Jewel Basin Backpack
August 24, 2016A two family end of summer backpacking trip to Jewel Basin in the northern Swan Range
With school starting next week we packed up and headed out for one more summer adventure. We were joined by our friends Michael and Harper and their dog Mochi. This was our first trip to Jewel Basin and I cannot wait to return and explore more of the area.
We started from the Camp Misery trailhead and headed for the pass to Picnic Lakes. With hardly a break at the top the kids took off on a user trail up a steep slope to the ridge top. When they disappeared over the top Michael and I followed behind. The ridge was open with an easy game trail heading north along the crest and sublime views of the Great Bear Wilderness and Glacier National Park to the east and Flathead Lake to the west.
The trail density and numerous lakes in the core part of Jewel Basin made for rewarding hiking. We were never more than a mile to two from the next junction or lake and frequently less. From the pass we quickly passed by Picnic Lakes and decided to continue on to camp at Black Lake. However, we mistakenly took an unofficial trail on the far side of Picnic lakes which initially followed a mellow stream but soon started to drop steeply down to Black Lake. The route was challenging at times but also quite scenic with views of the lake below and fields of wildflowers lining both sides of the creek.
We managed to reach Black Lake relatively unscathed. Harper received a handful of prickers in her hand when she grabbed onto a bush while trying to navigate a steep section. We bushwhacked our way around the lake to the outlet where the official trail is located and had our pick of two established campsites. We chose the one right by the outlet with the soothing sounds of running water. The campsite was surrounded by huckleberry bushes and the kids soon had a bagful of ripe berries to supplement our breakfast the next day. They discovered that Mochi liked huckleberries and taught her to eat them right off the bushes, which seemed appropriate given her resemblance to a small black bear.
After dinner and some campfire time we retired for the night. Julie and the kids slept in our tent, while Michael and I were in bivys. It was comforting having a dog along in an area that has bears (black and grizzly) and mountain lions. I slept a little easier knowing that if anything came near Mochi would wake us up with a bark. Overnight she divided her time between sleeping and patrolling the camp. I slept with my bivy open which meant I got a lick on the face whenever she passed by on patrol.
In the morning we debated about staying in the same camp another night, but decided to pack things up and head down the trail to explore more of the area. We soon entered the Jewel lakes area and took the scenic slightly longer route visiting all the lakes in the basin. Harper had been talking about swimming in the lakes since the beginning of the trip and soon found one to her liking. Michael, Audrey, and I all joined her which kicked off a lake swimming competition. We decided you could get one point per lake per day. So two swims in one lake in one day would only be one point. But two swims in one lake on different days would be two points.
From the Jewel lakes we made our way toward Blackfoot Lake. The gradually descending trail make for fairly easy hiking but the numerous thimbleberry bushes slowed us down. The entire hillside seemed to covered with ripe thimbleberries. Zach and Julie reached Blackfoot Lake first and Zach swam gaining a point which tied him with everyone who swam that morning. We took a leisurely lunch break while the kids intermittently snacked and played with Mochi in the water. Audrey and Harper decided to swim too putting them in the lead with two points each.
We left Blackfoot Lake with a possible goal of heading to Wildcat Lake for the night. But the long slow climb back toward the ridge changed the minds of the adults. The kids were set on going to Wildcat and were not swayed by how far it was, or that we would have to turn around and retrace our steps in the morning. But parents get final say so we headed south for the Twin Lakes with some grumbling from the troops. We were soon traversing a steep slope above two beautiful lakes tucked into a small basin below us and Wildcat Lake was forgotten. Two lakes means two points! The trail dropped steadily down to the level of the lakes and we found a beautiful grassy campsite on a strip of land between the two lakes.
Zach swam in the larger (and colder) lake visible from our campsite while Audrey and Harper swam in both lakes! With the sun setting behind the ridge they all ended up quite chilled and put on their puffy coats and huddled under sleeping bags to warm themselves. We had dinner and even some freeze dried apple crisp for dessert before heading to bed. Just as the kids were getting settled it began to rain lightly. My bivy has mesh over the face and is meant to be used under a tarp or tucked up under a tree. So I quickly grabbed my things and squeezed into the tent. It was a little cramped but I was able to setup perpendicular to everyone else by the door. Around 1am I woke up very warm, poked my head outside, and spotted the milky way overhead. I moved back outside and with a few hours sleep in me laid there for what felt like a long while gazing at the star speckled night sky.
We woke to a clear cool morning and found sunny spot by the smaller lake to have breakfast and coffee. As the adults woke up with hot cups of caffeine the warm sunshine emboldened the children to rack up some more swimming points. Harper, Audrey, and Zach all dunked themselves in the cool water and quickly exited to warm up on the beach. Once again Audrey and Harper hiked over to the other twin and swam in that one too!
We packed up and stared hiking out of the Twin Lakes basin for our last day. At the first intersection we elected to linger in the wilderness and bit longer and take the trail down the east side of the ridge. This opened the possibility of gaining the ridge the kids had climbed on the first day and strolling along it back to the pass. We found a steep but apparently hikeable route to the top. Audrey, Harper, Michael, and I proceeded up while Julie and Zach elected to stay on the trail and meet us at the pass. The climb was challenging but safe. We hit a small cliff band while trying to traverse toward a notch but we able to go up and avoid it.
We had gained the ridge but had to drop down the notch and climb up the other side. However, this proved to be much easier than the initial climb. The views of the Flathead and Glacier were amazing. The clouds were higher than the first day improving the already impressive views. We sauntered along the ridge taking in the views of Jewel Basin and beyond and soon reached the steep loose descent to the pass where Julie and Zach were waiting.
The final downhill miles passed quickly and before long we were back at the Camp Misery trailhead. It was a great way to end the summer.
