Upper Coffee Pot Trail - Island Park

We are back to it in Island Park! With the prospect of and now the reality of a strong cold front moving in and with it rain and sub-50 degree weather, we had to change up our plans of camping at Redfish Lake in the Sawtooths. As bummed as we are about that, we still tried to make the most out of our weekend! We had the opportunity to stay at a family cabin and enjoy the rainy nights in the lush green forests of Island Park.

This trip, we had my mom's dog with us, so we looked for a family friendly and dog friendly trail nearby. It is important to note that Harriman State Park doesn't allow dogs on their trails. So, using AllTrails, we found the Upper Coffee Pot Trail and associated campground area (now bookmarked for a furture camping trip). We were drawn to this trail particularly as we had my brother's young kids, our 1 yr old daughter, and my mom's golden retriever. The trail was suprisingly beautiful and captured our attention the whole way! Although it was easy and only featured 95 ft of elevation gain, the greenery, wildflowers, waterfowl, and abundant fish jumping kept us locked in and mesmerized! It did rain on us several times, but the abundant forest cover helped! The trail is 2.1 miles in (4.3 miles total for in-and-out). We loved getting out with our new baby-carrier backpack complete with a rainfly as Carter has already outgrown her previous baby carrier. We learned a few lessons on this hike, mainly that we need to pack more snacks for her!

We are grateful for the rain this weekend, with fire season already upon us, the added moisture may delay the inevitable. Soon, smoky skies and brilliant red sunsets will become the norm. For now, we appreciated the cool and wet weather.

Our hope is to try for the Sawtooths next year, July 4th weekend is remarkably busy in East Idaho and the mountain west, and after that we have other plans. So, until next time, stay safe out there! Be extra careful during this fire season, it is set to be historic and therefore remarkably dangerous and devestating.

For now, here's some photos from our trip! Enjoy!