Cade Brown
Did the ibantik lake trail and combined it with the Clyde lake trail to make a loop back around. This is a pretty easy hike in my opinion. The hardest part is going up to the notch, but the trial is pretty well maintained on this part and it really isn’t too bad. The views from the notch are amazing. I was surprised at how crowded ibantik lake was tho. There were easily 20-30 ppl there scattered around the lake. On the way back, I took the loop up around the 3 divide lakes over to Clyde lake, and went back that way. Overall this was a really cool hike with the route I took back because it is pretty mellow the whole way and you get to see a handful of different lakes along the way. This time of year there wild flowers are in full bloom. If you have young kids I’m not sure how well they would do going up and over the notch, but if you continue to do the loop go around to Clyde lake from the ibantik lake trailhead it would be a great one for kids.
5.0
Completed this hike on 10/14/16. Started the hike at 7:30am and ended at scout 11:30. But that was with taking it pretty slow and exploring at each lake. So definitely could have been completed in a shorter amount of time if desired. Did the hike as recommended from multiple sites going counter clockwise. I'm glad we did because going the other way would have been going uphill for a longer amount of time. Going counter clockwise you do gain a bit of elevation in a short amount of time but after you reach the peak of the hike, it's very easy. Downhill and flat almost the rest of the way. This is a great hike for anyone wanting to get away from everything but not necessarily wanting to spend all day doing so. I really enjoyed the fact that it is a loop so everything you see is new and exciting until the end. There are multiple lakes, the ones named and unnamed along the trail almost from the get-go that keep it exciting. Going up to the pass is where the real "exhausting" part of the hike happens. But very doable for anyone if they pace themselves. The views from the pass are awesome. It overlooks the uintas to the east and you can spot right away scout, mirror and picturesque lakes, with bald mountain right there. Makes for an epic view. After you pass lofty lake, there is another sweet view to the north of a basin and more lakes. Overall, great short hike. Not too strenuous but challenging enough to be rewarding.
4.0
First time venturing to Grandaddy basin, and it was amazing. I decided to try and fit in one last hike before the snow really hits. So I headed on up to Grandview trailhead 9-30-16. The hike itself wasn't too difficult at all. The first portion was the steepest/rockiest. Once you get up to the top of Hades Pass it's a fairly easy trail. At least for the parts of the trail I got to explore. I made it to Grandaddy, Betsy, Mohawk and Lodgepole. And all the other un-named lakes in that general area. This part of the year you never know what you're going to get for weather. Especially in the Uintas. I got to the top of hades pass at about 9:30 am. There was a low hanging cloud that covered pretty much the whole basin, but was high enough to see all of the basin as well. Made for some sweet pics. I did luck out tho. It only rained as I was heading back, at about 3:30pm. All the lakes that I mentioned were no more than 30 min from Grandaddy at the most. Each had their own unique feel to them. I liked Betsy lake the most. I put up my hammock and chilled there for a good hour or so before exploring the others. Wish I had the time to have made this a two or three day trip so i could explore the rest of Grandaddy basin. The parts I did get to were pretty awesome tho. I also lucked out on crowds as well. This is a great time of year to go if you want to avoid all the crowds from earlier in the summer. I was literally the only one there. At least starting from the grandview trailhead.
5.0
Did this hike on 8/22/16. This is definitely a must do hike in the Uintas. Did this as a day hike. But, wish I would have taken the planning to back pack into amethyst basin and make it an overnight trip because this place is truly magical. Started at about 6:30am and got up to amethyst lake at 9:30 ish. That was with a lot of stops and sight seeing along the way up. Amethyst lake is amazing. A lot bigger than I thought it would be. The water, especially with the sun shining, is an intense clear, aqua color. Set up some hammocks on the east side and relaxed for a bit. On the way down we decided to explore over to Ostler lake. From what I had researched, there is no actual trail to it. So, we bush whacked our way there and back from the trail. I am surprised there is no official trail to Ostler lake because it is a pretty lake. Not as awesome as amethyst, but with Ostler peak in the background, Ostler lake makes for some pretty sweet photos. My brother and I also took a dive in Ostler. It was probably the coldest water I have ever been in but definitely worth it. This hike has it all. Definitely take the time to do an overnight trip. Starting off at the amazing Christmas meadows, following a river, seeing a few water falls on the way and amazing peaks keeps your mind off the burning legs. There really isn't much difficulty to this hike other than the 0.5 miles right after the turn off to amethyst lake.
5.0
Did this hike on 8/22/16. This is definitely a must do hike in the Uintas. Did this as a day hike. But, wish I would have taken the planning to back pack into amethyst basin and make it an overnight trip because this place is truly magical. Started at about 6:30am and got up to amethyst lake at 9:30 ish. That was with a lot of stops and sight seeing along the way up. Amethyst lake is amazing. A lot bigger than I thought it would be. The water, especially with the sun shining, is an intense clear, aqua color. Set up some hammocks on the east side and relaxed for a bit. On the way down we decided to explore over to Ostler lake. From what I had researched, there is no actual trail to it. So, we bush whacked our way there and back from the trail. I am surprised there is no official trail to Ostler lake because it is a pretty lake. Not as awesome as amethyst, but with Ostler peak in the background, Ostler lake makes for some pretty sweet photos. My brother and I also took a dive in Ostler. It was probably the coldest water I have ever been in but definitely worth it. This hike has it all. Definitely take the time to do an overnight trip. Starting off at the amazing Christmas meadows, following a river, seeing a few water falls on the way and amazing peaks keeps your mind off the burning legs. There really isn't much difficulty to this hike other than the 0.5 miles right after the turn off to amethyst lake.
5.0
Hiked this on 8/11/16. Not a bad hike at all. Was able to hit all 4 lakes in the area. Dog lake, Lake Mary, Lake Martha and Lake Catherine in about 2 hours time. That includes some exploring time also, so if you wanted to hit all the lakes in a shorter amount of time it is very doable. It was a fairly crowded trail up to lake Mary for being in the middle of the week, so I can bet it is very packed on the weekend. Definitely recommend going on this hike during the week to avoid that. Once we got past lake Mary we only ran into a few people tho. The last 2 lakes are defiantly more picturesque in my opinion. We had lake Catherine all to ourselves for a good 45 min- 1 hour. Great family friendly and short hike
4.0
Backpacking into island lake is definitely a must do for anyone looking for an awesome, scenic hike with a rewarding place to camp at the end. I did this with 2 of my brothers on 7/27/16. The trail up to island lake, like stated starts at the Crystal Lake trailhead. It passes by a handful of lakes along the way, making the hike very scenic and fun. The hardest part of the hike is at the last .5 miles or so when you hit a few moderately steep switchbacks to get you up over the top to island lake. Other than that, it is fairly flat with a few ups and downs but nothing too strenuous. Island lake has many awesome places to camp at once you get there. There are more designated camp sites if you go to the left of the lake when you get up there, but you can basically camp anywhere. We camped on the north east side of the lake right behind the cliffs. We did cliff jump as well. The highest cliffs seem to be about 50 ft ish. At the time that we went up, it got pretty toasty in the middle of the day so jumping off the cliffs into the lake was an awesome treat to cool off and get some adrenaline pumping. We did not make it to the island, but on the east side of the lake would be the easiest place to cross over and check it out if you wanted to. I'm sure you could also pack your stuff over to camp there as well. There is also a fresh water spring clear up on the north east side of the Meadow that is tucked away behind the lake (on the cliff side). This is great to know about because it makes worrying about having enough water less stressful. We filled up our water bottles and camel backs a few times with the fresh spring water. One day we also went and explored some nearby lakes like duck lake. Overall this is an awesome backpacking trip that isn't too strenuous. You could also just make this an all day trip
5.0
Just completed this hike on 7/6/16. What the description of this hike fails to tell you is how steep it is. It is very steep and pretty rocky the majority of the way. I did this with 3 of my brothers. We are in decent shape and were all very exhausted by the end. All in all it was a very pretty hike. One of the more difficult ones I have ever done, but once you do make it to the upper reservoir it is worth it. The reservoir itself is not very big at all but it's pretty neat. Because the upper reservoir is so secluded and it is difficult to get there, you will pretty much have it all to yourself. We packed up some hammocks and chilled up by the reservoir for a good 2 hours and no one else showed up. Just make sure to pack plenty of water for this hike. The first few hours does not have much shade so starting earlier is the best plan.
4.0
Went on this hike in early July of last year. Awesome hike! Left pretty early when it was still fairly cool up the canyon, which made it nice because I was able to get up he trail more than halfway before it started to get too warm. I was a bit more winded than I expected but once you get to the top, overlooking the lake with the peak in the background...that makes it all worth it! There are 2 smaller lakes up there as well. Lots of exploring and relaxing can be done up there. Well worth it!
5.0
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