Lake of The Crags

"You are surrounded by small perpendicular peaks that are a beautiful miniature of the giganitc peaks found in other areas of the Tetons. Around you on all sides are these perpendicular spires and peaks and the area is studded with snow fields. This area has one of the most beautiful mountain views in the Tetons, lacking the grandeur of the spectacular great peaks but in many ways surpassing them all in beauty. This is a place that has always affected me as a sort of Shan-gri-la, where I like to sit and think and contempate the solitude and beauties of nature."
~Paul Petzoldt

You said it, Paul.

One morning, our gang of seven set off for the Lake of the Crags. Brad went there in 1993 and Dan has been a couple of times as well. I do not know of any human being that can hike as well as these two. So when they suggested that we go up there, I knew that we had crossed a threshold with my children - they are now considered hard core hikers.

This is Brad in 1993. He went to Lake of the Crags with my brother, Ed.

Wood and Susan kindly offered to watch Lucy, Kate and Sadie for the day so that Abby could come too. We started out at String Lake. There will be no Jenny Lake Ferry for us-- because ferries are for wusses. The trail to Hanging Canyons isn't a maintained trail so we relied on Dan and Brad's memories as to where to get off the main trail.

Steep. Have I mentioned how steep the trail is? There is a 2800 foot elevation change in two miles. I told everyone before we went on the hike that I'm a slow hiker, especially uphill. I did not (or maybe I did, depending on how you look at it) disappoint.

It got to the point that they had to stop every once in awhile to let me catch up to them. Rachel later told me that she was glad I made it necessary for them to stop periodically, as Dan sets a pace that a mountain goat would have a hard time keeping up with. Brad stayed behind to make sure I was still moving. I figure I was lagging behind for a purpose. You see, when predators hunt, who do they go after? The weak, the sick and the old; thus culling the herd so that the group in general remain healthy. I was ony protecting my hiking buddies. You are welcome.

Rams Head Lake. Just a hop, skip and a scramble away from Lake of the Crags.

Lake of the Crags. All together now....oooh, aaaah. We took a well deserved rest and soaked in the surroundings.

The water was painfully cold, as is evidenced by the chunks of snow floating on it. But we must keep smiling, right?

We tried to take a family picture. So which one should we use for our Christmas picture this year?

This is my choice.

The hike down was a bit easier for me but I learned an important lesson, I will not wear my hiking sandals for another long hike again. Rocks kept getting in my shoes and my feet got really cold on the snowfields. Look at us, we are glissading! (That means sliding down a snowfield while trying to avoid bruising your body and your dignity.)

 We made it to String Lake to find that Grammie and Grampa had taken the kids to play in the water. It was a good day, but we all felt it the next morning.Dan told me that the kids kept up with him the entire time with Caleb jumping from boulder to boulder and the girls not even breaking a sweat.  Brad calculated that the girls and I hiked about 24 miles on this trip and he and Caleb logged in 50. Yup, I guess that means we are a hiking family.
I think the difficulty of the journey made the destination that much more beautiful. Life is funny that way.