I’ve been living in Bend, Oregon for almost a year now. I adopted my dog around the same time that I moved here, so together we have been enjoying hiking the local trails. Luckily for us, Bend has plenty of dog-friendly hikes. Since my dog is so young and energetic, we mostly just go to…
Spring is in full swing, and I am lamenting that I’m not returning to go hiking in Stanley, Idaho for a third summer. Last summer while working in Stanley, I went backpacking pretty much every weekend and visited all the hiking trails and lakes that were left on my list. While I’m very excited to…
This past summer, I paid a visit to the Big Boulder Lakes in the White Cloud Mountains of Idaho. Compared to the Sawtooth Mountains, it’s not a very popular or accessible area for hiking. But I had heard from Stanley locals that the Boulder Chain Lakes are a must-visit location. My work friend Kevin was…
In my quest to hike more trails in the White Clouds, I decided to do an overnight to Chamberlain Basin. While I had set off for other hikes from Fourth of July Trailhead before, I had never taken the trail to the South from Fourth of July Lake. This hike would be all new terrain…
After having spent all of my backpacking trips last summer in the Sawtooth Mountains, I was eager to branch out a bit this summer and visit the White Cloud Mountains. I had read about the Boulder Chain Lakes long ago in an issue of Backpacker magazine, and was happy that they had such good things…
The Sawtooth Mountains are located near Stanley, Idaho and are known for their jagged peaks. There are hundreds of miles of well-maintained trails and hundreds of alpine lakes throughout the range. Having lived in Stanley for two summers and having done dozens of hikes in the area, I finally decided to hike the entirety of…
Some of the many attractive qualities of Stanley, Idaho are the Sawtooth Mountains, the abundance of hot springs, and the quirky nightlife. I’m currently on my second summer of living in Stanley, and I feel I’ve thoroughly dabbled in what this slice of mountain heaven has to offer. In this guide you will find where…
Did you know that the Sawtooth Mountains has nearly 350 miles of trails and hundreds of alpine lakes? Pretty cool, right? Well, I hiked about 80 of those miles, visited dozens of lakes, and if anything it just left me wanting more. After my summer of living and working in Stanley, Idaho; I’ve learned quite…
Goat Lake in Stanley, Idaho is one of the local bucket list hikes in the area. After having lived here for a full two months, I was ashamed to admit that I hadn’t yet hiked it. So I set off for the trail head one afternoon to see what the hype was all about. Fast…
A few weeks ago I set out with a group of my friends and coworkers for yet another Stanley, Idaho hiking adventure. I wanted to spend two nights in the mountains, leaving as soon as I got off work on Sunday. Due to conflicting work schedules, two of my friends could go the first night…