Late September 2025, I was headed toward Utah and did the thing I “most likely regret”: I couldn’t pass up Glenwood Springs and the Transfer Trail up into the Flat Tops in White River National Forest. The first part is a legit shelf road—tight, exposed, and busy on a Sunday—so I kept the camera put away and focused on not being “the tripod guy” in the middle of traffic. But once you get those climbs behind you, it turns into aspens, mountaintop meadows, and that “I don’t care who you are” kind of view. I ended up camping at Lake Hess (Hey Press/Hapress area on my map notes), and it was exactly why I drive 1,000+ miles for this stuff: mist coming off the water, reflections at sunrise, and a calm that’s more serene than “epic.” I also talk through altitude sickness—headache, no appetite, feeling like dog dew—and why it’s smart to acclimate before jumping straight to 11,000 feet. From there I ran more of the Flat Tops: Heart Lake, Supply Basin Lake area camps, a killer lunch spot I dropped coordinates for (with my usual Leave No Trace soapbox), and a pass by Deep Lake and its campground/outhouse setup. I wrap it all up heading down Coffee Pot Road, still thinking the same thing: get your butt out here—cameras can’t do it justice.