Brooks Lake

Brooks Lake covers a couple hundred acres of clear, cold water, held in a broad meadow basin ringed by mountains. What everyone remembers is the backdrop: the Pinnacle Buttes, a long line of gray volcanic spires and cliffs that climb well over eleven thousand feet. They were formed from layers of ancient volcanic rock, later carved and sharpened by ice, and they give the lake the kind of dramatic wall of stone you usually have to hike miles to find.

The water itself is the other draw. It is a popular spot for fly fishing and for paddling a canoe, kayak, or paddleboard, quiet enough that you can hear the wind in the spruce and, often, the calls of birds along the shore. Moose feed in the willows, and elk and other wildlife move through the meadows, so it pays to bring binoculars and to keep a respectful distance from any animal you see.

Brooks Lake is also a gateway to the mountains around it. Trails leave from near the lake and campground and climb into a scenic pocket of the forest dotted with smaller alpine lakes, including Upper Brooks Lake and a cluster of little lakes higher up. These are steady climbs into true high country, so they suit hikers ready for elevation, thin air, and quickly changing weather, but even a short walk along the shore delivers big views.

This is genuine bear and moose country, so it is smart to make noise on the trail, carry bear spray and know how to use it, and never get between a moose and its calf. The reward for the caution is a stretch of the northern Wind River and Absaroka high country that feels wild and uncrowded, the kind of place people drive a long way to find.

Brooks Lake lies northwest of Dubois, up a gravel forest road that climbs a few miles off U.S. Highway 26 and 287 on the way toward Togwotee Pass. The road is fine for most vehicles when it is dry but can turn slick and rutted when it is wet, and it is not plowed in winter, so the lake is really a warm-season stop from roughly late spring into early fall. Snow can linger up high well into the summer.

Give yourself time to slow down once you arrive. Fish or paddle the lake, walk a stretch of shoreline, watch for moose in the willows, or drive up simply to see the spires reflected in the water at first light. There are no services at the lake itself, so fuel up and pack water, food, layers, and sun protection in Dubois before you head up. It is a quiet, beautiful place, best enjoyed unhurried.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.