I spent a 4 day weekend in the Uinta Wilderness of North Eastern Utah. We first rode up Henry's Fork toward Kings Peak. ( Highest point in Utah at around 13,500 foot) You can not get the horses all the way to peak, you have to rock hop from boulder to boulder the last hour or so of the trip. For us a big thunderstorm rolled in and we decided it was best to get off the open ridge top and get back into the trees until the lighting stopped.
This is the upper Henry's Fork basin. It is around 11,000 foot and Kings Peak is the sharp peak in the center of the picture. Gunsight Pass is the dark canyon to the immediate left of the peak that you have to ride through and around to the back of the peak and the tie up and finish on foot. Hikers go straight up Anderson pass directly in front of the peak. But there is no way to get a horse up that rock slide.
Thunderstorm blowing in
Back Country Horsemen have built some great corrals at the trail heads in the area
The next day we moved the trailer and packed in the Highline trail to 4 Lakes Basin
This is a beautiful basin rimmed by rocky cliffs. It sits at 11,000 foot or about tree line. The lakes have Brook trout and Greyling.
We turned the horses out into the meadows to graze for a hour or two each morning and evening.
Posted 2009-09-09 5:30 AM (#110453 - in reply to #110425) Subject: RE: Uinta Wilderness
Elite Veteran
Posts: 681 Location: Corpus Christi, Texas
I soooo envy you your opportunity to ride in beautiful areas!!!! That picture of the horses grazing in the meadow.. Have you been to that meadow before? I've seen a pic posted on this website a year or so ago when I was asking about electric fencing.. someone posted one (I think, anyway) of that meadow fenced in down to the water..
Posted 2009-09-09 7:34 AM (#110464 - in reply to #110425) Subject: RE: Uinta Wilderness
Expert
Posts: 2453 Location: Northern Utah
We usually go into 4 Lakes for Labor Day each year. So yes I've been here before and probably posted a similar picture of horses in the meadow. The Ranger this year gave the fellow who set up the fence a ticket for being too close to the water. The forest service rules no structure with in 200feet of ANY water, and they consider an portable hot wire as a structure. They had all their tents far enough away, But had positioned the fence so the horses could get water as they wanted. They also have a new rule preventing ANY fires with a quarter mile of any water. Took all the fun of sitting around a camp fire. We cook with portable stoves anyway. So many rules even when you are miles away from anybody.
Posted 2009-09-09 6:43 PM (#110512 - in reply to #110425) Subject: RE: Uinta Wilderness
Expert
Posts: 2453 Location: Northern Utah
No problems with Predators.
My horses usually come when I whistle, No real problems gathering them, at least not for me. One girl in the group had a horse get loose several years ago and it went all 11 miles back to the trailer with her chasing it. It finally stopped at the trailer where she caught it. She only had a lead rope and had to ride the whole 11 miles back to camp in the dark, bareback with only a lead for reins. She is much more careful about her horses since.
They say people are consuming all the dead wood in the upper basins. They feel that nature needs a certain amount of dead trees and fallen logs on the ground for the natural cycle of nature. People gather up everything and burn it in camp fires. This has become a problem in what they consider the Higher Use areas. Such as near lakes and streams where people just naturally want to camp.
Uinta Wilderness
