On a mid-August backpacking trip with my wife and two friends, we had four absolutely gorgeous days: sunshine every day accompanied by moderate temperatures that never grew too hot or very cold and only pleasantly light breezes. We enjoyed very pretty campsites all to ourselves beside lovely lakes. But the highlight was our camp a minute’s walk from the shore of Spangle Lake, deep enough into the Sawtooths that it doesn’t see nearly as many backpackers as more popular lakes that lie closer to trailheads. Puffy clouds that looked like they were dabbed onto the sky by a painter’s brush hovered over Spangle as the sun began to rise the next morning, creating a scene from a photographer’s dreams.

This is one of several images of Spangle Lake available for sale on this page, each one unique.

Pricing for professional, custom printing with archival-quality paper and inks: