R06 TR: 7/29/24 - 8/5/24 - Good ol' Emigrant

[scottmiller]

No photos, sorry. Anyway, we started at Crabtree and hiked to Chewing Gum Lake, a new Emigrant lake for me. Several other people were there, but plenty of campsites. I think we occupied about three of them because we are old guys who snore and need a lot of room. Nice lake, highly crenelated shoreline.
Next day to Upper Wire lake, the last time we were there 20 years ago the snow was melting after a surprise snowstorm the day before. We took a hike to Lower Wire lake, observing a lovely valley on the way.
Next day to Shallow Lake, another new Emigrant lake. We took the long way around, going all the way past Emigrant Lake and then south and back west. We left the direct approach from the dam to the younger folks. There is no trail, but the route is easy. Shallow Lake is a very worthwhile destination. Very pretty, no other people.
Next day to Letora Lake. On the way past Maxwell Lake we encountered the only mosquitos of the trip, but they were aggressive. The last time we were at Letora it was rainy so I was hoping for Letora in the sunshine. On the way there it clouded up and we had an intense thunderstorm for a couple of hours. After the lightening stopped I explored the shoreline. Nice lake, even in the rain.
It mostly cleared up later in the evening and we went to sleep under the stars, confident that the late afternoon thunderstorm would hold to the normal pattern. Har. It started raining around midnight, so into the tent we went. It was not as cramped and uncomfortable as we expected. It was certainly warm enough, and musical too: Tentmate 1 laid down a rhythmic basso continuou and Tentmate 2 joined in with a sprightly counterpoint with occasional percussive flourishes. I'm sure I contributed something too. The next day dawned clear enough to see Letora in the sunshine.
Next day we took to the Emigrant Thoroughfare and went to Gem Lake. Plenty of people there, but we found a place on the shelf above the lake. I walked around the lake and found an even better campsite high above the western end. We'll go there next time, if we return.
Next day to Bear Lake, with even more people. We found another above-the-lake campsite and watched an osprey catch fish. A nearby human was reeling in quite a few too. I attempted to circumbobulate the lake, but the east side is annoying to walk on so I gave up.
Next day we left for Twain Harte stopping at Bean Around the Block for coffee and the Rock of Twain Harte for burgers and beer.
Thank you, Emigrant Wilderness, for still being there, fifty-four years after my first trip.

[Harlen]

Great trip, and thanks for your entertaining report of it. I'd love to see a map of your route-- it sounds very interesting. I should be able to follow along if I pull out the HST map, and go from lake to lake. Thanks a lot for putting this nice description together, Harlen.

[balzaccom]

Great stuff. Emigrant has so much to offer, and is so accessible. Glad you enjoyed it.