Down from Sundance Pass

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One last look at the panorama from Sundance Pass, then we headed back down the trail.

Here is a view of the switchbacks looking down from above.

We had the entire afternoon ahead of us, so we could take our time going back to camp.

Sundance Pass - The View

We loved the hike to Sundance Pass. We rank it among our favorites for the Beartooth Mountains. Below, you can see Mount Lockhart and Whitetail Peak behind us.

In this picture, we have Sundance Peak behind us.

While waiting for Joe to walk up Mount Lockhart, I pulled out the topo map and orientated myself to all the major landmarks in sight.

He took these pictures of me as he descended from Mount Lockhart.

Sadly, it was just too chilly to spend the day on the pass. We soaked in the view for as long as we could, but I was getting chilled, so we headed back down the trail.

Mount Lockhart

After reaching Sundance Pass at 11037 feet, we noticed how easy it would be to walk up Mount Lockhart, which is 11647 feet. Personally, I was not up for it, but Joe could not resist checking it out. The picture above shows Mount Lockhart with Whitetail Peak behind it.
I stayed behind at the pass and took pictures of his progress up the slope. Below, you can see him at the top!

Joe took these two pictures from Mount Lockhart. Above, the view down the Lake Fork of Rock Creek valley, where we came from - with a little bit of September Morn Lake visible.
Below, a view of Sundance Pass, looking off toward Silver Run Peak. Notice the switchbacks descending on either side of the pass.

Here is another picture of Mount Lockhart - taken from the trail before September Morn Lake. It is interesting to see it from this vantage point for comparison.

Sundance Pass - 11037 Feet High

Our first view of Sundance Peak!

We climbed to the top of the pass, arriving before noon. The wind was quite cold! I was so glad I had brought my down jacket!

That's Whitetail Peak, and Mount Lockhart behind me. Notice the switchbacks heading down below me.

That's Sundance Peak behind me in this picture.

Sundance Pass - the Trail

We climbed up out of the September Morn Lake basin and found the panorama opening up for broader views.

The trail from September Morn to Sundance Pass is a Category 2 Climb.
This picture shows me on the trail - with a good view of the Pass up ahead (the snow patch near the top). The elevation of the pass is 11037 feet. The trail from this point was quite steep, with a long series of switchbacks up the final stretch.

September Morn Lake - Beartooth Mountains

We reached the outlet of September Morn Lake (above) after climbing nearly 1500 feet
in just 2 1/2 miles. Great scenery all along the way.

September Morn Lake lies at 9696 feet. There are a lot of nice campsites at this lake.

We ate an energy bar here, and continued on up to Sundance Pass. We did not see another living soul on the trail - which surprised us. No complaints, though! We really enjoyed the solitude.

Lake Fork Rock Creek Trail - Climbing Higher

Our second day in the Lake Fork of Rock Creek, we planned a day hike on up to Sundance Pass.
From Keyser Brown Lake, the trail climbs steadily. The next three miles, we would climb nearly 2000 feet. Above, Keyser Brown Lake can be viewed from the trail.
Below, this tumbling stream pours into Keyser Brown Lake at least 500 feet below. It was fun crossing this waterfall.

As we climbed higher, we got different views of the lakes in the valley.
Again - Keyser Brown Lake comes into view.

Climbing higher still, we were able to spot First Rock Lake, and even Second Rock Lake, eventually. It was a beautiful clear crisp day.

Keyser Brown Lake Morning

We were up early our first morning at Keyser Brown Lake. We had the entire place to ourselves and had not seen another human since noon the previous day. It was chilly enough for our down jackets and polarfleece caps. We enjoyed watching the light creeping into the valley and lighting up the tops of the nearby peaks. At first, everything was pink.

By the time we finished with breakfast, we were still in the shadows.

I took these last few pictures at the lake as I was washing out our breakfast dishes!

It was completely still so the reflection on the lake was a perfect mirror.

Beartooth Mountain Comma

I believe this beautiful butterfly is a Satyr Comma.

We saw quite a nice variety of insects on this trip. By the time we went (mid August), the mosquitoes were dwindling. There were a few of them buzzing around, but I don't think we got any bites.

Wish I could have gotten a better picture of a Comma, but we only saw a few of these over the three days we spent in the mountains this trip.

First Rock Lake Reflections

From where we were at First Rock Lake, we could see that it would be a steep off trail rock scramble to Second Rock Lake. I don't do well climbing on big boulders, and we had already traveled 8 miles this day so we lingered at First Rock and enjoyed watching the changing light, reflection and shadows as the sun settled behind Sky Pilot Mountain.

I love this image of the reflection at the outlet of First Rock Lake at dusk.