Blue Lake 7-21-13

Sunday's hike had a completely different feel right away.  It was on the west side of the pass and was greener and lusher.  Instead of a gravelly rocky trail, there was more packed earth trail.

 

Although I enjoyed the green shade of the trees, I was delighted to come out into the first clearing full of wildflowers.  A couple I met later at the lake told me this was created by an avalanche just 5 years ago.

 

There were more clearings of wildflowers further up as well.

 

This little guy screamed at us in annoyance after we passed or I never would have turned and seen him.

 

After the 11 miles roundtrip the day before, this 4.5 mile trail seems short and we were at the lake in no time, checking out the ramshackle cabin that my guidebook had intrigued me with.

 

 

 The lake was teal and crystal clear.  Again, Adventure Dog and I had the trail to ourselves until we'd arrived at the lake.  I LOVE morning hikes!

 

These waters are also stocked with trout.  They all looked eating size to me and were everywhere.  Not eating enough mosquitos fast enough to save me from losing most of my blood, but it was fun to watch them.

 

 

The nice couple that came up the trail after me were from Twisp and took a picture of me by Blue Lake to prove that Cedar isn't just having these adventures by himself. 

Heather Lake 7-8-12

Heather Lake, beautiful at all times of year, is particularly striking in her spring colors.  Snow still hangs out in patches, but the boardwalks are mostly clear, wildflowers are starting their show, and wildlife is abundant for the watchful (not just mosquitos either!)  The trail itself is a pleasant, although consistently elevation gaining. There are interesting trees, and I have always loved fierce devil's clubs.

There are quite a few places that streams cross the trail, so be prepared to get your feet wet.  I suppose if you are a native of the Northwest though, you are always prepared to get your feet wet.  In the warmer months my preference is barefoot shoes, so I can get that cooling effect and then dry quickly. Here Adventure Dog demonstrates the proper method of partially crossing a stream and then looking back to make sure your human is fording it successfully before going on.

After toiling mostly uphill for a couple miles, it is breathtaking (if you have any left) to see through the trees the rugged cliffs that rise up above the lake.

Then you are out at the lake's edge, looking at its reflective surface, and the jagged, waterfall-covered rock cliffs that stand over it.

The boardwalks that go around a lot of the lake are a lot of fun.  They are bendy and warpy, but solid and more photogenic than a straight flat boardwalk would be.

Be careful at some times of year, when avalanche danger is high.  Even with most of the snow gone, there are remnants of some pretty powerful avalanches that I needed to scramble across.

And now I believe I mentioned wildflowers and wildlife!  Let's start with the wildflowers:

And now for the cute little critters.  Just before I got to the lake, this junco was hanging out on a rock and posed nice and still for me.

Going around the lake, there were a couple of frogs.  One was unabashedly skinny-dipping and the other was crouched down on a log hoping I wouldn't see him.  I don't think he likes wildlife paparazzi.

And lastly, can you see this baby trout?  I hope so because I had to hold very still and take many shots to get this, whilst mosquitos descended on me and I was defenseless against them as I tried to get one that didn't blur or have water glare.

Blackman's Lake, Snohomish 5-25-12

After work on Friday, there was still enough light left for something fun, so to kick off the 3 day weekend, Dave invited me to take a tiny rowboat out to a lake for some fishing.

Blackman's Lake is a quiet little lake in Snohomish, and only a couple other people were out on it so late in the day.  To increase the challenge of two people trying to cast fishing poles from a very small boat, we added Adventure Dog and a bottle of wine.  Cedar proved to be a secret wino and kept trying to drink Dave's wine.

The water was beautiful under the evening sky.

Later it was even prettier.

And still later.... sunset was breathtaking.

Dave caught a fish right away, and then later another, which he let me reel in.  Both were released and seemed to be in great shape and swam away quickly.

This was a really fun evening!