Recovering from a fractured pelvis, this spring of 2023, I’ve been spending most of my time watching backpacking and hiking videos to prepare for this coming summer adventures. You are the first person to talk about Leave No Trace policy and packing out your used toilet paper. I’ve watched many videos of people showing what they are packing for their trip and they never have empty Ziplocks to pack out their used toilet paper; very worrisome Thank you for addressing that subject. Also a big thank you for not using music over the sounds of nature. I’ve gotten to the point that I skip into the middle of a video and if there’s music playing I move onto the next video. After going through about five videos of the Sawtooth Range, yours was the first and only one that had no music, so that’s why I watched it. Thank you so much. Beautiful job.
Nice video! I have hiked in to Sawtooth Lake from Iron Creek trail head a number of times with my teenage son. We climbed Observation Peak for spectacular views. When you go back, I recommend this walk-up trail which right off the route you took. I recommend you identify the sites you visit by name so that your viewers can go there too. I am now 86 years old with hip problems; your video brings back wonderful memories!
Great scenery and very well narrated and edited. Thank you for not drowning out the wonderful nature audio with cinematic music. Keep up the great work.
Thanks again for checking out the video! This was one of my favorite backpacking trips. Filming and editing is more of a passion than anything, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t 😂. Cheers to your next mountain adventure -Megan
My Engineer Army unit was on temp duty at Lake Cascade below Mcall Idaho for 30 days. To rebuild some of the Foresty Departments trailers and property back in Aug 1983. We did a white water trip down the Payette River towards Boise, Idaho. The Air Force at Mt. Home AFB supplied the rafts and guides. It was an awesome adventure. The water was cold. But we all survived. We paddled our own rafts with the guides in them. Caught my first coho samon on a fly rod in Lake Cascade. Great video. Great Memories of Idaho. Thank You.
Jeffrey, thanks for sharing your story, sounds like you had an awesome experience in Idaho. The Payette river is so beautiful! It’s one of the first scenes in the video. The water was so clear in Idaho, it was such a beautiful place. Thanks for the kind comment! -Megan
Love Idaho's Sawtooth's and White Cloud Peaks across the valley. But then there is also the Boulder and Pioneer Mountains that are equally impressive around Sun Valley. Fortunate to be close to all of these. Another one to look into and VERY remote are the Big Horn Crags just north of the Sawtooth's. Unbelievable scenery and the Middle Fork of the Salmon and Impassable Canyon runs right by Mt. McGuire in the middle of the River Of No Return Wilderness.
Beautiful camera work! You captured your surroundings well! I especially loved the scenes with your canine companions- got a laugh from the elk carcass mishap! You've inspired me to check out Idaho- I hope to make it out there next year. Looking forward to your next one!
kat kovaleff Thanks Kat! Happy you hear you enjoyed the video! Thanks for checking it out! Yes...the carcass...😭. It’s not the first time our dog has gotten into something gross while backpacking, and certainly not the last. Cheers to your next mountain adventure, happy trails!
Your videos have always been good, but this one is fantastic. The scenery there was AWSOME and you did a great job capturing it ! I also like that you let the sounds of water , wind , leaves etc come through. Some people spend WAY too much time talking, but you’ve found a pretty good balance. Keep it up! Great job👍
I went into this hike knowing I was going to film and edit this one totally different, and your comment let me know I did the right thing! Thanks for the kind post, this will help me with future videos! -Megan
Megan, met you up at Sawtooth Lake. I saw our tent and my silhouette made it into the video. Nice video - hope you enjoyed the rest of your trip. Look me up if you come back Idaho way.
Derek Risso Derek! I’m so happy you found my page and thanks for taking a look at the video! Idaho was so beautiful, we will definitely return next summer. If you are ever headed out to Co with the fam let me know and I’ll let you know of some good backpacking/camping spots out here!
Thanks for checking out the video and also for leaving a comment! Glad you like it! Cheers to your adventure to Idaho, I hope you have a great time out there, so beautiful!
Hi Megan and Alec! What a great video and journey! Thank you for sharing it! Wow....those mountains have their own unique look to them! Good call on getting out of CO then. That July, thru Aug, and into early Sept was incredibly smoky here. I ended up doing that day hike up by Marble, in the Snowmass Wilderness. It was a real treasure. I know you folks prefer the multi day backpack trips. I just couldn't stomach the thought of the crowds on the normal 4 pass loop; so, did a different 1 day, 4 pass loop. Only ran into a person the last 1/4 mile too! You could definitely add on to that loop to get your multi day hike. My dog camped in Bogan Flats N.F. Campground. It was clean and had water and toilets. Nice campground hosts too. It is a nice mid point to explore Marble and Redstone ( both places only take an hour or two to check out). I am anxious for snow to start. But, it is great to get some late season treks in! Safe hiking!!
campingalan Hey Alan, thanks for leaving a comment and for checking out the video! I’m glad you enjoyed it! Idaho was so beautiful! Glad to hear you had a good time on your adventure up by Marble. I am anxious to do a seven days backpacking near the Maroon Bells but not the Four Pass Loop, because of how crowded it is. Luckily it is on a permit system now. I am also looking forward to the snow! Take care and I hope you are able to get back on the trail soon!
@@meganshields4447 Hi Megan and Alec!! I hope you two are doing well and have weathered the winter well! Have you two put a thought to your hiking destinations this summer? All is well here in Ouray. The avalanche danger was kind of through the roof this winter, so I didn't get out on as many snowshoe treks as I would have liked to. My dog and I just did small day trips up onto Red Mountain Pass to a few safe areas.
@@campingalan Hi Alan, we are both doing well and the dogos are doing great too! How have you been? We didn’t get a snowboard pass this year, we usually do, so we did a lot of winter hiking in Conifer. I have started mapping out some backpacking trips for the summer including Snowmass Wilderness, Flat Tops Wilderness, Indian Peaks Wilderness, Holy Cross Wilderness and a trip to the Sangre De Cristo range as well! We are pretty excited. Have you made any plans for this year as far as hiking/backpacking?
@@meganshields4447 Hi Megan! That is awesome to hear! We are doing well too, thank you! Ouray has been a great place to stay out of the fray of whatever 2020 was. However, we actually had record numbers of tourists this last summer. I think most feel this coming summer will be mostly the same. My long hair german shepherd is doing grand also! Though, he is getting more sad as the snow is melting more and more hehehehe. I am taking him to the Paradox Valley by Paradox, CO tomorrow; it is supposed to be a bit over 80 deg and I know he will be dragging feet quite a bit in the heat hehehe. That sucks about no snowboarding this year for you two; but kind of understandable. It was such a weird time, and then as things were transitioning it was almost to the end of the season. Hmmmm....hiking for 2021.....well, I really do want to get up to the Flat Tops. I really enjoyed your two's videos on there. So, I'd like to get up there, for sure. I will also go to the SW part of the Snowmass Wilderness again! I did that 4 pass, 1 day hike last year that I told you about and really enjoyed it. And, I only saw 2 people on the last 15 minutes of the day! I also want to get back up to by Lake Irwin (just west of Crested Butte) and do some backpacking there; essentially between Lake Irwin (or the old mining town of Irwin) up to Marble.
Hello Megan and Alec! I hope all is going well. Errr...it looks like you have removed most of your videos. Are you stepping away from youtube? All is well over in in the San Juans. My wife and I were just camping up above Silver Jack Reservoir for 4 nights. We got tired of the snow and still cold temps, so we repositioned up to Dinosaur National Monument area. That was essentially the last desert area quasi close to us that we could get away without air conditioning (that window will close this week as it will stay in the 90s there now). I'm not sure of our plans currently. I think I am "stuck" in Ouray through at least the 4th of July weekend. I am waiting for my boss to publish his work schedule so as that I can fill in the gaps with walking explorations. I still really want to get up to the Flat Tops. And, want to explore the Holy Cross area by Leadville. Oh...and I fly over that Lost Creek Wilderness area all the time (you two did a video of that too). The rock formations look incredible there. Have a good one!
Beautiful trip. What bags are you using as part of your bathroom kit? I also pack everything out,but currently use a ziploc bag that I cover with tuct tape, but Im looking to improve.
Hey Gretchen, good question! We use a snow stake to dig, and the darker bags are actually dog poop bags lol, to conceal the grossness. The toilet paper etc goes into the dog poop bags because they are dark and then we place those in smell/odor proof biohazard bags called Loksak bags from REI or Amazon, so we don’t smell anything while we’re hiking. We also use separate Loksak bags in our bear bags to conceal the smell of our food as well.
Thank you so much for your great video. I will be 65 in June 2021 and I want to do a solo hike in July to Goat Lake near Stanley Idaho and I was wondering what you know about it? It's about a 8.5 round trip hike.
Thanks so much for checking out the video, I’m glad you like it! Sounds like a pretty great birthday trip if you ask me! We did a smaller loop in the Sawtooths but we did not check out Goat Lake sadly. From photos online it looks absolutely stunning. We will definitely return to Idaho to check out more of that area. I hope you enjoy your adventure! -Megan
Great video!! My 3 brothers and I have the same trip planned for this July, only we plan to hike the Loop. Is that the hike you took? What time of year were you there?
Hi Rick! Thanks for the kind comment and for checking out the video! We went mid August and hiked from Grandjean Campground to Stanley Lake to Sawtooth Lake and back to Grandjean. We did a smaller loop but I’d have to take a look at my maps again to give you trail names. It was beautiful! We want to go back and hike for 6-7 days on a larger loop. I hope you enjoy your adventure to Idaho, it is really a wonderful place. Cheers! -Megan
I like your energy. Thanks for not being super happy, and throwing in loud airy royalty free dubstep tracks to ruin the tranquility of the trip. Cheers
I like your honesty! Thanks for checking out the video, I appreciate the comment as well. Cheers to the tranquility of nature and all of nature’s sounds. -Megan
@@meganshields4447 that is awesome! I look forward to it. You and Alec and the dogs have such great times. My older brother, his GF, my fiance and I are planning on backpacking lost creek wilderness pretty soon here. We love that area for camping and hiking so it will be a first great trip for myself anyways! So I have been rewatching your videos for backpacking there. 😁 On another note my fiance and I just got the rei co-op sleeping pads for their memorial day sale. Did yours last long before slowly deflating?
@@privatename2426 Good to hear, Lost Creek is a great area. Hope you guys have a great time! Very special place. I loved my REI coop sleeping pad. The first one I had (the air rail) was awesome. It lasted a long time and then my dog popped it and it was easy to fix. I now have the flash thermal and that had some valve issues after a couple uses. I wasn’t able to repair that so I traded it for a new one and it has done good so far. Have fun on your adventure!
@@meganshields4447 hey Megan! I saw your channel has less videos now? Any new videos on the way? You are my favorite channel for backpacking videos! I now have a backpacking trip officially planned. Just one night but we are going to walk the Colorado trail segment 1 backwards and keep it to about 4 miles out and back. I am pumped! Starting to get gear now.
Recovering from a fractured pelvis, this spring of 2023, I’ve been spending most of my time watching backpacking and hiking videos to prepare for this coming summer adventures. You are the first person to talk about Leave No Trace policy and packing out your used toilet paper. I’ve watched many videos of people showing what they are packing for their trip and they never have empty Ziplocks to pack out their used toilet paper; very worrisome Thank you for addressing that subject. Also a big thank you for not using music over the sounds of nature. I’ve gotten to the point that I skip into the middle of a video and if there’s music playing I move onto the next video. After going through about five videos of the Sawtooth Range, yours was the first and only one that had no music, so that’s why I watched it. Thank you so much. Beautiful job.
Sawtooth Lake is special. Hiking to Toxaway and Alice Lake this summer. Nice video
Nice video! I have hiked in to Sawtooth Lake from Iron Creek trail head a number of times with my teenage son. We climbed Observation Peak for spectacular views. When you go back, I recommend this walk-up trail which right off the route you took. I recommend you identify the sites you visit by name so that your viewers can go there too. I am now 86 years old with hip problems; your video brings back wonderful memories!
Nice work, mostly scenery and no annoying music the whole time :-) And a pleasant demeanor to boot. Thanks
Thanks for checking out the video! Glad you liked it! Cheers! -Megan
Great scenery and very well narrated and edited. Thank you for not drowning out the wonderful nature audio with cinematic music. Keep up the great work.
Thanks again for checking out the video! This was one of my favorite backpacking trips. Filming and editing is more of a passion than anything, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t 😂. Cheers to your next mountain adventure -Megan
My Engineer Army unit was on temp duty at Lake Cascade below Mcall Idaho for 30 days. To rebuild some of the Foresty Departments trailers and property back in Aug 1983. We did a white water trip down the Payette River towards Boise, Idaho. The Air Force at Mt. Home AFB supplied the rafts and guides. It was an awesome adventure. The water was cold. But we all survived. We paddled our own rafts with the guides in them. Caught my first coho samon on a fly rod in Lake Cascade. Great video. Great Memories of Idaho. Thank You.
Jeffrey, thanks for sharing your story, sounds like you had an awesome experience in Idaho. The Payette river is so beautiful! It’s one of the first scenes in the video. The water was so clear in Idaho, it was such a beautiful place. Thanks for the kind comment! -Megan
Love Idaho's Sawtooth's and White Cloud Peaks across the valley. But then there is also the Boulder and Pioneer Mountains that are equally impressive around Sun Valley. Fortunate to be close to all of these. Another one to look into and VERY remote are the Big Horn Crags just north of the Sawtooth's. Unbelievable scenery and the Middle Fork of the Salmon and Impassable Canyon runs right by Mt. McGuire in the middle of the River Of No Return Wilderness.
Just found your channel. Absolutely beautiful shots you captured in this video.
Beautiful area you were in! The mountains and lakes are awesome!! Thank you for sharing your journey.
KMC Goeshiking Thanks for checking out the video and for leaving a comment! Happy Trails! -Megan
Beautiful camera work! You captured your surroundings well! I especially loved the scenes with your canine companions- got a laugh from the elk carcass mishap!
You've inspired me to check out Idaho- I hope to make it out there next year.
Looking forward to your next one!
kat kovaleff Thanks Kat! Happy you hear you enjoyed the video! Thanks for checking it out! Yes...the carcass...😭. It’s not the first time our dog has gotten into something gross while backpacking, and certainly not the last. Cheers to your next mountain adventure, happy trails!
Please keep it up, that was a great video!!
Thanks so much! I’m glad you liked the video and left a comment. More videos headed to the channel here soon!
Your videos have always been good, but this one is fantastic. The scenery there was AWSOME and you did a great job capturing it ! I also like that you let the sounds of water , wind , leaves etc come through. Some people spend WAY too much time talking, but you’ve found a pretty good balance. Keep it up! Great job👍
I went into this hike knowing I was going to film and edit this one totally different, and your comment let me know I did the right thing! Thanks for the kind post, this will help me with future videos! -Megan
Agreed. Just wish it was longer and you got to those waterfalls. 🙂
Ozarks and Beyond me too!!
Megan, met you up at Sawtooth Lake. I saw our tent and my silhouette made it into the video. Nice video - hope you enjoyed the rest of your trip. Look me up if you come back Idaho way.
Derek Risso Derek! I’m so happy you found my page and thanks for taking a look at the video! Idaho was so beautiful, we will definitely return next summer. If you are ever headed out to Co with the fam let me know and I’ll let you know of some good backpacking/camping spots out here!
Fantastic video! Thanks for putting it together. I'm currently planning a trip out that way later this year and this helps with my preparations.
Thanks for checking out the video and also for leaving a comment! Glad you like it! Cheers to your adventure to Idaho, I hope you have a great time out there, so beautiful!
Awesome adventure and great video!
Layne Comfort Thanks so much Layne! Much appreciated that you watched the video, 👍🏼. -Megan
Great video, I love that area!!
Hi Megan and Alec! What a great video and journey! Thank you for sharing it! Wow....those mountains have their own unique look to them!
Good call on getting out of CO then. That July, thru Aug, and into early Sept was incredibly smoky here.
I ended up doing that day hike up by Marble, in the Snowmass Wilderness. It was a real treasure. I know you folks prefer the multi day backpack trips. I just couldn't stomach the thought of the crowds on the normal 4 pass loop; so, did a different 1 day, 4 pass loop. Only ran into a person the last 1/4 mile too! You could definitely add on to that loop to get your multi day hike.
My dog camped in Bogan Flats N.F. Campground. It was clean and had water and toilets. Nice campground hosts too. It is a nice mid point to explore Marble and Redstone ( both places only take an hour or two to check out).
I am anxious for snow to start. But, it is great to get some late season treks in!
Safe hiking!!
campingalan Hey Alan, thanks for leaving a comment and for checking out the video! I’m glad you enjoyed it! Idaho was so beautiful!
Glad to hear you had a good time on your adventure up by Marble. I am anxious to do a seven days backpacking near the Maroon Bells but not the Four Pass Loop, because of how crowded it is. Luckily it is on a permit system now.
I am also looking forward to the snow! Take care and I hope you are able to get back on the trail soon!
@@meganshields4447 Hi Megan and Alec!! I hope you two are doing well and have weathered the winter well!
Have you two put a thought to your hiking destinations this summer?
All is well here in Ouray. The avalanche danger was kind of through the roof this winter, so I didn't get out on as many snowshoe treks as I would have liked to. My dog and I just did small day trips up onto Red Mountain Pass to a few safe areas.
@@campingalan Hi Alan, we are both doing well and the dogos are doing great too! How have you been? We didn’t get a snowboard pass this year, we usually do, so we did a lot of winter hiking in Conifer. I have started mapping out some backpacking trips for the summer including Snowmass Wilderness, Flat Tops Wilderness, Indian Peaks Wilderness, Holy Cross Wilderness and a trip to the Sangre De Cristo range as well! We are pretty excited. Have you made any plans for this year as far as hiking/backpacking?
@@meganshields4447 Hi Megan! That is awesome to hear! We are doing well too, thank you! Ouray has been a great place to stay out of the fray of whatever 2020 was. However, we actually had record numbers of tourists this last summer. I think most feel this coming summer will be mostly the same.
My long hair german shepherd is doing grand also! Though, he is getting more sad as the snow is melting more and more hehehehe. I am taking him to the Paradox Valley by Paradox, CO tomorrow; it is supposed to be a bit over 80 deg and I know he will be dragging feet quite a bit in the heat hehehe.
That sucks about no snowboarding this year for you two; but kind of understandable. It was such a weird time, and then as things were transitioning it was almost to the end of the season.
Hmmmm....hiking for 2021.....well, I really do want to get up to the Flat Tops. I really enjoyed your two's videos on there. So, I'd like to get up there, for sure. I will also go to the SW part of the Snowmass Wilderness again! I did that 4 pass, 1 day hike last year that I told you about and really enjoyed it. And, I only saw 2 people on the last 15 minutes of the day! I also want to get back up to by Lake Irwin (just west of Crested Butte) and do some backpacking there; essentially between Lake Irwin (or the old mining town of Irwin) up to Marble.
Hello Megan and Alec! I hope all is going well. Errr...it looks like you have removed most of your videos. Are you stepping away from youtube?
All is well over in in the San Juans. My wife and I were just camping up above Silver Jack Reservoir for 4 nights. We got tired of the snow and still cold temps, so we repositioned up to Dinosaur National Monument area. That was essentially the last desert area quasi close to us that we could get away without air conditioning (that window will close this week as it will stay in the 90s there now).
I'm not sure of our plans currently. I think I am "stuck" in Ouray through at least the 4th of July weekend. I am waiting for my boss to publish his work schedule so as that I can fill in the gaps with walking explorations. I still really want to get up to the Flat Tops. And, want to explore the Holy Cross area by Leadville. Oh...and I fly over that Lost Creek Wilderness area all the time (you two did a video of that too). The rock formations look incredible there.
Have a good one!
Robert from Slovakia 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏💥🌺 top video 👍
Love that your dogs have packs 😁
Beautiful trip. What bags are you using as part of your bathroom kit? I also pack everything out,but currently use a ziploc bag that I cover with tuct tape, but Im looking to improve.
Hey Gretchen, good question! We use a snow stake to dig, and the darker bags are actually dog poop bags lol, to conceal the grossness. The toilet paper etc goes into the dog poop bags because they are dark and then we place those in smell/odor proof biohazard bags called Loksak bags from REI or Amazon, so we don’t smell anything while we’re hiking. We also use separate Loksak bags in our bear bags to conceal the smell of our food as well.
Thank you so much for your great video. I will be 65 in June 2021 and I want to do a solo hike in July to Goat Lake near Stanley Idaho and I was wondering what you know about it?
It's about a 8.5 round trip hike.
Thanks so much for checking out the video, I’m glad you like it! Sounds like a pretty great birthday trip if you ask me! We did a smaller loop in the Sawtooths but we did not check out Goat Lake sadly. From photos online it looks absolutely stunning. We will definitely return to Idaho to check out more of that area. I hope you enjoy your adventure! -Megan
@@meganshields4447 Thanks. In September my wife and I are going to Sandpoint and Priest Lake in northern Idaho. Hopefully the leave will be turning.
nice video!
surfandstreamfisher thanks! Glad you enjoyed it!
Great video!! My 3 brothers and I have the same trip planned for this July, only we plan to hike the Loop. Is that the hike you took? What time of year were you there?
Hi Rick! Thanks for the kind comment and for checking out the video! We went mid August and hiked from Grandjean Campground to Stanley Lake to Sawtooth Lake and back to Grandjean. We did a smaller loop but I’d have to take a look at my maps again to give you trail names. It was beautiful! We want to go back and hike for 6-7 days on a larger loop. I hope you enjoy your adventure to Idaho, it is really a wonderful place. Cheers! -Megan
Awesome video! New subscriber🙏
🙏 Thank you! So glad you enjoyed the video!
Dogs are great! Enjoy
I will put in my notes it is a good idea to bring dog shampoo.
We made him swim around in the lake for a bit, it helped. He gets in the water so much he luckily wasn’t very smelly for the rest of the trip.
I like your energy. Thanks for not being super happy, and throwing in loud airy royalty free dubstep tracks to ruin the tranquility of the trip. Cheers
I like your honesty! Thanks for checking out the video, I appreciate the comment as well. Cheers to the tranquility of nature and all of nature’s sounds. -Megan
Hi Megan! Any new videos coming our way?!
Yep, I have some content on the way! I’ve been adventuring just not filming. Have a trip coming up that will however be on RUclips.
@@meganshields4447 that is awesome! I look forward to it. You and Alec and the dogs have such great times. My older brother, his GF, my fiance and I are planning on backpacking lost creek wilderness pretty soon here. We love that area for camping and hiking so it will be a first great trip for myself anyways! So I have been rewatching your videos for backpacking there. 😁 On another note my fiance and I just got the rei co-op sleeping pads for their memorial day sale. Did yours last long before slowly deflating?
@@privatename2426 Good to hear, Lost Creek is a great area. Hope you guys have a great time! Very special place. I loved my REI coop sleeping pad. The first one I had (the air rail) was awesome. It lasted a long time and then my dog popped it and it was easy to fix. I now have the flash thermal and that had some valve issues after a couple uses. I wasn’t able to repair that so I traded it for a new one and it has done good so far. Have fun on your adventure!
@@meganshields4447 sweet! I think I have the air rail one. And we will most definitely have fun!! Have great adventures as well! Cheers! 🍻
@@meganshields4447 hey Megan! I saw your channel has less videos now? Any new videos on the way? You are my favorite channel for backpacking videos!
I now have a backpacking trip officially planned. Just one night but we are going to walk the Colorado trail segment 1 backwards and keep it to about 4 miles out and back. I am pumped! Starting to get gear now.
take care of your health
ALLLL MINE 😍😙😙😙😘