The setting was perfect for the words God needed me to hear. The Aspens were in full explosion on the hillsides as i meandered to and fro up the Redfish lake ridge towards the Bench Lakes. On hills in the distance i could see the many colors of the Aspens that i did not find up close, particularly the vibrant reds on the slopes of the White Cloud Range to the East. Having grown up in Seattle, I did not have the pleasure of seeing God renew his color palet every fall in the leaves of his rooted Aspens. They were a pleasure to behold, one that drew my heart constantly to God's amazing glory in the landscape surrounding me.
I hiked a ridge that followed more than half of Redfish Lake, which is over 5 miles in length, to sweeping vistas of the azure blue below me and the castle like White Cloud Range to my east. It was a chilly day that produced quite the blue sky and forced me to hike in long johns. It was October. I had my first glimpse of The Grand Mogul up close and personal on the trail, i can see how it and the Elephant's perch behind it are a climbing mecca in the Sawtooths. I veered off the main spur to ascend to my destination in the shade of Mt. Heyburn, the Bench Lakes. The traverse from the spur to the first lake brought with it a dense foliage of landscape as i switchbacked rather quickly by myself up to the shelf that supported the lakes. The first lake was beautiful with the tallest peak in the Sawtooth's framed beyond it, Mt. Thompson. The second lake had the full view of Mt. Heyburn less than a mile away. God is glorious, take a look.
The beginning of the Trail at Redfish Lake Trailhead
Redfish Lake as seen from the Ridge
Mt. Heyburn with the Bench Lakes Tucked in the Shade
Mt. Thompson is the Leftmost
The Second Bench Lake, Heyburn to the Left
The Final Stretch of Aspens before the Car
