Sawtooth National Forest had national park vibes without the national park crowds! We weren’t sure exactly what to expect, but we were blown away by the hiking and camping in the area. We spent three nights near Stanley, ID at Sunny Gulch Campground, which quickly became one of our all-time favorite campgrounds (more on that later)!
On the trails, we saw beautiful views of mountain peaks and mountain lakes without the thick crowds of popular national parks. There were trails everywhere! We passed so many signs for trailheads on the way to the campground. Driving anywhere in this area was truly a scenic drive. I know it’s cliche, but trust me when I say, the pictures don’t do it justice!
We camped just about 10 minutes away from Redfish Lake and Redfish Lake Lodge. Redfish Lake is huge! You can take boats out on the lake, go paddle boarding, swim at the beach, or enjoy an outdoor concert. There are also many trails that start from the Redfish Lake area.
Hiking
We went out on two day-hikes during our time in Sawtooth National Forest. I wish we had time to do more because there were so many outstanding options. It was hard to pick just two! We visited in mid-August. The mornings started out cold (in the upper 30’s Fahrenheit) and then temperatures reached the 90’s by mid/late afternoon. We fell into a pattern of hiking in the mornings and early afternoon and then cooling off in Redfish Lake in the afternoon and early evenings.
On both of these hikes, I searched for them in the AllTrails app before losing cell service on the trails and kept the map open the whole time to make sure we were on the right track. I found that the trails in Sawtooth National Forest form a network, which is great for backpacking trips. I just wanted to be sure we turned off on the right trail at the right time to reach our desired destinations.
Alpine Lake
- Quick Facts
- Length: Approx. 11.5 miles roundtrip (if taking the hiker shuttle across the lake)
- Elevation Gain: 2,000 ft
- Trailhead/Parking: Parking near Redfish Lake Lodge if taking the hiker shuttle across the lake
- Link to Alpine Lake on AllTrails website
Hiking to Alpine Lake was our first activity in Sawtooth National Forest, and we were excited! We started by taking the hiker shuttle across Redfish Lake. We purchased roundtrip tickets at the marina (no reservations required). At this time, we also had to give an estimated arrival time for our return trip. We could choose a timeslot based on their already-scheduled return trips in the afternoon. If you’d like to read more about taking the hiker shuttle across Redfish Lake, here is a link to their website: Redfish Lake Marina | Idaho Marina | Redfish Lake Lodge.
The ride across the lake took about 10-15 minutes. You really start to appreciate the size of this lake when you’re travelling across it in the hiker shuttle boat. Once we were on the other side, we stopped at the trailhead to fill out a required permit (permits are required for day-hikes also). Then we began our journey up to Alpine Lake.
We hit some switchbacks early on, then continued fairly straight into the mountains for a couple miles. The views along this stretch were beautiful! I absolutely love hiking through pine tree forests in the mountains and this trail (especially this portion) checked all these boxes. Hiking along a mountain stream for a while on this stretch was just icing on the cake!
Finally, we hit some more, larger switchbacks. This portion was more out in the open and we had amazing mountain views on the climb up and over the ridge to the lake. We climbed the bulk of our elevation in this section. Eventually, we made it beyond the switchbacks and popped up over the ridge. Then we continued on a short distance to the lake.
Alpine Lake was surrounded by pine trees and mountain views. We found a nice spot on the edge of the lake and ate our lunch while enjoying these views. There was a group that was backpacking and had set up camp nearby for the night. We ran into many backpackers on the trail.
Eventually, it was time to head back down to catch the hiker shuttle. We retraced our steps and made it back in plenty of time to catch our shuttle. There was quite a crowd at the shuttle dock and fortunately, they added some additional pick-up times. We were able to get an earlier ride back across the lake.
Goat Lake
- Quick Facts
- Length: Approx. 8 miles roundtrip
- Elevation Gain: 1,800 ft
- Trailhead/Parking: Trailhead parking lot at the end of FS 619 – a few miles west of Stanley off Hwy 21
- Link to Goat Lake on AllTrails website
When we decided to hike to Goat Lake the day after our Alpine Lake hike, part of me was concerned that the hikes might be too similar. I was happy to be wrong on this one! Goat Lake was outstanding!
We started out on the Iron Creek-Stanley Lake Trail. Then we made a sharp left turn onto Alpine Way trail. Soon after turning off the Iron Creek-Stanley Lake Trail, we crossed a creek on a fallen tree trunk. We continued on, eventually hitting a few smaller switchbacks.
Then we reached a point where we felt we’d lost the trail. It took us a while to find it again, but we discovered it was heading up a steep gravel/rock patch. It took us a while to navigate this section, but once we made it over, we were rewarded with close-up views of a waterfall. Soon after, we arrived at Goat Lake. Goat Lake was a lot smaller than Alpine Lake but equally beautiful.
We stopped and ate lunch here. We also took a quick dip in the brisk water. It was cold but made for a cooler hike back down the trail as the temperature was climbing.
Redfish Lake
Because of the heat during the later part of the day, we would cool down with a swim in Redfish Lake by Redfish Lake Lodge. There is a sandy beach by the marina complete with a floating wooden dock you can swim out to. The water is crystal clear and cool. One afternoon/evening when we were hanging out in the water, there was live music in the lawn in front of the lodge.
Camping
There are so many campgrounds in Sawtooth National Forest. We were originally hoping to get a site in one of the campgrounds right along Redfish Lake. We weren’t able to get one of these in advance, but we were able to grab a site at Sunny Gulch Campground across the highway from Redfish Lake.
I’m so glad we ended up at Sunny Gulch. Most of the campground is first-come-first-served, but we were able to grab one of a handful of reservable sites when it was released six months out. Our site was spacious and had great mountain views! There was also a large creek that ran right outside the campground. It was a very picturesque location with easy access to Redfish Lake and the Stanley area. Check out the Sunny Gulch blog post to read more about the campground: Sunny Gulch Campground – Miles of Yellow Lines.
