David

No question... Utah has the most scenic view of any highpoint I have visited thus far! I heard on the summit that the view back at Dollar Lake was also spectacular only 30 minutes after I had embarked on my summit expedition -- several moose showed up for a drink, and I had missed it! I didn't even see the beavers that were said to be in the area.

I shortened the trek from the planned 29-mile route to the summit and back. At Gunsight Pass, I choose to traverse the peak on the right rather than drop 600 feet down into the basin. On the return from the summit, I followed a couple other hikers down the rock slide below Anderson Pass rather than return through Gunsight Pass. Overall, it made for an enjoyable and varied experience.

Even without seeing the wildlife at Dollar Lake, the lake was still a pleasant place to hang out, and it provided a great source for half the water I used on this trek (treated, of course). The surrounding clusters of pine trees also adequately hid campsites of others in the area so it didn't feel like there were another 50 or so people staying nearby.

It was also nice to camp within sight of the peak I was tackling. This picture shows Gunsight Pass behind me on the left and Kings Peak on the right in the distance beyond the rock slide I used for my return route.

Since I don't expect to make it back to most highpoints ever again, I take a ton of pictures on each trip. On this particular trip (including Arizona and Idaho) I took more than 1,100 photos with my digital camera. Thank goodness memory stick capacities have been rising while prices have been falling!