel blisters bugged me a bit and my creative taping lasted 4 hours. It was as if my legs showered my feet with sweat. Foot powder was useless. The scenery was overwhelming, which was a welcome distraction to my blisters. Note to self: try sock liners on the next trip.

Vernon Lake was idyllic. Wooded. Quiet. But we noticed more people on the trail like a Boy

Scout troop out of Nampa (good kids we kept running into along the trail. Not so isolated but relatively alone compared to California trails. One pair of bikers were headed in the

opposite direction and they were kitted out with ice axes and picks. Must have been disappointing to carry that gear with little ice to be found.

I managed to perform a graceful face plant on an egg-shaped rock. Bryan got a hell of a good laugh at my expense. The dirt in my mouth resulted in a full mouth rinse since the trail was littered with pack animal shit.

Set up camp at 3:15 and ate in relative peace due to a cool breeze that kept the mosquitoes at bay. We dipped in the cool lake, fished to little success, checked out the area and hit the sack 

by 9 p.m.

Jump to the following entries:

Planning, Preparation, Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5