#featuring a certain Tarn reflection..

[sideswipesjetpack]

dratchet, ratchlock.. WHATEVER THE TERMS ARE!! Come feast fans of whatnot

[sky-byte2007]

“Flowers For My Darling Sky ”

[A small story of Jetfire preparing an anniversary gift for Sky-Byte. This chapter is Part 1 out of 2.]

[Author’s Note: Yay it’s finally out!!! I’m so happy to release this chapter preview for you all to see. Not gonna lie, I was (and still am) a bit nervous since this is the first time I’ve ever posted my writing onto a public forum such as this. Any critiques (good or bad) are welcome in the comments. Thank you and enjoy!]

————————————————————————

It was late at night when Jetfire finally decided to take a break. Leaning back in his chair, he rubs his worn out face with his servos. His optics, laced with tiredness, glance over at the lone window inside his laboratory where there was nothing but darkness and his own tired reflection. Iacon had gone to sleep hours ago, Jetfire, however, was still awake.

A couple vorns (give or take) after the war ended, Iacon underwent various reconstructive efforts to bring back what had been lost as collateral during the war. Institutions, libraries, hospitals, schools; all had been destroyed from constant fighting. Soon Iacon’s biggest institution was rebuilt, and Jetfire was lucky enough to get a job there as a scientist.

During that time, he ended up unexpectedly falling in love and marrying with a certain mech who he thought would be his worst enemy for eons to come:

Sky-Byte.

It was shortly after their fight with Tarn did they end up talking to each other. Not fighting. Talking. Eventually one thing led into another; a hangout became a date, a hug became a kiss, and so on and so forth until finally they got married. If there was one thing Jetfire could say for certain, it was that he wouldn’t trade Sky-Byte for the world.

His optics soon drift over to a framed picture sitting on his desk off to the side. A small smile graces his features as he gazes upon the still frame of Sky-Byte smiling. However what was really making him smile was the white wrapped up bundle Sky-Byte was holding against his chassis.

Calliope.

Their daughter. Their pride and joy who Sky-Byte had carried and brought into this world. Never had Jetfire ever felt this happy in a long long time. His life that had previously been felt so dark and bleak now had a shining spark in it, and that was his beloved conjux and their beautiful daughter.

A tired sigh soon slips from his intake as he runs a servo down his face, now turning his helm over to what appeared to be a metal container filled with dirt. Inside it looked to be the worn, wilted remains of a cluster of flowers. Flowers that Jetfire had desperately been trying to work on ever since he got back from Earth.

A look of frustration crosses his features before slowly turning into regret. This was supposed to be an anniversary gift for Sky-Byte in commemoration of one of their many trips they took together to Earth. Whenever they would go, Sky-Byte would get this light in his optics everytime they passed through Earth’s natural landscapes from the mountains to the seas.

Jetfire would notice the light in his optics glow brighter whenever they would come across any flowers along the way. No doubt it reminded him of home back when all the Predacons of Cybertron lived solely on small patches of once organic land that had long since been destroyed. Sky-Byte had told him once that he would probably never see a flower bloom again in his lifetime.

Jetfire, however, promised to himself that it wouldn’t.

So night after night, he would stay behind at his job to work on his promise in hopes of modifying them somehow to grow onto Cybertronian soil. He even travelled all the way to Earth just to pick out tiny seeds from the prettiest flowers he could find.

Hours were spent studying organic plant life as well as figuring out ways to modify their genetics and fertilise the hard, cracked soil of Cybertron. The soil had lost its nutrients long ago, so Jetfire had no choice but to synthesise them.

Despite his struggles, he did manage to make some progress, slowly managing to bloom a cluster of flowers that were as vibrant as stained glass. Apparently decaying liquid energon made great fertilizer for the plants. However, adding one drop too many would kill them instantly.

That was exactly what happened to those poor wilted flowers inside the metal container.

Jetfire’s expression falls further as he stares at the flowers, their petals that were once bright with various hues of pinks, blues, and purples were now a scathing brown like they had been dried up in the Rust Sea. He had been so close, so close to finally achieving his goal only for him to slip up at the last possible moment. It took him days, maybe even weeks, to fully create those flowers.

And now he was back to square one.

With their anniversary looming around the corner, Jetfire knew that he was running out of time. However failure was not an option. Jetfire had sworn to himself that his conjux would see a flower bloom again within his lifetime. There was no way he was going to go back on it now. With a newfound feeling of determination settling into his spark, he gets up and grabs his things to leave. He had stayed back late enough tonight for this promise.

Tomorrow he’d call up Perceptor to see if he could help out.

But for tonight, he was content with just going home to see his newfound, loving family.

————————————————————————

[Author’s Note: I kind of don’t like the ending of it to be honest but it’ll do. I just love my sillies.

Also for some reason my inspiration for writing this fic was when I was learning about agriculture in my AP Environmental Science class 😅. Go figure I guess.]

[catsofwillowclan]

Tarnclan Tattooing

Tarnclan is a clan from the northern plains and glacial foothills, mainly located around a collection of glacial lakes or 'tarns'. Their culture is largely nomadic, traveling with herds of caribou and the seasons to gather herbs and maintain traditional campsites. Their rituals take place at glacial lakes with glassy, smooth surfaces that reflect the night sky, bringing Starclan to touch the earth.

Tarnclan has a rich tradition of tattoo practices, which act as markers for coming of age and certain life events, act as protection from evil, and serve as identifying markers so that Starclan may always know to watch over them, even when they're in lands far from their home territories.

---

Facial tattoos are a common coming-of-age ceremony in Tarnclan traditions. Tarnclan's apprentice ceremony takes place around the application and receiving of facial tattoos that mark ones journey onto the warrior path and commitment to becoming a part of the clan as a whole, and identify you as an adult within Tarnclan society. The facial tattoos for apprentices can typically cover the cheeks between the bottom of the nose to the bottom of the brows, following the curves of the face, and use motifs that connect to the apprentice's given name or relate to them symbolically in some way.

The other facial tattoo that is given is the mark of a mentor, which is received after an apprentice is given their marks and granted their mentor. The chosen mentor receives a 'crown' of sorts, which traditionally covers from the brows up and features a distinct motif at the center of the forehead to signify their wisdom and earned respect as a teacher in the clan. Mentors are chosen very carefully, and to guide an apprentice on their path to earn their warrior name is one of the most noble pursuits one can take on in Tarnclan.

---

Warrior tattoos are given across the upper back and shoulders, almost as a mantle, and typically mirror the style of one's apprentice marks. These tattoos can take many hours, if not days, and receiving them is a rite of passage to mark ones strength and devotion to following the Warrior Path. Smaller tattoos may only cover the tops of the shoulders, but larger pieces can cover the back all the way to the shoulder blades, and even go down onto the sides of the chest depending on what the warrior is able to sit through. Larger tattoos are a mark of great discipline, endurance, and patience.

---

Medicine cats do not receive traditional warrior tattoos along their shoulders. Instead, they receive what is called the Healer's Bands, which begin at the upper arm and go all the way down to the wrist. These bands represent their earned knowledge and skill, and mark them as a healer or one with gifted hands that serves the clan and it's people. The motifs and spirits called upon in each band traditionally represent different healing plants, making them not only a mark of their knowledge but of their connection to Starclan, and serve as a way to channel healing through them during their work.

Leaders receive the Nine Stars during their ceremony, which is a large tattoo that goes from the nape of the neck all the way down to the lower back along the spine, branching out at the shoulders to connect to their warrior marks. This is a representation of their place as a chosen avatar of Starclan, and their role as a 'pillar' connecting the two together. This tattoo traditionally has nine stars places along the spine within the design - these stars are a mark of the wisdom and skill they were granted by Starclan, and are filled or covered with a grieving ceremony upon the loss of a life.

Ceremonial tattoos for leaders and medicine cats are spiritually intense and often involve long periods of fasting, meditation, and receiving visions. Both before and during the ceremonies. These tattoos are often done in pigmented colors as opposed to the traditional brown and black inks used on typical tattoos, as those dyes are more rare and coveted and only used on the most sacred of markings.

---

While these tattoos are representations of ranks and places in the clan that are earned, there are also marks for other significant life events a member may go through, such as becoming a parent (hips and lower back), choosing a mate (back of the hands), embarking on a journey (lower legs), or completing their first hunt (bands at the wrists).

[j0sgomez-blog]

By Michael Lanza

Water makes up about 60 percent of our bodies—and, I suspect, 100 percent of our hearts. We crave it not only physically, for survival, but emotionally, for spiritual rejuvenation. We love playing in it for hours as children and we paddle and swim in it as adults. We’re drawn by the calming effects of sitting beside a stream or lake in a beautiful natural setting, an experience that possesses a certain je ne sais quoi—a quality difficult to describe, but that we can all feel in our heart.

I’ve come across quite a few wonderful backcountry lakes over the years. I’ve just updated and expanded this list of my favorites to give you some eye candy as well as ideas for future adventures—and perhaps compare against your list of favorite backcountry lakes. Click on the links to my stories in these brief writeups to learn more about each of these trips. If you know some good ones that are not on my list, please suggest them in the comments section below this story.

Here’s to your next peaceful moment beside a gorgeous lake deep in the mountains somewhere.

  Precipice Lake, Sequoia National Park.

Precipice Lake, Sequoia National Park

Precipice wasn’t even our intended campsite on the third day of a six-day, 40-mile family backpacking trip in Sequoia, in California’s southern High Sierra. We planned to push maybe a mile farther, to camp on the other side of 10,700-foot Kaweah Gap. But when we reached Precipice Lake at 10,400 feet, and saw its glassy, green and blue waters reflecting white and golden cliffs, and took a bracing swim, it wasn’t a hard sell when I suggested we spend the night there. It became one of my 25 all-time favorite backcountry campsites.

See my story about that trip, “Heavy Lifting: Backpacking Sequoia National Park,” and all of my stories about Sequoia National Park at The Big Outside.

  Want a better backpack? See my picks for “The 10 Best Backpacking Packs” and the best ultralight/thru-hiking packs.

  Alice Lake, Sawtooth Mountains, Idaho.

Alice Lake, Sawtooth Mountains

Idaho’s Sawtooths must be in contention for the title of American mountain range with the most beautiful lakes—maybe eclipsed only by the High Sierra and Wind River Range. Like the Sierra and Winds, backpacking in the Sawtooths brings you to the shores of multiple lakes every day, shimmering in sunlight, rippled by wind, or offering a mirror reflection of jagged peaks on calm mornings and evenings. Alice is one of the larger and prettier of them, a spot I’ve visited several times without getting tired of the view across it to a row of sharp-edged peaks.

See all of my stories about Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains, including “Jewels of the Sawtooths: Backpacking to Alice, Hell Roaring, and Imogene Lakes,” “Photo Gallery: Mountain Lakes of Idaho’s Sawtooths,” and “Ask Me: What Are the Best Hikes in Idaho’s Sawtooths?”

  After the Sawtooths, hike the other nine of “My Top 10 Favorite Backpacking Trips.”

  Larch trees reflected in Rainbow Lake, North Cascades National Park Complex.

Rainbow Lake, North Cascades National Park Complex

After a relentless, seven-mile-long, 3,500-foot uphill slog to Rainbow Pass in the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area, a friend and I descended to a wonderful, wooded campsite on the shore of Rainbow Lake. We stuffed fistfuls of huckleberries into our mouths, then walked down to the lakeshore, where the setting sun was setting larch trees—their needles turned golden in late September—afire. It seemed a fitting final night of an 80-mile trek through the heart of the North Cascades National Park Complex.

See my story about that trip, “Primal Wild: Backpacking 80 Miles Through the North Cascades,” and all of my stories about the North Cascades.

  Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside, which has made several top outdoors blog lists. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Click here to learn how I can help you plan your next trip. Click here to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Follow my adventures on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

  Island Lake in Wyoming’s Wind River Range.

Island Lake, Wind River Range

As I mentioned above, few mountain ranges in America are as blessed with gorgeous backcountry lakes as Wyoming’s Winds. That makes it hard to pick out just one or two as favorites, but Island Lake deserves a shout out as much as any and more than most. Two friends and I hiked past it on a three-day, 41-mile loop from the Elkhart Park Trailhead to Titcomb Basin and over Knapsack Col in the Winds—and if we didn’t already have our hearts set on spending that night in Titcomb, we could have easily pitched our tents by Island for the night.

Read my feature story about that 41-mile hike, “Best of the Wind River Range: Backpacking to Titcomb Basin,” and check out all of my stories about the Winds at The Big Outside.

  On the John Muir Trail at Wanda Lake in Kings Canyon National Park.

Wanda Lake, John Muir Trail, Kings Canyon National Park

The seven-day thru-hike of the John Muir Trail that I made with some friends featured many unforgettable moments and a lifetime’s worth of stunning scenery—and aching feet—but few moments as quietly lovely as the early morning that we hiked along the shore of Wanda Lake. We were climbing toward 11,955-foot Muir Pass when we reached this uppermost lake in the Evolution Basin, a high valley scoured from granite by long-ago glaciers and studded with lakes. As my friend Todd walked along the lakeshore, I captured perhaps my best image from that entire trip.

See my story “Thru-Hiking the John Muir Trail in Seven Days: Amazing Experience, or Certifiably Insane?” See also all of my stories about the John Muir Trail and about outdoor adventures in California.

  I can help you plan the best backpacking, hiking, or family adventure of your life. Find out more here.

  Star Lake and Mount Madison, Presidential Range, N.H.

Star Lake, Presidential Range

A shallow, tiny tarn high in New Hampshire’s Presidential Range, nestled in the treeless saddle between two of the tallest mountains in the Northeast, 5,366-foot Mount Madison and 5,799-foot Mount Adams, Star Lake hardly merits the descriptor “lake.” But its frequently wind-rippled waters, studded with ancient, granite rocks, with the boulder heaps of Madison or Adams rising behind, will quickly make you forget your tired legs and feet. Reaching it during or at the end of a rugged hike will feel more like the culmination of a pilgrimage. Treat yourself to a night at the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Madison Spring Hut, a five-minute walk from Star Lake.

See my story “Big Hearts, Big Day: A 17-Mile Hike With Teens in the Presidential Range,” and all of my stories about New Hampshire’s Presidential Range and White Mountains.

  Sue Lake, Glacier National Park.

Sue Lake, Glacier National Park

Glacier National Park is known for majestic peaks that look like kitchen cutlery pointed at the sky, abundant megafauna like mountain goats, bighorn sheep, and grizzly bears—and, of course, its glaciers. But it also has some pretty darn nice lakes. I haven’t hit them all yet (working on that), but I have hiked to several, including the ledges overlooking this backcountry gem. Perched high above treeline, the view of ocean-blue Sue Lake floating in a sea of mountains is worthy of the short detour off the Highline Trail.

See my story “Descending the Food Chain: Backpacking Glacier National Park’s Northern Loop,” and all of my stories about Glacier National Park.

  Want to read any story linked here? Get full access to ALL stories at The Big Outside, plus a FREE e-guide. Subscribe now!

May Lake in Yosemite National Park.

May Lake, Yosemite National Park

A friend and I reached May Lake on the last afternoon of one of my top 10 best-ever backpacking trips, a weeklong, 151-mile tour of the most remote areas of Yosemite. We arrived as the sun dipped toward the western horizon, casting beautiful, low-angle light across the lake, which sits at the base of craggy, 10,845-foot Mount Hoffman. But you can visit May on an easy dayhike of 2.5 miles round-trip. Bonus: There’s a High Sierra Camp on May’s shore that’s a good base camp for hiking the area, including the steep jaunt up Hoffman, which has arguably the nicest summit view in Yosemite.

See more photos, a video, and trip-planning tips in my story about the 87-mile second leg of that 151-tour of Yosemite, “Best of Yosemite, Part 2: Backpacking Remote Northern Yosemite,” and my story about the 65-mile first leg of that adventure, “Best of Yosemite, Part 1: Backpacking South of Tuolumne Meadows,” plus my story “The 10 Best Dayhikes in Yosemite” (including May Lake and Mount Hoffmann), and all of my stories about Yosemite National Park and California national parks at The Big Outside.

  Plan your next great backpacking adventure in Yosemite and other flagship parks using my expert e-guides.

  Mirror Lake, Lakes Basin, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon.

Mirror Lake, Eagle Cap Wilderness

Early on the clear and calm, third morning of a 40-mile family backpacking trip in Oregon’s Eagle Cap Wilderness, I left our campsite and walked down to the shore of this lake, anticipating the scene I’d capture in pixels. Mirror Lake, in the popular Lakes Basin, earns its moniker, offering up a flawless reflection of its conifer- and granite-rimmed shore and the cliffs of 9,572-foot Eagle Cap Peak high above it. Our hike made a long loop through some less-visited areas of the wilderness, but you can reach Mirror Lake on weekend-length hikes, too.

See my story “Learning the Hard Way: Backpacking Oregon’s Eagle Cap Wilderness,” and all of my stories about backpacking in Oregon at The Big Outside.

  I know dangerous. Read “Why I Endanger My Kids in the Wilderness (Even Though It Scares the Sh!t Out of Me).”

  Image Lake, Glacier Peak Wilderness, Washington.

Image Lake, Glacier Peak Wilderness

Deep in one of my favorite wild lands, Washington’s sprawling and magnificent Glacier Peak Wilderness, Image Lake (also shown in lead photo at top of story) fully compensates a backpacker for the considerable effort required to reach it. Conifer trees and grassy wildflower meadows ring this lake tucked into a bowl high up a mountainside, giving it the appearance of being perched at the edge of the earth, with the icy and snowy slopes of Glacier Peak as its backdrop. Reached on the third evening of a five-day, 44-mile family backpacking trip, it’s one of the most surreal and unforgettable scenes I’ve ever come upon.

See my story “Wild Heart of the Glacier Peak Wilderness: Backpacking the Spider Gap-Buck Creek Pass Loop.”

  Phelps Lake, Grand Teton National Park.

Phelps Lake, Grand Teton National Park

Not the first lake that comes to mind when you think of the Tetons—Lake Solitude, justifiably popular, is better known—Phelps nonetheless often delivers a glassy, upside-down picture of the densely green forest and cliffs across it, and you can sometimes see moose in early morning. The trail circling the lake is an easy, quiet, and pretty hike, and the campsites in the woods beside the lake are a great destination for an easy backpacking trip with young kids or a first night on a longer trek of a section of the Teton Crest Trail.

See my stories about a family backpacking trip in the Tetons, “Walking Familiar Ground: Reliving Old Memories and Making New Ones on the Teton Crest Trail” and “American Classic: Backpacking the Teton Crest Trail,” and all of my stories about the Teton Crest Trail and Grand Teton National Park, including my several Ask Me posts about the Tetons.

  Find your next adventure in your Inbox. Sign up for my FREE email newsletter now.

  Imogene Lake, Sawtooth Mountains, Idaho.

Imogene Lake, Sawtooth Mountains

Imogene has broken my heart repeatedly—but not for disappointing scenery. I’ve just had to endure the heartbreak of hiking past it a few times without ever camping here. (It graces my list of the best backcountry campsites I’ve hiked past.) On a weekend backpacking trip with my daughter, we dayhiked from Hell Roaring Lake to Imogene, walking the trail that hugs one shore and scrambling out onto a finger of granite that juts into the lake. Like Alice Lake (above), it can be reached on a weekend backpacking trip or built into a longer trek in the Sawtooths.

See all of my stories about Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains, including “Jewels of the Sawtooths: Backpacking to Alice, Hell Roaring, and Imogene Lakes,” “Photo Gallery: Mountain Lakes of Idaho’s Sawtooths,” and “Ask Me: What Are the Best Hikes in Idaho’s Sawtooths?”

  Campsite at Columbine Lake, Sequoia National Park.

Columbine Lake, Sequoia National Park

On the same 40-mile family backpacking trip in Sequoia when we spent a night at Precipice Lake (above), we slept our last night in the backcountry at Columbine Lake, at nearly 11,000 feet. Ringed by granite slabs, cliffs, and three pyramidal peaks, it’s another spot on my list of 25 all-time favorite backcountry campsites. My son and I slept that clear night under the stars, awakening at the same time during the night to gaze up at a sky riddled with sparkling points of light and bisected by the broad swath of the Milky Way—and we count more than a dozen shooting stars.

See my story about that trip, “Heavy Lifting: Backpacking Sequoia National Park,” and all of my stories about Sequoia National Park at The Big Outside.

  Don’t let red tape foil your plans. See my “10 Tips For Getting a Hard-to-Get National Park Backcountry Permit.”

  Ouzel Lake, in Wild Basin, Rocky Mountain National Park.

Ouzel Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park

Tucked into the ponderosa pine forest at around 10,000 feet, in the park’s Wild Basin area, Ouzel is reached on a moderate hike of less than five miles and 1,500 vertical from the Wild Basin Trailhead. Although it gets some dayhikers, you can have a protected campsite in the trees there all to yourself, as my family did on a three-day, early-September backpacking trip. My kids, then 10 and seven, played and fished for hours in the shallow waters near our camp and the lake’s outlet creek.

See my story “The 5 Rules About Kids I Broke While Backpacking in Rocky Mountain National Park.”

  Lonesome Lake, Cirque of the Towers, Wind River Range, Wyoming.

Lonesome Lake, Wind River Range

I’ll never forget the first time I hauled a heavy backpack stuffed with climbing gear on the steep trail over Jackass Pass, at nearly 10,800 feet, and caught my first glimpse of the soaring spires and pinnacles of the Cirque of the Towers, in Wyoming’s Wind River Range. I don’t think I’d seen anyplace like it before, and I’ve seen few since that compare to it. A popular spot—where black bears have reputedly learned to boulder V3 to reach stashed food bags—the Cirque’s prettiest spot is the shore of Lonesome Lake across from the sheer granite walls of 11,884-foot Pingora Peak.

See my story “A Walk in the Winds: Hiking a One-Day, 27-Mile Traverse of Wyoming’s Wind River Range.”

  Marie Lake on the John Muir Trail, John Muir Wilderness.

Marie Lake, John Muir Trail, John Muir Wilderness

Hiking southbound on the John Muir Trail toward 10,800-foot Selden Pass, our small group passed by Marie Lake—and immediately regretted that it was much too early in the day to stop there to camp. Any JMT thru-hiker could make a legitimate argument for Marie Lake as the most beautiful spot on “America’s most beautiful trail,” and many might agree. Studded with rocky islets and peninsulas jutting into its azure waters, Marie will capture your heart. If you trek the JMT, plan to spend a night there, so you don’t feel our disappointment.

See my story “Thru-Hiking the John Muir Trail in Seven Days: Amazing Experience, or Certifiably Insane?” and all of my stories about the John Muir Trail.

  Got a trip coming up? See my reviews of the best gear duffles and luggage and 7 favorite daypacks.

  Jerry Hapgood hiking to Lake Ellen Wilson, Glacier National Park.

Lake Ellen Wilson, Glacier National Park

I’d heard Lake Ellen Wilson was possibly the most scenic backcountry campsite in Glacier before I first visited there; but the moment a friend and I crested Gunsight Pass at 6,900 feet and got our first view down into the giant horseshoe of stone that holds the lake, I knew it would become one of my all-time favorite backcountry campsites. We soaked tired feet in the lake’s cold, emerald waters, a 20-second walk from our campsite, gazing up at 1,000-foot cliffs with several waterfalls pouring off of them. The sun-warmed beach pebbles felt like a heated bed with built-in massage.

See my story “Descending the Food Chain: Backpacking Glacier National Park’s Northern Loop,” and all of my stories about Glacier National Park.

  Benson Lake in Yosemite National Park.

Benson Lake, Yosemite National Park

A longtime backcountry ranger in Yosemite once told me that Benson was his favorite backcountry lake in the entire park—so how could I not check it out myself? On the 87-mile second leg of a 151-mile hike through the biggest blocks of wilderness in Yosemite, my friend Todd and I reached Benson’s sprawling, sandy beach early one evening, immediately shucked off our shoes, wriggled our toes in the sun-warmed sand, and then soaked our tired feet in the marvelously cool waters.

See more photos, a video, and trip-planning tips in my story about the 87-mile second leg of that 151-tour of Yosemite, “Best of Yosemite, Part 2: Backpacking Remote Northern Yosemite,” and my story about the 65-mile first leg of that adventure, “Best of Yosemite, Part 1: Backpacking South of Tuolumne Meadows,” plus my story “The 10 Best Dayhikes in Yosemite,” and all of my stories about Yosemite National Park at The Big Outside.

  Get the right shelter for your trips. See my “Gear Review: The 5 Best Backpacking Tents” and my expert tips in “How to Choose the Best Ultralight Backpacking Tent for You.”

  Rock Slide Lake, Sawtooth Mountains, Idaho.

Rock Slide Lake, Sawtooth Mountains

I really do have a lot of favorite lakes in the Sawtooths. But I’ve also spent enough time there to see many of them. A friend and I spent two nights at Rock Slide on a four-day, 57-mile hike in the more remote, southern end of the range, exploring lake-speckled valleys that birth the Middle Fork Boise River and a tributary of the South Fork Payette River. But Rock Slide Lake was this adventure’s highlight, repeatedly dishing up perfect reflections of the surrounding forest and cliffs and gorgeous sunset and sunrise light setting clouds ablaze.

See my stories “Going After Goals: Backpacking in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains” and “Photo Gallery: Mountain Lakes of Idaho’s Sawtooths.”

  You live for the outdoors. The Big Outside helps you get out there. Subscribe now and a get free e-guide!

Floe Lake, Rockwall Trail, Kootenay National Park, Canada.

Floe Lake, Kootenay National Park, Canadian Rockies

For my family’s first backpacking trip in the Canadian Rockies, we chose one of the best: the 34-mile (54k) Rockwall Trail in Kootenay National Park. A world-class trek, its defining feature is a single, massive limestone cliff, towering up to 3,000 feet above the trail—like a string of El Capitans lined up for miles. While highlights included one of the tallest waterfalls in the Canadian Rockies, Helmet Falls (estimated 1,154 feet, or 352m in height), sightings of mountain goats, climbing over three mountain passes, and up-close views of glaciers hanging off cliffs, one of the Rockwall’s special spots is the camping area on Floe Lake, where we spent our final night. I woke early the next morning to catch the lake reflecting a massive, crumbling cliff and its glaciers.

See my story “Best of the Canadian Rockies: Backpacking the Rockwall Trail,” at The Big Outside.

  Tell me what you think.

I spent a lot of time writing this story, so if you enjoyed it, please consider giving it a share using one of the buttons below, and leave a comment or question at the bottom of this story. I’d really appreciate it.

  See all of my stories about backpacking, family adventures, and national park adventures at The Big Outside.  

[j0sgomez-blog]

By Michael Lanza

Water makes up about 60 percent of our bodies—and, I suspect, 100 percent of our hearts. We crave it not only physically, for survival, but emotionally, for spiritual rejuvenation. We love playing in it for hours as children and we paddle and swim in it as adults. We’re drawn by the calming effects of sitting beside a stream or lake in a beautiful natural setting, an experience that possesses a certain je ne sais quoi—a quality difficult to describe, but that we can all feel in our heart.

I’ve come across quite a few wonderful backcountry lakes over the years. I’ve just updated and expanded this list of my favorites to give you some eye candy as well as ideas for future adventures—and perhaps compare against your list of favorite backcountry lakes. Click on the links to my stories in these brief writeups to learn more about each of these trips. If you know some good ones that are not on my list, please suggest them in the comments section below this story.

Here’s to your next peaceful moment beside a gorgeous lake deep in the mountains somewhere.

  Precipice Lake, Sequoia National Park.

Precipice Lake, Sequoia National Park

Precipice wasn’t even our intended campsite on the third day of a six-day, 40-mile family backpacking trip in Sequoia, in California’s southern High Sierra. We planned to push maybe a mile farther, to camp on the other side of 10,700-foot Kaweah Gap. But when we reached Precipice Lake at 10,400 feet, and saw its glassy, green and blue waters reflecting white and golden cliffs, and took a bracing swim, it wasn’t a hard sell when I suggested we spend the night there. It became one of my 25 all-time favorite backcountry campsites.

See my story about that trip, “Heavy Lifting: Backpacking Sequoia National Park,” and all of my stories about Sequoia National Park at The Big Outside.

  Want a better backpack? See my picks for “The 10 Best Backpacking Packs” and the best ultralight/thru-hiking packs.

  Alice Lake, Sawtooth Mountains, Idaho.

Alice Lake, Sawtooth Mountains

Idaho’s Sawtooths must be in contention for the title of American mountain range with the most beautiful lakes—maybe eclipsed only by the High Sierra and Wind River Range. Like the Sierra and Winds, backpacking in the Sawtooths brings you to the shores of multiple lakes every day, shimmering in sunlight, rippled by wind, or offering a mirror reflection of jagged peaks on calm mornings and evenings. Alice is one of the larger and prettier of them, a spot I’ve visited several times without getting tired of the view across it to a row of sharp-edged peaks.

See all of my stories about Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains, including “Jewels of the Sawtooths: Backpacking to Alice, Hell Roaring, and Imogene Lakes,” “Photo Gallery: Mountain Lakes of Idaho’s Sawtooths,” and “Ask Me: What Are the Best Hikes in Idaho’s Sawtooths?”

  After the Sawtooths, hike the other nine of “My Top 10 Favorite Backpacking Trips.”

  Larch trees reflected in Rainbow Lake, North Cascades National Park Complex.

Rainbow Lake, North Cascades National Park Complex

After a relentless, seven-mile-long, 3,500-foot uphill slog to Rainbow Pass in the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area, a friend and I descended to a wonderful, wooded campsite on the shore of Rainbow Lake. We stuffed fistfuls of huckleberries into our mouths, then walked down to the lakeshore, where the setting sun was setting larch trees—their needles turned golden in late September—afire. It seemed a fitting final night of an 80-mile trek through the heart of the North Cascades National Park Complex.

See my story about that trip, “Primal Wild: Backpacking 80 Miles Through the North Cascades,” and all of my stories about the North Cascades.

  Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside, which has made several top outdoors blog lists. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Click here to learn how I can help you plan your next trip. Click here to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Follow my adventures on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

  Island Lake in Wyoming’s Wind River Range.

Island Lake, Wind River Range

As I mentioned above, few mountain ranges in America are as blessed with gorgeous backcountry lakes as Wyoming’s Winds. That makes it hard to pick out just one or two as favorites, but Island Lake deserves a shout out as much as any and more than most. Two friends and I hiked past it on a three-day, 41-mile loop from the Elkhart Park Trailhead to Titcomb Basin and over Knapsack Col in the Winds—and if we didn’t already have our hearts set on spending that night in Titcomb, we could have easily pitched our tents by Island for the night.

Read my feature story about that 41-mile hike, “Best of the Wind River Range: Backpacking to Titcomb Basin,” and check out all of my stories about the Winds at The Big Outside.

  On the John Muir Trail at Wanda Lake in Kings Canyon National Park.

Wanda Lake, John Muir Trail, Kings Canyon National Park

The seven-day thru-hike of the John Muir Trail that I made with some friends featured many unforgettable moments and a lifetime’s worth of stunning scenery—and aching feet—but few moments as quietly lovely as the early morning that we hiked along the shore of Wanda Lake. We were climbing toward 11,955-foot Muir Pass when we reached this uppermost lake in the Evolution Basin, a high valley scoured from granite by long-ago glaciers and studded with lakes. As my friend Todd walked along the lakeshore, I captured perhaps my best image from that entire trip.

See my story “Thru-Hiking the John Muir Trail in Seven Days: Amazing Experience, or Certifiably Insane?” See also all of my stories about the John Muir Trail and about outdoor adventures in California.

  I can help you plan the best backpacking, hiking, or family adventure of your life. Find out more here.

  Star Lake and Mount Madison, Presidential Range, N.H.

Star Lake, Presidential Range

A shallow, tiny tarn high in New Hampshire’s Presidential Range, nestled in the treeless saddle between two of the tallest mountains in the Northeast, 5,366-foot Mount Madison and 5,799-foot Mount Adams, Star Lake hardly merits the descriptor “lake.” But its frequently wind-rippled waters, studded with ancient, granite rocks, with the boulder heaps of Madison or Adams rising behind, will quickly make you forget your tired legs and feet. Reaching it during or at the end of a rugged hike will feel more like the culmination of a pilgrimage. Treat yourself to a night at the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Madison Spring Hut, a five-minute walk from Star Lake.

See my story “Big Hearts, Big Day: A 17-Mile Hike With Teens in the Presidential Range,” and all of my stories about New Hampshire’s Presidential Range and White Mountains.

  Sue Lake, Glacier National Park.

Sue Lake, Glacier National Park

Glacier National Park is known for majestic peaks that look like kitchen cutlery pointed at the sky, abundant megafauna like mountain goats, bighorn sheep, and grizzly bears—and, of course, its glaciers. But it also has some pretty darn nice lakes. I haven’t hit them all yet (working on that), but I have hiked to several, including the ledges overlooking this backcountry gem. Perched high above treeline, the view of ocean-blue Sue Lake floating in a sea of mountains is worthy of the short detour off the Highline Trail.

See my story “Descending the Food Chain: Backpacking Glacier National Park’s Northern Loop,” and all of my stories about Glacier National Park.

  Want to read any story linked here? Get full access to ALL stories at The Big Outside, plus a FREE e-guide. Subscribe now!

May Lake in Yosemite National Park.

May Lake, Yosemite National Park

A friend and I reached May Lake on the last afternoon of one of my top 10 best-ever backpacking trips, a weeklong, 151-mile tour of the most remote areas of Yosemite. We arrived as the sun dipped toward the western horizon, casting beautiful, low-angle light across the lake, which sits at the base of craggy, 10,845-foot Mount Hoffman. But you can visit May on an easy dayhike of 2.5 miles round-trip. Bonus: There’s a High Sierra Camp on May’s shore that’s a good base camp for hiking the area, including the steep jaunt up Hoffman, which has arguably the nicest summit view in Yosemite.

See more photos, a video, and trip-planning tips in my story about the 87-mile second leg of that 151-tour of Yosemite, “Best of Yosemite, Part 2: Backpacking Remote Northern Yosemite,” and my story about the 65-mile first leg of that adventure, “Best of Yosemite, Part 1: Backpacking South of Tuolumne Meadows,” plus my story “The 10 Best Dayhikes in Yosemite” (including May Lake and Mount Hoffmann), and all of my stories about Yosemite National Park and California national parks at The Big Outside.

  Plan your next great backpacking adventure in Yosemite and other flagship parks using my expert e-guides.

  Mirror Lake, Lakes Basin, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon.

Mirror Lake, Eagle Cap Wilderness

Early on the clear and calm, third morning of a 40-mile family backpacking trip in Oregon’s Eagle Cap Wilderness, I left our campsite and walked down to the shore of this lake, anticipating the scene I’d capture in pixels. Mirror Lake, in the popular Lakes Basin, earns its moniker, offering up a flawless reflection of its conifer- and granite-rimmed shore and the cliffs of 9,572-foot Eagle Cap Peak high above it. Our hike made a long loop through some less-visited areas of the wilderness, but you can reach Mirror Lake on weekend-length hikes, too.

See my story “Learning the Hard Way: Backpacking Oregon’s Eagle Cap Wilderness,” and all of my stories about backpacking in Oregon at The Big Outside.

  I know dangerous. Read “Why I Endanger My Kids in the Wilderness (Even Though It Scares the Sh!t Out of Me).”

  Image Lake, Glacier Peak Wilderness, Washington.

Image Lake, Glacier Peak Wilderness

Deep in one of my favorite wild lands, Washington’s sprawling and magnificent Glacier Peak Wilderness, Image Lake (also shown in lead photo at top of story) fully compensates a backpacker for the considerable effort required to reach it. Conifer trees and grassy wildflower meadows ring this lake tucked into a bowl high up a mountainside, giving it the appearance of being perched at the edge of the earth, with the icy and snowy slopes of Glacier Peak as its backdrop. Reached on the third evening of a five-day, 44-mile family backpacking trip, it’s one of the most surreal and unforgettable scenes I’ve ever come upon.

See my story “Wild Heart of the Glacier Peak Wilderness: Backpacking the Spider Gap-Buck Creek Pass Loop.”

  Phelps Lake, Grand Teton National Park.

Phelps Lake, Grand Teton National Park

Not the first lake that comes to mind when you think of the Tetons—Lake Solitude, justifiably popular, is better known—Phelps nonetheless often delivers a glassy, upside-down picture of the densely green forest and cliffs across it, and you can sometimes see moose in early morning. The trail circling the lake is an easy, quiet, and pretty hike, and the campsites in the woods beside the lake are a great destination for an easy backpacking trip with young kids or a first night on a longer trek of a section of the Teton Crest Trail.

See my stories about a family backpacking trip in the Tetons, “Walking Familiar Ground: Reliving Old Memories and Making New Ones on the Teton Crest Trail” and “American Classic: Backpacking the Teton Crest Trail,” and all of my stories about the Teton Crest Trail and Grand Teton National Park, including my several Ask Me posts about the Tetons.

  Find your next adventure in your Inbox. Sign up for my FREE email newsletter now.

  Imogene Lake, Sawtooth Mountains, Idaho.

Imogene Lake, Sawtooth Mountains

Imogene has broken my heart repeatedly—but not for disappointing scenery. I’ve just had to endure the heartbreak of hiking past it a few times without ever camping here. (It graces my list of the best backcountry campsites I’ve hiked past.) On a weekend backpacking trip with my daughter, we dayhiked from Hell Roaring Lake to Imogene, walking the trail that hugs one shore and scrambling out onto a finger of granite that juts into the lake. Like Alice Lake (above), it can be reached on a weekend backpacking trip or built into a longer trek in the Sawtooths.

See all of my stories about Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains, including “Jewels of the Sawtooths: Backpacking to Alice, Hell Roaring, and Imogene Lakes,” “Photo Gallery: Mountain Lakes of Idaho’s Sawtooths,” and “Ask Me: What Are the Best Hikes in Idaho’s Sawtooths?”

  Campsite at Columbine Lake, Sequoia National Park.

Columbine Lake, Sequoia National Park

On the same 40-mile family backpacking trip in Sequoia when we spent a night at Precipice Lake (above), we slept our last night in the backcountry at Columbine Lake, at nearly 11,000 feet. Ringed by granite slabs, cliffs, and three pyramidal peaks, it’s another spot on my list of 25 all-time favorite backcountry campsites. My son and I slept that clear night under the stars, awakening at the same time during the night to gaze up at a sky riddled with sparkling points of light and bisected by the broad swath of the Milky Way—and we count more than a dozen shooting stars.

See my story about that trip, “Heavy Lifting: Backpacking Sequoia National Park,” and all of my stories about Sequoia National Park at The Big Outside.

  Don’t let red tape foil your plans. See my “10 Tips For Getting a Hard-to-Get National Park Backcountry Permit.”

  Ouzel Lake, in Wild Basin, Rocky Mountain National Park.

Ouzel Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park

Tucked into the ponderosa pine forest at around 10,000 feet, in the park’s Wild Basin area, Ouzel is reached on a moderate hike of less than five miles and 1,500 vertical from the Wild Basin Trailhead. Although it gets some dayhikers, you can have a protected campsite in the trees there all to yourself, as my family did on a three-day, early-September backpacking trip. My kids, then 10 and seven, played and fished for hours in the shallow waters near our camp and the lake’s outlet creek.

See my story “The 5 Rules About Kids I Broke While Backpacking in Rocky Mountain National Park.”

  Lonesome Lake, Cirque of the Towers, Wind River Range, Wyoming.

Lonesome Lake, Wind River Range

I’ll never forget the first time I hauled a heavy backpack stuffed with climbing gear on the steep trail over Jackass Pass, at nearly 10,800 feet, and caught my first glimpse of the soaring spires and pinnacles of the Cirque of the Towers, in Wyoming’s Wind River Range. I don’t think I’d seen anyplace like it before, and I’ve seen few since that compare to it. A popular spot—where black bears have reputedly learned to boulder V3 to reach stashed food bags—the Cirque’s prettiest spot is the shore of Lonesome Lake across from the sheer granite walls of 11,884-foot Pingora Peak.

See my story “A Walk in the Winds: Hiking a One-Day, 27-Mile Traverse of Wyoming’s Wind River Range.”

  Marie Lake on the John Muir Trail, John Muir Wilderness.

Marie Lake, John Muir Trail, John Muir Wilderness

Hiking southbound on the John Muir Trail toward 10,800-foot Selden Pass, our small group passed by Marie Lake—and immediately regretted that it was much too early in the day to stop there to camp. Any JMT thru-hiker could make a legitimate argument for Marie Lake as the most beautiful spot on “America’s most beautiful trail,” and many might agree. Studded with rocky islets and peninsulas jutting into its azure waters, Marie will capture your heart. If you trek the JMT, plan to spend a night there, so you don’t feel our disappointment.

See my story “Thru-Hiking the John Muir Trail in Seven Days: Amazing Experience, or Certifiably Insane?” and all of my stories about the John Muir Trail.

  Got a trip coming up? See my reviews of the best gear duffles and luggage and 7 favorite daypacks.

  Jerry Hapgood hiking to Lake Ellen Wilson, Glacier National Park.

Lake Ellen Wilson, Glacier National Park

I’d heard Lake Ellen Wilson was possibly the most scenic backcountry campsite in Glacier before I first visited there; but the moment a friend and I crested Gunsight Pass at 6,900 feet and got our first view down into the giant horseshoe of stone that holds the lake, I knew it would become one of my all-time favorite backcountry campsites. We soaked tired feet in the lake’s cold, emerald waters, a 20-second walk from our campsite, gazing up at 1,000-foot cliffs with several waterfalls pouring off of them. The sun-warmed beach pebbles felt like a heated bed with built-in massage.

See my story “Descending the Food Chain: Backpacking Glacier National Park’s Northern Loop,” and all of my stories about Glacier National Park.

  Benson Lake in Yosemite National Park.

Benson Lake, Yosemite National Park

A longtime backcountry ranger in Yosemite once told me that Benson was his favorite backcountry lake in the entire park—so how could I not check it out myself? On the 87-mile second leg of a 151-mile hike through the biggest blocks of wilderness in Yosemite, my friend Todd and I reached Benson’s sprawling, sandy beach early one evening, immediately shucked off our shoes, wriggled our toes in the sun-warmed sand, and then soaked our tired feet in the marvelously cool waters.

See more photos, a video, and trip-planning tips in my story about the 87-mile second leg of that 151-tour of Yosemite, “Best of Yosemite, Part 2: Backpacking Remote Northern Yosemite,” and my story about the 65-mile first leg of that adventure, “Best of Yosemite, Part 1: Backpacking South of Tuolumne Meadows,” plus my story “The 10 Best Dayhikes in Yosemite,” and all of my stories about Yosemite National Park at The Big Outside.

  Get the right shelter for your trips. See my “Gear Review: The 5 Best Backpacking Tents” and my expert tips in “How to Choose the Best Ultralight Backpacking Tent for You.”

  Rock Slide Lake, Sawtooth Mountains, Idaho.

Rock Slide Lake, Sawtooth Mountains

I really do have a lot of favorite lakes in the Sawtooths. But I’ve also spent enough time there to see many of them. A friend and I spent two nights at Rock Slide on a four-day, 57-mile hike in the more remote, southern end of the range, exploring lake-speckled valleys that birth the Middle Fork Boise River and a tributary of the South Fork Payette River. But Rock Slide Lake was this adventure’s highlight, repeatedly dishing up perfect reflections of the surrounding forest and cliffs and gorgeous sunset and sunrise light setting clouds ablaze.

See my stories “Going After Goals: Backpacking in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains” and “Photo Gallery: Mountain Lakes of Idaho’s Sawtooths.”

  You live for the outdoors. The Big Outside helps you get out there. Subscribe now and a get free e-guide!

Floe Lake, Rockwall Trail, Kootenay National Park, Canada.

Floe Lake, Kootenay National Park, Canadian Rockies

For my family’s first backpacking trip in the Canadian Rockies, we chose one of the best: the 34-mile (54k) Rockwall Trail in Kootenay National Park. A world-class trek, its defining feature is a single, massive limestone cliff, towering up to 3,000 feet above the trail—like a string of El Capitans lined up for miles. While highlights included one of the tallest waterfalls in the Canadian Rockies, Helmet Falls (estimated 1,154 feet, or 352m in height), sightings of mountain goats, climbing over three mountain passes, and up-close views of glaciers hanging off cliffs, one of the Rockwall’s special spots is the camping area on Floe Lake, where we spent our final night. I woke early the next morning to catch the lake reflecting a massive, crumbling cliff and its glaciers.

See my story “Best of the Canadian Rockies: Backpacking the Rockwall Trail,” at The Big Outside.

  Tell me what you think.

I spent a lot of time writing this story, so if you enjoyed it, please consider giving it a share using one of the buttons below, and leave a comment or question at the bottom of this story. I’d really appreciate it.

  See all of my stories about backpacking, family adventures, and national park adventures at The Big Outside.