Chose to do this clockwise from 6/1-6/4/20 because a possible storm was coming on Saturday, so wanted to get the passes over first, and as you’ll read, had other benefits. Weather ended up being perfect all weekend, however it had just snowed 2 ft above 6500ft on the east side, and added a bit of a challenge to get over the passes. Climb up the east fork wallowa River was beautiful, then hit slushy snow at the meadows. Camped at snowy Aneroid for a chilly first night. But the good weather pushed us on to tenderfoot pass and Polaris pass. Much of the trail was covered in snow, so downloading the map was key. We had shoe spikes and trekking poles, which is highly recommended for the passes, which were definitely a little sketchy for a non-technical/non-mountaineer. But the views were epic! Going down the west side of Polaris pass made us thankful for going the direction we choose, cause going up those switchbacks with no protection from the sun would have been soul challenging. Camped at Frazier lake under towering mountains. A group of 4 blazed the trail ahead of us, which made following their footsteps easier, however they veered off track just under the Glacier pass. Glacier lake was still frozen over. We found them on top to enjoy the breathtaking view together and found out they had no map. They also did this with no shoe spikes, so it’s do-able if you don’t want/have the spikes/crampons. We took them down to mocossin lake where they set up camp and we pushed on to lower and dryer ground. Set up camp on Horseshoe lake where we watched the full moon rise over the lake on our last night. We didn’t get much for stargazing due to the brightness of the moon, but I imagine it’s a great spot for it. The next morning we skipped down the west fork of the wallowa River, with breathtaking views of the mountains, ragging river and beautiful meadows. Overall, one of the best trips I’ve been on. Non-stop beauty!
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Above Moon lake, mostly snowed in. Black bear mom and cub sighted near auto trailhead (4 July). East eagle creek flowing above knee level at crossing.
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