Suggestions for teen mountain trip?

[Mina Loomis]

Parameters:  Camp Fire Backpacking Club.  Based in central Texas (Austin area).  Late July time frame.  Wanting 6-7 trail nights.  This is for an “Advanced” trip so eligible kids have already been to Pecos Wilderness for 4 nights or to Big Bend or Guadalupe Mts. for beginner multi-night trips.  Earlier cohorts have done High Sierra Trail (80 miles, 7 nights), Rainbow Loop over Peidra Pass in Weminuche, Emerald Lake/Rock Lake in Weminuche, Truchas Lakes in Pecos Wilderness, for example.  HST was our most ambitious and logistically complicated.  Age range 13-17.  Trip probably 5-7 youth (girls and boys both) and 3-4 adults.  The kids are tasked with discussing and deciding on the destination but I would like to be able to present them with some reasonable possibilities.  The group size rules out Glacier but maybe Yellowstone might work or somewhere else in Colorado.  Anyone with good familiarity with backpacking in Yellowstone?  Super popular places like Chicago Basin or Maroon Bells or 4 Pass Loop probably not what they will want but we don’t need to go super remote either.

I’d appreciate your thoughts!

[Steve Thompson]

In just reading the title, the High Sierra Trail came to mind.  There are other Sierra routes with less complicated logistics.  North Lake to South Lake, with a side trip Blaney Meadow Hot Springs this is about 60 miles with a short car shuttle between trailheads.  Another benefit is Parchers Resort near South Lake has dorms you can rent for a modest cost at the start or finish of your hike.  Other Sierra options are South Lake to Onion Valley, or even more ambitious to Mt Whitney.  There are other routes in the same vicinity that venture off trail, that can be exciting for teens (routes I did in Boy Scouts), I can post or send you more info if interested.  Sierra South, get a copy of the old 5th or 6th edition as probably the best available resource.

Another, closer to you, but more ambitious is the CDT section from Wolf Creek Pass to Elk Park (~100 miles) through the Weminuche.  It stays high the entire way so important to know how everyone deals with elevation before committing to this.  Logistics-wise, base out of Durango, use Animas Transportation to drop off at Wolf Creek Pass, and use the train to return to Durango from Elk Park.  CDT guide for Southern Colorado for detailed route description.

[Mina Loomis]

Steven, Thank you so much for your reply and suggestions!  Since my original post, we had a planning meeting and the youth consensus is that they want Yellowstone if we can work out the logistics.  (High Sierra logistics back in 2014 were actually easier because of the availability of extended family vehicles in the region and public transportation.)  The kids would like to take a stab at a loop through the Thorofare section of the Park.  At least Yellowstone is a bit lower in elevation.  We’ve had trouble with altitude in the Weminuche.  Thanks again!

[Gary Dunckel]

Mina, I’m not too sure that you can do a loop trip on the Thorofare trail. Maybe a sort of lollipop trip, where you hike south, do a loop, then return the way you came in. The hike is pretty cool, since you are often within sighting distance of Yellowstone Lake (elevation ~7700′). Keep in mind that the Thorofare is an isolated trail, and if someone breaks a leg or something, help is a LONG way away. If I were to do it again, I would want a satellite phone, as I’m not sure about any dependable cell phone service along the route. Also, you’ll want protection from grizzlies that might wander on the same trail. Everyone in the group needs to carry pepper spray, and know how to use it without spraying themselves (or others).

There are some other trips that are fun, but some require a car shuttle. One that I’ve enjoyed was to start at the upper end of the Pebble creek drainage (this starts with a 1000′ grunt to get over the ridge that is the southern border of the Pebble Creek valley). Then about 1/2 way down the valley there’s a spur trail that takes you west over a pass that drops you into the Sough Creek drainage. This could be a 4-night trip, or longer if people want to fish the famous Slough Creek for a day or two. Slough Creek campsites are a bit hard to get, and I found that early in the season it is easier to score campsites, like around the 4th of July.

Perhaps the finest car shuttle trip is the Bechler River trip (5-6 nights). Logistics are tough though. First you need to pre-position a vehicle at the ranger station at the southern end of your trip. This involves driving west from West Yellowstone, then passing south through Ashton, Idaho to finally get to the ranger station in the far SW corner of the Park. Everyone would stay at W. Yellowstone, then drive into the park to the trailhead near Old Faithful to begin the hike. 2 miles from the trailhead you pass by the popular but very cool Lone Star geyser. If you happen to time things right, you’ll get to witness not one, but two back-to-back eruptions. It’s worth an hour of your time to see that if the timing is good. Then start your Bechler trek in earnest.

If the Bechler logistics aren’t your cup of tea, another variation on the Lone Star theme is to reserve the single campsite on the shore of Shoshone Lake for 2 nights, and spend the middle day exploring the splendid Shoshone geyser basin nearby. There are a couple of ways to do this – you could blast right by the Lone Star (noting exactly when the last eruption occurred – it happens every 4 hours, like clockwork) and push the group to get to the Shoshone campsite the first night (that will be a pretty long day; you could make it easier by staying at a closer campsite, and go on to the Shoshone L. site the 2nd day). The middle day of your 2-night stay will be exploring the geyser basin. The 3rd day could be an easy one, where you stay at one of 3 campsites on the way back to Lone Star. I like OA1, which is the closest one to the geyser (it’s maybe a mile from the geyser, and you can hear it erupt on a quiet night). Having noted exactly when the geyser will go off, you can pick which eruption you want to watch the next day, then pack up and leisurely walk the mile to check it out. Then make your way back to the vehicle(s).

Yellowstone is a very special place, Mina. It’s hard to go wrong, whatever trip(s) you choose. Once you get 1-2 miles from the highway, you leave all of the YNP craziness behind and immerse into perhaps the finest, most unique eco-system in the lower 48.

[Mina Loomis]

Gary, Wow, thanks for all the detailed Yellowstone information!  I’ll definitely share this with the group.

I have been assuming we will need to spring for bear spray for each trip participant, and round up enough canisters as well.  For Thorofare, you are right I should have described it as a lollipop not a loop.  We have a Gen 3 Spot but I’ve been thinking of getting something more interactive anyway.

It’s interesting to hear an endorsement of Belcher River.  That got my attention a while back because REI takes its Yellowstone backpacking trip there and REI picks out top-notch destinations.

We are looking to do 6 nights on the trail.  A couple of nights could still be a layover, for an especially good spot and a rest.  We will have 2 vehicles, so shuttles are OK.

Thanks!

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