Camped close-by to the campground off the turn-off to Colchuck, can't remember the name. We were the first ones there around 5 PM but it filled up at the end of the night! Still some open sites though.
Started @ 5:40 AM from Stuart Lake TH for a thru-hike of the Enchantments.
Bathroom line is long and TP nowhere to be seen- you've been warned!
Couldn't believe how few people we saw, both day hikers and campers. So many open campsites in the Core Zone it seemed. Not sure how many permits are given out. For some reason I had this image in my mind of hundreds of people hiking this trail, but it was really not crowded at all! Love how rugged the trail is for how popular it is. Didn't see any trash, just pristine conditions.
Have to say, weather was perfect and trail conditions were great. A little snow that is very easy to cross. Mountain goats galore. No winds. We would have loved to do Little Annapurna but didn't have a shuttle set-up so trying to save the legs as my brother ran up the 9 mile road from Snow Lake TH back to the car at Stuart.
Finished at 2:24 PM. Can't wait to do this again! So hard to move quickly but not stop for photos. :)
My Strava app clocked 20.5 miles, my brother's app 19.2 We ran together, so... :) who knows!
Side note: there was an "irritated" mountain goat with her baby on the switch backs down from Snow lake to the TH. I'd say about 3 miles from the trailhead. I did not feel comfortable passing her as she was blocking the trail and seemed aggressive to a lady that got too close. That was about a 15 minute detour, just wait it out until they move! I scrambled down a little off the trail to go around. Wasn't what I wanted but this goat had no intention of moving.
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