Our trip out west in July of 2022 included a three day, two night trip in Wyoming’s incredible Wind River Mountain Range.
We drove from Salt Lake City to North-West Wyoming, following the directions for “Cirque of the Towers to Fremont Trail Loop” as provided by Alltrails. The directions were sufficient, but be prepared for an extra 1-2 hours each way to account for how slow you will likely go on the deteriorated roads. The road became especially precarious once we turned onto Big Sandy Opening road.
The parking lot was almost full by the time we got there, (around 5pm), but we were able to find a spot. A restroom is also provided at the trail head.
We began the hike around 6 pm, and thus only had a few miles to find a spot to camp for the night. The hike started on Fremont, we took a left at the divide to follow the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail. Shortly after this, we crossed into the Bridger Wilderness from the Bridger-Teton National Forest.
We then found a camping spot after climbing in elevation for a few miles. The next day we started early, and spotted Mirror Lake early in the day.
Next up was our lunch break at Dad’s Lake, and then we passed by Marm’s Lake.
We then left the Continental Divide Trail, and turned onto Hailey Pass Trail. It was around here when we discovered snow! The amount of snow would gradually increase with the elevation. We were not prepared for this…
The next leg of the trip would take us onto Shadow Lake Trail. We passed by four lakes during this part, they were: Shadow Lake, Billy’s Lake, Barren Lake and Texas Lake. As we climbed higher and higher in altitude, the terrain became more and more snowy. It was surreal walking in 75 degree weather with mosquitos, all while trudging through snow.
Towering immediately above Texas Lake was the Texas Pass. This pass is notorious for being the hardest part of the trip, by far. Since we took a left at the initial trail fork, we had to scale up the almost 90 degree pass, as opposed to managing to climb down.
The view at the top was spectacular, but we realize that the entire other side of the mountain was covered in snow and ice. The climb down was nerve-racking. We had to be extremely careful as to where we put our feet, and thus went at a very slow pace.
We then realized that it was beginning to get dark, and had to rush to find a spot to camp overnight. There is nothing quite like rushing down a mountain, as the sun sets, all the while periodically seeing bear prints in the snow. We found a spot close to Lonesome Lake. The next day we saw a sign restricting camping next to the lake, so make sure to not do what we did in this one instance!
The next day featured Jackass Pass within the first few miles. This pass was much less intense, and featured this cool sign at the top.
What was difficult was passing next to Arrowhead Lake a few miles later. The snow had covered most of the rocks on the path next to the lake, so we had to boulder around the icy, snow covered rocks. This also included walking on some of the frozen lake. Afterwards was North Lake. Going around this lake was much easier. It was close to here where we saw a marmot chirping!
The rest of the hike was fairly uneventful. Big Sandy Lake would come up towards the end, and it is clear why this lake is popular for families. The hike to Big Sandy is easy, (if one takes a right turn at the initial fork).
We followed the west side of the lake, and continued south for some miles, eventually leaving the Bridger Wilderness once again. Shortly after we were back on Fremont, and then back to the parking lot.
The trip was truly memorable. We were forced to test our perseverance, patience and strength. We were on edge at points, (climbing the Texas Pass and walking next to bear prints), and elated at others. In terms of wildlife we saw eagles, fish, chipmunks and marmots. We heard/saw evidence of larger animals, but never saw any. Make sure to pack mosquito nets, and light snow gear if you are hiking in June-July. We will return to the Wind River Range! Comment below if you would like to share your experiences in the Wind River Range.
Below are a few additional pictures from the trip!
Aaron and Kate’s Adventures 
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