Ice Lakes

Hello!
We just got back from a backpacking trip with our friends Catherine and Hans Johnson. It was great!
We planned for a 5 day, 35-mile, Labor Day weekend trip, but were caught in incessant rain starting the first evening :(
We, made the most of our trip, though, and had fun getting to know our friends even better. We were soaking wet but stayed warm by running up mountains, and drying ourselves out in front of big campfires at night.
Here are a few photos:

We started at Cottonwood campground about 40 miles from the town of Entiat.

The trail was pleasant, barely an incline, and follows the river for about 15 miles. Oh, and it was lined with huckleberries/wild blueberries!

On our first day, we turned from the river trail after 3 miles to hike past Myrtle Lake.


It was a beautiful, quiet, warm little lake with clear water and grass around the borders. We would totally go back with family or kids for a fun lake camp out.

Then we hiked up to an old volcano shell called Cow Creek Meadow.
There was a natural spring!

We ate our lunch (couscous, salmon, curry cashews)

found an Amanita muscaria button!

and continued hiking up through a Larch forest (larch are deciduous conifers, every fall their needles change colors from green to yellow and orange before they drop for the winter and regrow in the spring).

We camped at Larch Lakes just as it began to rain

and rain

and rain

and rain...



Even though we were cold and wet, Adam and I hiked up to Ice Lakes:




Triumphant:


It started to snow 15 minutes after we made it to Ice Lakes, so we left. When we got back to camp, we talked with Catherine and Hans decided to walk the rest of the way out that night (12 miles). It was horrible, wet, blistery, and dark by the time we made it to our tiny, dry car. After an exhausting 5 hour drive back to Seattle, I don't think any of us have been more happy to be home in our own beds.
But it was still a GREAT trip, don't get me wrong...
:)