This trip is something I've wanted to do for a long time. I'm glad I waited until this year. I had an incomplete vision of what was possible and what would work for me. Two trip reports helped. One from Peaks for Freaks and the other, a Flickr album by Craig Taylor opened my eyes to how much more there was than just getting to Hell for Sure Lake and Pass. Indeed.
View Trip Map for loop details and campsite locations
GUNSIGHT PASS AND CONFUSION LAKE
LOOKING DOWN AT RAINBOW LAKE FROM THE SHOULDER ABOVE CONFUSION LAKE
PART OF THE ROUTE I TOOK TO GET AROUND RAINBOW LAKE
THE PATH AHEAD. THE GOAL: SOMEWHERE BETWEEN DIVISION AND PEARL LAKES
A SMALL TARN NEAR BIGHORN LAKE
MELLOW SLABS ON THE WAY UP TO DIVISION LAKE
DAY 3 CAMPSITE BETWEEN DIVISION AND PEARL LAKES
DAY 3 CAMPSITE BETWEEN DIVISION AND PEARL LAKES
SUNSET VIEW OF FINGER PEAK AND THE CONVENIENT CROSSING OF THE LECONTE DIVIDE AT FINGER COL
LATE DAY VIEW OF OYSTER PEAK
SUNSET VIEW OF OYSTER PEAK
SUNSET AND FINGER PEAK FROM PEARL LAKE
SUNSET REFLECTION OF OYSTER PEAK
MORNING DAY 4
THE KEY PASSAGE TO EASILY GET TO THE BASIN BELOW FINGER COL
LOOKING BACK AT PEARL LAKE ON THE TRAVERSE OVER TO CATHEDRAL LAKE
THE VIEW FROM MIDWAY LAKE. CATHEDRAL LAKE IS HIDDEN IN THIS VIEW
SUBMERGED GRASS IN MIDWAY LAKE
STARTING THE ASCENT TO FINGER COL
STARTING THE ASCENT TO FINGER COL - SAME SPOT
LOOKING UP THRU THE SHORT SECTION OF SCREE BEFORE TAKING ON THE STEEPER SLABS ABOVE
BACK ON EASY GROUND AFTER NEGOTIATING THE SOMEWHAT EXPOSED SLABS BELOW
HARD SNOW JUST BELOW FINGER COL
FINAL STEPS TO FINGER COL
THE FINGER IN FINGER COL
LOOKING EAST FROM FINGER COL
LOOKING DOWN INTO GODDARD CREEK DRAINAGE FROM FINGER COL
NOW WHAT? THE IDEA WAS TO STAY ON A LEVEL CONTOUR ALL THE WAY TO THE LAKES ON THE GODDARD BENCH
A SCREEN GRAB FROM CAL TOPO OF THE ROUTE TO GODDARD BENCH
INITIALLY THE TRAVERSE FROM FINGER COL WAS COMPLETED WITHOUT ANY DRAMA
LOOKS CAN BE DECEIVING. NEEDED TO GET DOWN TO THIS LAKE BUT COULD TELL IT CLIFFED OUT.
PRIOR TO ARRIVING AT THIS VIEW THINGS HAD BEEN EASY
SAFELY DOWN AT THE LAKE WHERE THE REALLY NICE MELLOW TRAVEL BEGAN AT LAST
THIS WAS THE BEGINNING OF WHAT TURNED OUT TO BE A WONDERFUL EXCURSION ALL THE WAY TO REINSTEIN PASS
APPROACHING THE LITTLE TARNS WHERE I WOULD TURN NORTH TOWARDS REINSTEIN PASS