After a further descent from the foot of Knapsack Col to Titcomb Basin, the hiking became easy and beautiful! Perfect days like this one are rare. All of the hard work was finished by 2:00pm and the last half of the day was the reward for all of the effort.
We turned the corner from the steep alpine valley into a broad, gentle alpine basin filled with enormous lakes lined with bits of forest. Feeling accomplished and elated, we exchanged greetings with other weekend hikers as we made our way out of the highlands down toward Seneca lake and Elkhart trailhead, stopping for a rest and swim at a sandy beach along one of the lakes.
By sunset we were safely among the trees and at camp. Thunder echoed from the storms boiling over Knapsack and the high peaks, but we were tucked into a patch of forest thousands of feet below and miles away. The next morning would be a gentle hike downhill to Elkhart and an early hitch into Pinedale for a short break before the next high route.