Mountain Backpacking with Great Northern Wilderness Guides in Swan Lake

Duration

4 nights / 5 days

About

Join us for an epic backpacking adventure to the top of a mountain range with incredible views. This trip is for folks who are new to backpacking, intermediate levels, and also for those who have more extension experience but want to join a fun group and not be alone in grizzly country. This trip requires a base level of fitness. If you feel you can hike 8 miles with a 30lb pack gaining 3,000ft of elevation then this is for you. If this sounds scary, but you know you can do it, don't worry, we will take it slow with plenty of water, snack, and swim breaks.

Itinerary

Day 1: 5.4 miles, 2862 ft of elevation gain

As we hike, we will take plenty of snacks, swim, and water breaks to fully appreciate our surroundings. While hiking and/or stopping, we encourage questions...and for us, no question is too silly or simple to be asked and answered. Once we reach our first campsite for the night, we welcome you to relax, swim, snack, and enjoy each other's company before we settle into some optional guided stretching, journaling, and meditation. After a yummy dinner and a warming fire, we will get cozy for the night in our tents with our new tent buddy.

Day 2: 7.9 miles, 1853 ft of elevation gain.

Rise peacefully and watch the sun creep over the mountains and onto the lake with your morning coffee or tea (Or don't and sleep in and enjoy the darkness of your eyelids). To kick off our morning, we will continue with some guided stretching and setting intentions for the day as we prep for breakfast. After breaky we will go over how to breakdown camp, repack our backpacks, and set off to our next campsite. Once we arrive at our second beautiful alpine lake, we will set up camp and enjoy the scenery. Day 3: Choose your distance! Up to 10 miles or zero, it's your call.

Rise and shine with some more coffee and stretches. Today you get to choose what you want to do. If sitting by the lake reading a book and relaxing sounds good then do it! If you want to stretch your legs and are excited about not carrying your heavy pack, we will guide you on a scenic route to more amazing views. Up to 5 miles (total of 10 miles roundtrip).

Day 4: 8.8 miles loose 2492 ft of elevation and gain 1,000 ft.

Wake up on top of the mountain at our base camp with some meditation and stretching. Today we start our trek back and take in the views from the opposite direction to our final lake campsite of the trip.

Day 5: 4.5 miles, lose 2158ft of elevation

Our last chance for morning swims and sunrise stretching. After we pack up, we will head to the cars and enjoy some much deserved cold drinks and reminisce on our gorgeous backcountry days.

We hope to take you on an adventure!

Throughout the entire trip, we will be practicing and teaching leave no Trace Ethics to ensure preservation of our land.