A Weekend in the Woods

The original plan was to hike and camp high up on Mt Adams but reports of snow kept us away. There were parts of that trail that were sketchy enough when the trail was dry. Snow could have made for an uncontrolled screamer slide down the mountain side.




A few plan B's were discussed and we land on Deer Lake, just south of Skykomish. Looking at the map, I was surprised at how deep we could drive into the alpine lake wilderness area..



5 of us gathered our packs and headed out. The first part of the trail is incredibly well maintained. And the stairs! We got tired of stairs. About 2 miles in is lake Dorothy, seemingly home to every Boy Scout troop in the area. Every unprepared and ill equipped Boy Scout troup in the area (take the tent out of the box before you strap it on and ditch the coolers…). Does anyone teach these kids how to pack a pack? Soren, if you are reading this, come back. You have work to do…

After hiking the length of lake Dorothy, the groups thinned out and after over 4 miles of hiking with a full pack, the real elevation gain started. Sweat step sweat. 2 tough miles later we found our spot. We turned out to be the only ones spending the night on that side of the lake. Perfect.

Jodi made her appetizer, which would have fit in well at an SYC green box party. Out here backpack it was decadent.

It continues to amaze and delight me that with a modest amount of effort you can still get to a quasi remote place on an August weekend. Very few people at Deer Lake, and no one within a quarter mile. Nice.