The Selkirk Crest from Myrtle Peak
Late this summer I embarked on a ‘Solo’ backpacking trip through the Selkirks. The plan was to start up Myrtle Peak, bush-wack my way over to Ball/Pyramid Lakes, then hike over and up to Trout and Big Fisher Lakes, back round again past Long Mountain Lake and then out through Parker Ridge.
That was the plan – and the expectation was that I’d be tackling about 40 miles in roughly 2.5 days – where around 10 of those miles would be bush-wacking (i.e., off-trail and on my own). The hike ended up being spectacular – even though some foul weather pushed me into a contingency plan that cut off about 10 miles out of my trip (more on that in subsequent posts).
The View from Myrtle Peak is Spectacular
Today, though, I just wanted to share what’s been my desktop background for the last 2 or 3 days – the view from Myrtle Peak (and by using an iOS Panorama, this view captures what you’d see looking south, west, and north).
There’s more granite and beauty in this shot than I can cover in a single 3 to 9 sentence post. Crack it open, and take a look. It’s not a great photo by any stretch – but the landscape it captures is just plain gorgeous.
For anyone curious about what you’re looking at:
This was taken from the top of Myrtle Peak – where you can see some of the remnants of an old Forest Service Lookout (i.e., the metal cabling/etc.).
Then, to the south (left third of the image) the view is looking out towards Gunsight Peak, and you can clearly see Chimney Rock way off in the distance; South-West you can make out Kent Lake (nestled into some serious granite); then to the West you can see Kent Peak/Ridge and Lion’s Head (one of the most gorgeous blocks of granite anywhere) – along with a fantastic backdrop of craggy peaks heading off into the distance; then, to the North, the ridge I hiked out along takes up most of the foreground, with Pyramid/Ball Peaks in left-of center (to the North) -stretching out to Trout/Big Fisher Peaks a bit further along – with views of full-on Canada up further to the north.