u/ycameron180

My friends and I spent a couple days backpacking through Idaho’s Sawtooth Wilderness, hiking from Redfish Lake to Alpine Lake before taking a custom route over a ridgeline to reach Warbonnet Lake. We took a boat shuttle from Redfish Lake Marina to the trailhead ($28 round trip), saving us about 6 miles of hiking. Over the course of the trip, we covered around 18 miles with 5,000 feet of elevation gain, navigating rugged terrain, steep scree fields, and some pretty unpredictable weather.

Warbonnet Lake was an incredible place to camp, surrounded by dramatic peaks and alpine scenery. We also made the climb up Old Monte Verita, reaching the summit at 9,771 feet. It was a challenging trip, but the views and the experience of exploring deeper into the Sawtooths made every step worth it.

My friends and I recently spent a few days backpacking in Idaho’s Sawtooth Wilderness. We took a boat shuttle from Redfish Lake Marina to the Redfish Lake Inlet Trail, saving us about 6 miles of hiking, then made our way to Alpine Lake before taking a custom route over a ridgeline to Warbonnet Lake. We covered around 18 miles with 5,000 feet of elevation gain and camped at Warbonnet Lake, surrounded by incredible alpine scenery. The weather wasn’t exactly cooperative, though—we hiked through rain, got caught in pea-sized hail, and had to navigate some pretty steep, loose scree along the way.

One of my biggest takeaways was how different ridgeline navigation can be when you leave the established trail. Our planned route became faint or nonexistent in places, and what looked manageable on a map was much more challenging in person. Finding a safe line through loose rock while carrying a full pack taught me a lot about route-finding, terrain assessment, and the importance of being willing to adjust your plans. We also climbed Old Monte Verita, reaching 9,771 feet. I documented the entire adventure, including the route, campsite, storm conditions, and summit climb, in this video if you’d like to check it out: Here

AllTrails link: Here

Video Title: "I Wasn't Ready For This | Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains"

*No AI was used in this, just good old Photoshop*

This is for a hiking/adventure video focusing on the Sawtooth Mountains in Idaho. I really stepped up my editing on the video so I'm following suite and trying to step up my thumbnail game as well. Any advice or feedback would be appreciated!