On June 25, 2006, we hiked up to Swasey Lakes (Google Map) in the High Uintas Wilderness of Utah.
This was the last trail we hiked in October before it got cold...actually, it had already gotten cold. But
we only made it as far as the top of Long Park back in October, so I decided this could be our first hike
of the summer season...but this time we would make it at least to Swasey Lakes. Well, we made it to
Swasey Lakes, but, man, it took us forever to get there. We made the 5.75 mile hike in about 5
hours...I mean, that's some good time! After we dropped down off the mountain, I swear that we
walked into some Bermuda triangle. My GPS kept telling me we were .8 miles from the lake for a good
40 minutes. Every time I looked at the GPS we hadn't budged an inch. I don't know what happened.
But we eventually made it to the lake after going cross country off the trail. We did find an informal trail
the next day that followed the creek, and we took that back out. But the climb up the mountain the
next day was a good hike. It didn't gain a lot of elevation, but the gain was in a short distance, so it
was really steep. But the hike was worth it. The top had great views above the treeline, and the lakes
were surrounded by tall mountains. We didn't see a single soul after the first mile, and the only car at
the trailhead when we came back was a Forest Service truck. The only drawback: SERIOUS
mosquitoes. I mean, Swasey Lake was horrible. Our 100% DEET was working overtime. Since this is
our first summer in Utah, I really hope all of the Uintas aren't this bad. But all in all, this was a good
hike. And here's a map and GPS Track Log of the hike.