Ashland Lakes - Mountain Loop Hwy

Having been on other trails recently at similar elevations, I was surprised to see patches of snow even at the trailhead.  Areas of snow continued on up the trail, growing thicker and covering more of the trail the further up I went.  The trail belonged almost entirely to Cedar and I.  One person was ahead of us that we never saw, a woman and her dog passed us at one point and on the way out a family was heading in.  That was it in 5 miles.  So peaceful.

Where the snow had melted off, the misty forest was full of emerald green mosses and marshy areas blooming with bright yellow skunk cabbage. 

Cool little plank boardwalks run along much of this trail.  In some places, little round tree segments create steps across wet areas.  Where the wood is slippery a lot of it has been covered with mesh to help hikers stay upright. 

Beaver Plant Lake was the 1^st of the three lakes.  It had a tiny boardwalk along one edge with a little bench to sit on and look out at the mist rising off the lake.  It was so peaceful up there.  No sound but birdsong and water dripping from everything.  A pair of Barrow’s goldeneye cruised around in the still silver water.

I went on and the snow got worse.  It isn’t really snow of course this time of year, nor ice.  It is that dense slush somewhere in between, deceptively melting out from the bottom up.  I did a lot of post-holing and went through more snow than my feet wanted to handle with the barefoot shoes I was wearing.  I only got as far as Upper Ashland Lake, which was still mostly covered with a layer of ice and snow.  The boardwalk around this lake was buried more than it showed, so I found a clear spot to have lunch and then headed back.

I was nearly back when I saw this funny lump of moss that looked like a headhunter had dropped it’s prize in the woods.  The moss was a different shade of green and stuck straight up like muppet hair.

I’d like to do this hike again too, and this time make it to the other Ashland lake and further to Twin Falls Lake.  I wouldn’t have been able to make Twin Falls this time anyway, as the trail was closed beyond the Ashland Lakes.