Alta Mountain, Rampart Ridge - Rampart Lakes & Rachel Lake — Friday, Jul. 11, 2025

If you are looking for a good swim spot, skip Rachel Lake and press on to Rampart Lakes. There is something for everyone here: cliff jumps for the brave, bubbling streams for the littles, and shallows and deeps for everyone. The water is cold, but the rocks are sunny and warm (until 6pm)

As noted in previous reports, the mosquitoes are still out for blood at the lakes, but the breeze on our trip seemed to keep them from becoming overwhelming. Thanks to previous reports, we were prepared, so it wasn’t a vibe killer.

Actually finding the lakes wasn’t as straightforward as I expected. As noted in the hike description, it’s a bit of a maze. We ended up missing all lakes until we stumbled upon the very last one and had to backtrack. My advice is to head right as soon as you encounter the first small tarn (or use GPS like a modern human).

If you have time, the side quest up Alta Mountain is well worth the effort. It’s about a 3-hour round trip from Rampart Lakes and the views are simply incredible. We chose to do this after dinner and arrived in time for sunset. Pro tip 1: Don’t get tricked by false summits. There is at least one that is quite convincing. Pro tip 2: Navigating the aforementioned maze of trails in the dark to find your campsite is not recommended.

We passed quite a few day hikers and backpackers on our way out on Saturday, so arrive early on prime hiking days.