NOVEMBER 2016 & JULY 2019
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| MIDDLE BENCH LAKE |
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| UPPER BENCH LAKE |
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| UPPER BENCH LAKE OUTLET |
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| LITTLE REDFISH LAKE |
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| LOWER BENCH LAKE |
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| REDFISH LAKE |
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| VIEW OF A CLOUDED-OVER REDFISH LAKE FROM THE BENCH LAKE TRAIL |
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| REDFISH LAKE FROM THE BENCH LAKE TRAIL |
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| LOWER BENCH LAKE & IMPROVISED HIKING SHOES |
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| POND ABOVE LOWER BENCH LAKE |
The Bench Lakes are accessed via an 8 mile round-trip hike from the Redfish Lake Trailhead. The first time I hiked it was in November 2016 during an unseasonably warm Fall in which not much snow had fallen in the mountains. I left from my home early in the morning, and not until I arrived at Redfish Lake did I realize I had forgotten to pack my shoes. If I have a long drive ahead of me, I will often just throw my shoes in the back of the car and drive up in my socks for comfort. As there are no shoe stores near Redfish Lake, I decided to try crafting a pair out of some reusable grocery bags I had in my trunk. It took several adjustments along the trail, but I eventually had a somewhat comfortable pair of shoes, which I would strategically hide from the few other hikers I saw out of embarrassment.
I had to walk a little gingerly due to a lack of padding underneath my feet, but I was eventually able to make it up to the second Bench Lake before the path became too snowy and rocky for my makeshift footwear which was slowly deteriorating throughout the hike. It looked like the lakes got more and more beautiful as you ascend up the basin, so I was frustrated I had to turn back. But I made the right decision, as my shoes kept deteriorating, to the point I finally had to take them off and hike the last couple miles back to the trailhead in my socks, cursing all of the rocky sections of trail along the way.
While the hike didn't go according to plan, I was able to explore Redfish Lake a bit. This was my first time ever seeing Redfish Lake, and since it was November, I had it almost entirely to myself. I had always avoided visiting this area in the summer, because I hear it gets overrun with people. However, it really is one of Idaho's most beautiful lakes, so it was really nice being able to finally get to see it, especially at at time when it was so quiet and deserted.
In July of 2019 I took another stab at the Bench Lakes. This time I remembered my shoes and was able to make it all the way to the Upper Lake. There are fairly nice trail segments from the Lower Lake to the Upper Lake if you can find them. I kept losing them and finding them again as I made my way up the basin, but it's impossible to get lost due to how narrow the canyon is. The lakes and scenery keep getting better and better as you make your way to the top. The Upper Lake was my favorite part of the hike. After hanging out there for a bit, I hugged the north side of the canyon on my way down to visit a couple small ponds before heading back over to the Middle Lake.
As I knew it was a fairly popular hike (due to its proximity to Redfish Lake) I visited on a Wednesday and only saw three of four groups of hikers after leaving the main Redfish Lake Trail. I had everything above the Lower Lake to myself. Compared to the Uinta and Wind River Mountains, I'm frequently surprised how few mosquitoes there are in the Sawtooth Mountains in July. While there were a few out, I forgot my repellent and was still able to make it back without any bites.
