On day two of our round the world adventure, we hiked from Lake Marie to Medicine Bow Peak in Wyoming’s Snowy Range and it was so beautiful! Lake Marie starts out at an elevation of 10,480 ft and Medicine Bow tops out at 12,013 ft, so we gained over 1500 ft during this incredible 7.1 mile hike. Multiple lakes dotted the view, especially in the front, surrounding us with beauty at every step.
Day two of our 'round the world adventure!
Table of Contents
The Hike to Medicine Bow Peak
We took the “easy way” — which was still not that easy, to be honest — to the top. This means we chose a more gradual direction around the backside of the four-mountain range. This included Schoolhouse Rock (11,440 ft), The Diamond (11,720 ft), Old Main (11,755 ft) and Medicine Bow Peak (12,013 ft).
The terrain was very rocky and we were grateful for the firm soles and tough toes on our hiking boots. We both just bought our newest boots while preparing for our RTW trip: Jimmy went with Asolo Agent Evo GV Hiking Shoes and I chose the Oboz Sapphire Low B-Dry Hiking Shoes. We will not only be hiking in them, but also wearing them in town as a sneaker, so we wanted something both supportive and less clunky.
We also need to be able to throw them into our backpacks during our RTW trip, so we chose something more lightweight and without ankle support, which would add bulk and weight. I did try adding softer insoles in mine and regretted it immediately — I took them out about a half mile into our hike and already had a blister, so pro tip: keep the original insoles.
Beautiful Views, Even from the Bottom!
From the top, we traversed steep switchbacks down the front of the mountain. We were grateful to go down instead of up this part of the mountain! It would have been tough going up that steep of an area. Once the switchbacks ended, we really enjoyed the flat walk back to Marie Lake. Plus, since we hiked toward the front of the mountain range instead of away from it, we had nonstop views with every step. We would definitely recommend hiking this direction for anyone wanting to complete this hike themselves.
Recommendations
Another note for anyone interested in hiking up Medicine Bow Peak — there is very little to no tree coverage throughout this hike. Plan on wearing and reapplying your sunscreen constantly, and wear a sunhat and sunglasses.
Like I shared in my last post, I love this smashable blue hat that’s more attractive than other hiking hats but still does a good job protecting me from the sun. Jimmy has this smashable hat, and he appreciates the drawstring around the top of the head. This helps it stay on his head without cinching the drawstring under his chin.
After this hike, we splashed off in Lake Marie. It was SO COLD, but how else are vanlifers supposed to cool down and clean off after a hike like that?
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