After the Husky game on Saturday, Clint and I decided to take advantage of the three-day weekend and head out for another overnight backpacking trip for Sunday night. We had heard that there was a fun hike just off of Highway 2, so we made a stop at REI to get a map and some more instruction. Once we had our route planned and bags packed, we set out for the Dorothy (aw, grandma Dorothy) Lake trailhead.
We had revised our strategy from the last trip to
Lake Ollalie (basically - lighten my pack and make Clint carry the big stuff) , and had some new gear to test out as well. We were pretty excited about another camping trip (this was number 3 of the Summer!) and that we were getting some more use out of our backpacks.
I think I had blocked out how difficult the hiking portion of our first adventure was, and I was not at all prepared for how much longer and more difficult this one would be. I had my fair share of crankiness, but overall Clint was impressed with how I did and how unlike "other girls" I am...compliment?
After some traffic in Monroe by the Evergreen State Fair, we finally made it to the packed parking lot and got ready to set out on our trek around 2p.
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| all set! |
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| reading up on regulations |
The weather was perfect, nice and sunny, but not too hot hiking in the shade. The scenery was beautiful, too. We passed over a bridge and could hear the rushing river nearby as we hiked along. The first mile of the hike is all uphill until you get to Dorothy Lake where it starts to flatten out. Not only uphill, but endless amounts of stairs! I felt like I was on a stair master...wearing a 25lb backpack. I was definitely happy to see the trail marker for the lake knowing the hard part was over, at least for a little bit.
Since Dorothy Lake is such a short hike, it is usually crowded with day hikers and overnight backpackers. We took this into consideration ahead of time, so our plan was to continue on to the two smaller lakes just south of Dorothy, Bear and Deer. We passed up a couple camp sites hoping that our longer hike would pay off and that we'd find something more secluded.
The views of the lake were gorgeous. It was pretty cool to be hiking along up above while looking down on the lake. We stopped a few times to get some pictures, and enjoyed the easy part while it lasted.
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| nerding out with our monoculars |
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| Me and Dorothy Lake |
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| hawk! |
We made our way to the end of the lake (about 2 more miles) and prepared ourselves for the steep hike up and over to get to Bear and Deer Lake. We even ran into some hikers going the other direction who wished us luck...great.
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| forging the river |
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| goodbye Dorothy Lake |
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| fueling up |
It was at this point that my crankiness kicked in. I thought we would never get there, and the trail just continued to switch back and forth at a very steep angle. I decided to take it out on Clint by passive aggressively giving him the silent treatment. That would show him. Coincidentally, there are no pictures of this portion of the hike either.
Finally, we got our first view of Bear Lake and my attitude started to turn...sorta. We marched along passing up some campsites (we were determined to find the best) and came up to Deer Lake. We then found an overgrown trail between the two lakes and headed in that direction. We came across some campers who seemed to have found a good spot as they sat on a log and watched the sun set. Clint and I continued up the creek that connected the two lakes and came across the
perfect spot. Right between Bear and Deer Lake in our own little secluded area...although it was nice to know campers weren't far off in case we had an emergency.
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| Bear Lake, finally! |
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| our "neighbors" enjoying the sun set |
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| I've arrived |
Once we found the perfect spot, we got down to business in order to have camp set up before we lost light. We pumped water from the creek, set up the tent and blew up our air mats, got the stove out to get dinner started, and made a fire.
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| brand new headlamp! |
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| nerdy camping toe shoes |
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| filling up our new kitchen sink |
On the dinner menu was another one of Clint's expired Backpacker's Pantry freeze dried meals...Phad Thai, mmmm. It was actually quite delicious (or I was delirious from the hike) and we had remembered to bring a flask of sweet tea vodka to wash it down. I was happy to be relaxing by the fire and enjoying the peaceful lake scenery.
Once it got dark, we roasted some marshmallows, put out the fire, and called it a night.
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| moon rising - one day after the blue moon |
After a not so nice night of sleep (I froze, even in my 15° sleeping bag), it was time to get up and enjoy another sunny day. I got our breakfast started, as Clint constructed a stand out of a log for us to hang up our new camping shower. We had filled it up the night before and left it sitting on a rock so that it could start to heat up as soon as the sun came out.
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| Good morning Bear Lake! |
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| home for the night |
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| breakfast time |
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| our shower heating up |
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| Clint setting up the shower stand |
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| completed shower |
We enjoyed a nice breakfast, scrambled eggs with another chicken and rice freeze dried meal, before it was time to pack up and head out.
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| happy campers |
Once we were all clean and fed, we tore down the tent and got our packs packed. All set to make the trek back (hopefully it would be a little easier and quicker heading down).
The way back was definitely easier, but my body was so tired from the day before it made it hard to keep picking up those legs. After we made it about half way, we stopped to make lunch. We had one freeze dried meal left, Hawaiian Chicken, so we decided to cook it up instead of carrying it home.
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| stopping for lunch |
We continued the hike and were able to shave off 45 minutes from the day before! Once we got back to the trailhead, I collapsed into my seat in the truck and was ready to be home.
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| passing by Dorothy Lake again |
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| done! |
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| last car in the lot... |
Looking back, I'm glad we went. It was quite the accomplishment, and even though parts were hard, overall I had a great time. It might even be possible to squeeze in one more trip before the Fall gets here, so we'll either have to choose a shorter hike, or I need to get in better shape!
