Sawtooth Lake
Encyclopedia
Sawtooth Lake is an alpine lake
in Custer County
, Idaho
, United States
, located high in the Sawtooth Mountains
in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area
. The lake is approximately 6.8 miles (10.9 km) southwest of Stanley
. A trail from the Iron Creek trailhead and campground leads approximately 5 miles to Sawtooth Lake. The Iron Creek trailhead can be accessed from State Highway 21
via Sawtooth National Forest road 619. The surface elevation
of the lake is 6513 feet (1,985.2 m) above sea level.
With a surface elevation of 8435 feet (2,571 m) above sea level, Sawtooth Lake often remains frozen into early summer. At the southern end of the lake is Mount Regan at 10190 feet (3,105.9 m) in elevation.
Sawtooth Lake is in the Sawtooth Wilderness
and wilderness permit can be obtained at trailheads. The hike to Sawtooth Lake from the Iron Creek trailhead is one of the most popular hikes in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. This trail gains 1710 feet (521.2 m), takes 5 to 6 hours round trip, and offers great views of Alpine Lake
, Alpine Peak, and the Sawtooth Valley. Visitors are permitted to camp anywhere in the National Forest, and Sawtooth Lake often serves as a camp for further hikes throughout the northern Sawtooth Wilderness.
Alpine lake
Alpine lakes are classified as lakes or reservoirs at high altitudes, usually starting around 5,000 feet in elevation above sea level or above the tree line....
in Custer County
Custer County, Idaho
Custer County is a rural mountain county located in the center of the U.S. state of Idaho. Established in 1881, it was named for the General Custer Mine, where gold was discovered five years earlier . The population was 4,342 at the 2000 census; it is estimated to have fallen to 4,166 by 2007...
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, located high in the Sawtooth Mountains
Sawtooth Range (Idaho)
The Sawtooth Range is part of the Rocky Mountains, located within a few miles south of Stanley, Idaho, in the Western United States. Much of mountain range is within the Sawtooth Wilderness, part of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area...
in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area
Sawtooth National Recreation Area
The Sawtooth National Recreation Area is a National Recreation Area located in central Idaho, within the Boise, Challis, and Sawtooth National Forests. The recreation area is managed by the U.S. Forest Service and includes the Sawtooth Wilderness...
. The lake is approximately 6.8 miles (10.9 km) southwest of Stanley
Stanley, Idaho
Stanley is a city in Custer County, Idaho, United States. The population was 100 at the 2000 census. The center of population of Idaho is located in Stanley.-Geography:...
. A trail from the Iron Creek trailhead and campground leads approximately 5 miles to Sawtooth Lake. The Iron Creek trailhead can be accessed from State Highway 21
Idaho State Highway 21
Idaho State Highway 21 is the Ponderosa Pine Scenic Byway, primarily a two-lane highway from Boise to Stanley. With two-thirds of its length in Boise County, it passes by historic Idaho City and the village of Lowman to the western edge of the Sawtooth Mountains, then along their northern...
via Sawtooth National Forest road 619. The surface elevation
Elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of the lake is 6513 feet (1,985.2 m) above sea level.
With a surface elevation of 8435 feet (2,571 m) above sea level, Sawtooth Lake often remains frozen into early summer. At the southern end of the lake is Mount Regan at 10190 feet (3,105.9 m) in elevation.
Sawtooth Lake is in the Sawtooth Wilderness
Sawtooth Wilderness
The Sawtooth Wilderness is located in the U.S. state of Idaho. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. The Wilderness was upgraded in 1972 from "primitive area" status, affording greater protections of the habitat...
and wilderness permit can be obtained at trailheads. The hike to Sawtooth Lake from the Iron Creek trailhead is one of the most popular hikes in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. This trail gains 1710 feet (521.2 m), takes 5 to 6 hours round trip, and offers great views of Alpine Lake
Alpine Lake (Northern Sawtooth Wilderness)
Alpine Lake is an alpine lake in Custer County, Idaho, United States, located high in the Sawtooth Mountains in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. The lake is approximately southwest of Stanley. A trail from the Iron Creek trailhead and campground leads approximately 5 miles to Sawtooth Lake...
, Alpine Peak, and the Sawtooth Valley. Visitors are permitted to camp anywhere in the National Forest, and Sawtooth Lake often serves as a camp for further hikes throughout the northern Sawtooth Wilderness.
See Also
- List of lakes of the Sawtooth Mountains (Idaho)
- Sawtooth National ForestSawtooth National ForestSawtooth National Forest is in Idaho and Utah was protected in 1905 by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt as the Sawtooth Forest Reserve. Today the forest administers over 2.1 million acres of some of the most remote forestland in the lower 48 states, and there are over 1,000 lakes and 3,000...
- Sawtooth National Recreation AreaSawtooth National Recreation AreaThe Sawtooth National Recreation Area is a National Recreation Area located in central Idaho, within the Boise, Challis, and Sawtooth National Forests. The recreation area is managed by the U.S. Forest Service and includes the Sawtooth Wilderness...
- Sawtooth Range (Idaho)Sawtooth Range (Idaho)The Sawtooth Range is part of the Rocky Mountains, located within a few miles south of Stanley, Idaho, in the Western United States. Much of mountain range is within the Sawtooth Wilderness, part of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area...