Finding Shoal Falls

This weekend David and I made it a mission to find Shoal Falls. When we took that brutal trail up into the jaws of the jagged Gros Ventres earlier this season, we were stopped by snow and never found the falls. This time, we decided to take the other side of the loop and head straight toward them. Thankfully this trail wasn't quite as intense as the Swift Creek trail. We still did a lot of climbing, but spend most of our time tromping through beautiful alpine meadows and groves of aspen trees.

Doubletop Peak.

White Columbine.

Indian Paintbrush.

Aspens.

It took us nearly three hours to reach the falls, but when we did, it took our breath away. I never expected that they would be so large. They gushed out powerfully from the jagged cliffs of the canyon below Palmer Peak, then ran through the valley below into a river where we saw three incredible beaver dams. I really don't think photos do this area justice.

As we started setting up camp, we realized that the mosquitoes were going to be a serious issue. As with our Deep Lake nightmare in Washington last summer, we found it hard to spend more than five seconds outside of the tent without getting totally swarmed. Gross. Regardless, I put on my rain jacket and some pants so that I could at least try to cook dinner. While I was milling around the campsite, I spotted this deer in the meadow nearby.

Finally we got a fire built and the mosquitoes slowly subsided to their evil dens for the evening. There really is nothing like a good backcountry fire on a clear starry night.

David and I woke up early before the sun crested over the nearby cliffs. The valley was damp and cool, the skies clear. David decided it would be best if we left before it started getting warm so that we could avoid the bugs. We packed up and left before 7 am. Not my idea of a good wake-up call, but at least I didn't acquire any more bug bites. I will have to say though, that sunrise is a truly beautiful time to hike.

It truly was a beautiful sight. On another note, a sad one at that, I found out that my grandfather passed away in the wee hours of the morning on July 19 due to small cell carcinoma.

I know this is personal information, but it is always hard to lose someone you love, especially when it is a cause of the devious disease known as cancer. I know there are too many people out there that can relate. I feel so grateful to have spent time with him down in Mexico this summer when I went on the cruise. So for any and all who go out this week, please drink a Guinness, in honor of Papa Bob. May he rest in peace.