Blessed Basin- I hope the immensity of this landscape comes across even on your little screens. For perspective swipe to see a zoomed in composition of one the elaborately terraced islands in this series of lakes. Let me know which of the images is your favorite and whether the ultra wide perspective of the whole basin makes you feel like you were there. Mountain basins during the summer months hold a special place in my heart. After shredding many pairs of jeans as a kid running around the Sierras with my dad, these are the the landscapes I'm always dreaming of. On our trip from Colorado to the Artic Circle I charted a route that would lead us through a spectacular collection of these places during what I hoped would peak wildflower season. I stumbled over fuzzy satellite imagery of this area in my research and was taken aback by what looked like sculpted terraces of rock forming amphitheatres in this jagged mountainscape. The area had no name and I'd never seen a single picture, but I became obsessed with getting there. Close to 100 miles along a maze of unpaved forest roads lead to the edge of a bridgeless rushing river and a distinct abscence of any signs of a trail. To reach this basin one need only cross this roaring river and slog 18 steep, unspectacular miles through what occasionally could be called a trail, but mostly consists of avalanche chutes choked with fallen trees. On the way up were no fewer than 137 fallen trees that required going over or under. With a heavy pack full of camping and camera gear, under was definitely the worse of the two of the two. Imagine doing a burpee with 60 lbs on your back plus some tree against pack resistance on a 20 degree incline with crew of cheering mosquitoes and you've about pictured it...then multiply it by 50...Oof. Needless to say, the juxtaposition of effort vs. reward was extreme, but all doubts were erased upon arrival at this look-out. Post-storm clouds caught fire at sunset and projected golden light across this veritable eden. Submitted for #theretherefestival by @moment