Taggart Lake Trailhead - 4.20.23
"Forever winter" is phrase starting to get tossed around these days as the locals start to wonder when some seasonable temperatures will stick around. March was cold and snowy! April has followed suit, as we continue to see unseasonably cold temperatures and frozen precipitation on a regular basis. The mountains above 8,000' just received another 6-8" of new snow yesterday and the valley is stubbornly holding on to an impressively deep snowpack that has been slow to settle and melt off. The bottom line is that hiking season is still a long ways off and visitors should be prepared for abundant and deep snow in the backcountry at all elevations for the foreseeable future!
The deep snowpack makes life especially hard for animals who have had to endure a difficult winter. Please give them plenty of room and avoid disturbing wildlife during this tenuous time. Give special consideration for the moose and bighorn sheep and give them a wide berth. Please continue to abide by winter wildlife closures and voluntarily avoid critical habitat zones for bighorn sheep. Click here for the latest bighorn sheep closure map.
Winter backcountry camping permits are required and available through April 30 by phone by calling 307-739-3309 on weekdays and 307-739-3301 on weekends. Beginning May 1, we transition to our summer backcountry permitting system and all backcountry camping permits must be obtained in person at the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center in Moose.