Sheep Steps Loop via Death Canyon Trail()

One of the great long hikes in the range. Absolutely spectacular. Most years before August you'll want an ice axe or trekking poles for the traverse between Static Peak Divide and Buck Mountain Divide. There's been plenty of water along the route every time I've been on any of these stretches of trail. The driest parts are the few miles after Phelps lake when the trail rises above the creek, the higher parts of the Alaska Basin trail before Static Divide, and the first couple of miles of Death Canyon Shelf. I bring a small filter and a 2L hydration bladder and never have to worry. Your choice if you want to fill the bladder all the way and make fewer stops, or load up on just a liter at a time more often. Phelps lake and lower death canyon are bear habitat.