Approximately 20 backpackers were dropped off a Elk Park train stop, 12 of them being a group of Boy Scouts from Memphis, Tennessee. There was light traffic on the backpacking route to the Beaver Ponds, but once I left the trail to ascend Vestal Basin, I was the only person around. I enjoyed the remoteness of Vestal Basin, however, the grueling ascent combined with my lack of proper acclimation to the altitude was a real challenge.