We hike for miles through the lake-dotted, glacially sculpted plateau of the western Wind River range. Long miles – each one seems to take us nearly an hour. Lots of small climbs and descents. It’s getting late by the time we reach North Fork Lake, but we press on toward Hat Pass. It’s 8 pm when we top out, feeling good. The area below is wet and the mosquitoes are the worst yet. We set up camp in a giant whining cloud.