Kayak String & Leigh LakeAug 20, 2011
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| I'd call this National Geographic Day. The setting could not have been more pictorial. It seemed that we were witnessing an incredible nature show. We have hardly been on such a kayak journey. It is as if we dropped out of the sky on magical mirror finished lakes and felt miniscule in a scene of nature outrageous in magnitude. We launched in the crisp sunny air at 40 degrees on String Lake. We circled to the opposite side to paddle in a fabulous field of yellow water lilies. Grand Teton was our background mountain. From here we paddled north dodging multiple large boulders and submerged fallen pines.CRACK!! We hit a massive rock masked by the strong morning glare on the lake surface. All we could do is continue on and hope the scratch was not too noticeable. We finally reached the north end of the lake where a small landing area marked the site for portaging the kayaks up about a 400 foot gradually inclined trail to Leigh Lake. Leigh Lake is pictorial alpine lake 2 miles by 2.5 miles in size. The lake is only accessible by hiking. It lies at the base of the granite monolith, Mount Moran. Moran rises to 12605 feet. It dominates the background. Paintbrush creek flows into the Lake at the western end and drops from the scenic Paintbrush Canyon-so named for the picturesque wildflowers and scenery. Paintbrush was the site of our destination for lunch. As I touched the sandy shore at the Paintbrush, I exclaimed loudly as I spotted a rich gravel floor full of gold specks-EUREKA! We had a snack as we wandered the area. The lake plunged suddenly in depth no more than a couple feet from where we landed. We then paddled to the rocky slide area of Moran which plunged multiple boulders into the Lake. This is where climbers begin their ascent of Moran. The shores were verdant green with ferns and dense and steep. We then departed and headed back to String Lake. The portage to String is up a steep log stepped ramp to the trail above. We shared duty carrying the kayaks up the ramp. We then paddled String back to our launch site. We had a great late lunch at Cafe Genevieve in downtown Jackson-we were totally spent but totally in awe of the day. |
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