Looking into the Alpine Lakes Wilderness Area. Even in late September, snow remains. This area, also known as the Enchantments is so popular that only permitted hikers can access it. Permits are sometimes issued years in advance. When NYTimes writer Timothy Egan wrote about this area, he remarked that white settlers named this high elevation garden of eden as the lost plateau. Really? I feel fairly certain that the Indians had never lost this most remarkable place. To learn more, read Egan's excellent book The Good Rain.