SummitPost.org

My boys (ages 10 and 11) and I had such a great time in the Bighorns last summer that we've been saving our pennies and are headed back to WY in August before the guys go back to school. The advice from this forum was truly invaluable last year - we had an amazing time trekking around the Cloud Peak Wilderness for a few days.

We are looking to spend 5-8 days in the Wind River Range in early August (arrive Aug 3rd and stay in the area through Aug 11th or 12th). Will fly into Jackson Hole and probably rent a car (found a good deal on a 4Runner last year). I like the idea of doing a loop (vs. point-to-point) to minimize the logistics and give us flexibility. Our wish list would be some solitude, scramble up a few non-technical peaks, maybe walk up to a glacier, and do some fly fishing. Fishing the alpine lakes in Wilderness Basin (thank-you again for the recommendation, WyomingSummits!) and scrambling around Bomber Mountain were high points last year.

Any suggestions on a reasonable backpacking loop? I really appreciate your advice.

Thanks again,
Dirk

It's not a loop, but I would suggest starting at Elkhart Park, and head into Titcomb or Indian basin. It takes 2 days at least to get into that area and it makes a great basecamp for for daytrips. Fremont Peak and Jackson Peak are right there as well as further adventures. It is an amazing area with easy and scenic camping.

You can take the Green River Lakes trailhead and get on the Highline trail south. This will take you past Squaretop, Granite, and the Bottle. Good fishing in the river. One very stout option is to take the tourist Creek drainage up to the west Cirque of Gannett. On the map it will look like Wells creek is a better option...... do not take it... period. Mirror Glacier under the west face of Gannett is tame with awesome views. You can then take Clark Creek trail #185 west to meet up with Porcupine trail that heads north. It's an obvious loop on the map. Trail 185 and the Tourist Creek detour are beasts, but you have time in you intenerary. Squaretop has a scramble route to the top of it, as do some of the peaks along the tourist Creek drainage toward Gannett. Glad you enjoyed wilderness Basin last year! The Golden Trout fishing there is 2nd to none in the country.

Thank-you for the replies and suggestions. I picked up the Falcon Guide from my local library today and need to buy my topo maps. I see there are a couple companies who publish maps for the Wind River (Earthwalk Press and Beartooth Publishing). Any experience with these maps or just stick with standard USGS topos?

Last year's trip was fantastic, WS. Lots of great memories of mountains, alpine lakes, fish, and meteors. My boys and I talk about that trip at least once a week.

I have the bear tooth maps....love them. My kids and I talk about our outdoor adventures all the time....it's an invaluable bonding tool!

Second the recommendation for the beartooth maps, great quality material and printing, and have trail mileages which is key. I actually bought an earthwalk one before finding beartooth and it's definitely inferior. Although note that the beartooth scale is 50k so not as fine as 24k USGS.

As for recommendations for your itinerary, I've only been from Elkhart to Titcomb to climb Gannett, and after a boring first few miles of forest the scenery gets pretty good with nice lakes and peaks in the distance, and then Titcomb itself is spectacular with the lakes and peaks towering all around the basin. As mentioned above I think Fremont and Jackson peaks both offer non technical scrambles with views out over the glacier on their north/east sides.

But I don't know if there's a loop option to include Titcomb, I think most people just do it out and back from Elkhart.

And I don't know anything about fishing but did see a few jump and a few guys trying to catch em in the little lake between the main two Titcomb lakes.

Thanks again, guys. I just ordered the maps from Beartooth. I will probably reach out with a few more questions once I firm up plans.

We don't really need to do a loop but I just didn't want to fool with the logistics for a true point-to-point. I try to plan flexible routes when I'm hiking with the boys where we have plenty of time to explore. We enjoy change of scenery and different destinations but don't want to be in a position where I'm pushing miles to keep on schedule. It's more about being in a place and less about getting to a place, if that makes sense.

+++Elkhart Park to Indian Basin.

A great hike for young ones, as there is not much elevation gain (<2000') from trailhead to the basin, but once past Titcomb Junction, the feel is deep, backcountry remoteness. Fremont Peak is a great scramble - solid rock and stunning views. And even if it is too much for the little ones, there is a ton of exploration and scrambling to do in the basin.

There are possible loop/lollipop configurations from Elkhart Park as well using the Highline and Pole Creek Trails.

What an experience for kids that age... Have fun!

I second Indian Basin. Even the hike to that pass is awesome. You can do a loop from Big Sandy to Shadow Lake, over Texas Pass into the Cirque, then back over much easier Jackass Pass. Deep Creek is a nice side adventure from Big Sandy Lake. Very chill hike out from there.

Shadow Lake over the pass is a big day, but doable if you take it slow.