Smith and Morehouse is a reservoir in the Uinta National Forest that is so gorgeous it's not even fair! The Uinta mountain range is by far my favorite in Utah. It is so beautiful and feels wild. You can hike or backpack to countless lakes through wildflowers and beautiful pine trees and aspens. It is heaven on Earth. We have never camped at the same campground and I don't think we have even camped at half of them yet. There is so much wildlife in the Uintas you need to be mindful and practice bear safety with your food, but it's rare to see a bear; you'll most likely have run-ins with a raccoon stealing your food at night! With my new Oasis paddleboard by my side I was so ready for a lake campground and to just hang out on the water.
Smith and Morehouse weather can be unpredictable, and in the Uintas in general. There is always a good chance of afternoon showers. We were prepared for that, but instead lucked out with not one thunderstorm! We were able to enjoy the lake the majority of the day and come back and take a nap outside. It was just what I needed before finals week. This is my last summer semester EVER and I could tell that my motivation for being a diligent studier was slipping.
How can I study when there is beer to drink and a lake to enjoy?! By the way Odell Brewing Co. made a sour fruit ale, Sippin' Pretty, it is divine! While I was enjoying laying on my paddleboard and Chris was fishing all of a sudden he yelled to me to open my eyes, right above me a bald eagle flew overhead! I had never seen one in the wild before! They are huge and so graceful. It flew to the other side of the lake so I decided to go chase it and see if I could see it perched in the trees. Unfortunately, I couldn't find it. Bald eagles are all over the Uintas, the chances of you seeing one are very high.
We stayed at the Smith & Morehouse campground. My only complaint is that the campsites are way too close together. We were practically on top of our next door neighbors. But when you don't spend a ton of time at the campsite and are at the lake all day it isn't too bad. We decided that we would do a day trip next time and skip the camping. Unless there is a secret spot that isn't so close to everyone. Just be aware when you book your site. As you can see Bear wasn't bothered at all by the arrangement and was enjoying being warm by the fire while we cooked dinner.
The last thing to note is that there are a ton of fisherman. They shouldn't get in your way, but as I was paddling around I was mindful of where their fishing line was both for them and the sake of my inflatable paddleboard. Chris was there to fish and finally we caught a fish this summer! It only took 2 months...we were not at all prepared and had to put the fish in our tacklebox before we cooked it on the fire for dinner. There is nothing better than fresh lake trout. Smith and Morehouse is beautiful and well worth a camping or day trip to enjoy it!
Comments