ENCHANTMENT LAKES 2016: Stuart Zone

I have been slacking in getting pictures and trip reports up on the blog. I promise it's not due to a lack of hiking or adventure town, I've just had a lot on my plate, because I am a lucky soul who is blessed with work and projects. 

Several of us entered the Enchantment Lakes lottery this year, and a few of us were awarded permits. We only ended up with permits for the Stuart Zone, for late June, and early October. The following are some pictures from our late June trip. 

Here is the website for the permit application in case you are interested in applying, 

.... (CLICK HERE) I'VE ALSO NCLUDED AN EXCERPT FROM THE WEBSITE BELOW...

Overnight Permit Season Expanded

Starting this year, the limited entry overnight permit season for the Enchantment Permit Area will increase by six weeks to help manage increased visitor use and resulting resource damage at this popular destination.  Permits for overnight stays will now be required from May 15 through October 31.

Due to the overwhelming popularity of this unique area, all overnight visitors must obtain a limited entry FEE permit for trips planned between May 15 and October 31. Demand for overnight permits far exceeds the number available, therefore advance reservations are highly recommended. A pre-season lottery is held in February through early March of each year to allocate the majority of permits.  Following the pre-season lottery, remaining permits are available on a first come, first served basis through the recreation.gov advance reservation system. A small number of permits are available on an unreserved daily walk-in basis.

PLEASE BE AWARE: While permits may be reserved as early as May 15th, early spring snow and weather conditions may not allow road access to the Stuart Lake or Eight-mile Lake trailheads during the early part of the season. Even if road access is possible, traveling and camping on snow is highly likely during May and June. Please familiarize yourself with the change and cancellation policy if you choose to apply for permits during the early spring or late fall. 

Colchuck Lake

Jeremy's friend, the very un-shy Buck

View from lookout just outside of Colchuck

From the trail to Stuart Lake, looking up and over the pass.

View from our campsite on Stuart Lake.

Hiking back down from Horseshoe Lake. Fun group this year!

At the Stuart Lake Trailhead with Adam and Dale.

Colchuck Lake in all it's glory.

August 2015: ENCHANTMENT LAKES HIKE: CENTRAL CASCADES, ALPINE LAKE WILDERNESS, ENCHANTMENT WILDERNESS

I'm a bit late in posting about our epic Enchantment Lakes trip which was back in August, but better late than never I suppose. It is almost time to enter the lottery again for the 2016 season, so I figured I should get these up before I have another year of photos to share! The trip was just as we'd expected. So so so breathtaking, and the most challenging hike most of us have ever done. We came in the from Icicle Creek Rd, coming in from the lower lakes instead of tackling Aasgard Pass and the Colchuck Trailhead. We did this because our camping permits were only for the snow lakes area, so we could only set up camp here. We figured we'd come in, tackle the biggest first climb, sleep at upper snow lake, and then hike around the next day without all our gear in the upper enchantments. This was essentially a good plan and worked out, but we could have really used an extra day, and I realize even more now why the "core" lottery permits are so hard to come by. It would be nice to be able to move through the lakes with several days, and camp wherever there are spots.

Re-organizing before packing everything in to the other car. "Don't need that, don't need that, don't need that".... You know, that kind of re-organizing.

Lower Snow Lake in the morning.

Looking down at Nada Lake on the hike down/home.

Dale at Inspiration Lake

Upper Snow Lake the next morning. Leg warmers, don't go hiking without em.

Yoga every damn day, Upper Snow Lake. This place makes it easy.

Dale, Lani, and Rob on the way up to the upper enchantments on  Day 2.

Can't wait to go back!

Kalama Horse Camp, Toutle Trail, Mt. Hood; February 2015

Well, we originally intended to do this trail, but it turns out the forest road is closed in the winter, although none of the research I did beforehand suggested that. Oh well, that will happen in the winter sometimes. Luckily, the road was closed right at Kalama Horse Camp, which just so happened to be a trailhead for the Toutle Trail. How great in the Pacific Northwest?!

Lots of washout on the trail

 Most-of-family photo

This trail had a very cool look to it. Lots of flat spots, lots of moss, lots of green. Very unique looking in some areas. 

Fungus

Maggie and mom

Maggie living on the edge

Fully stocked: Dog leashes, binoculars, pocket knife, bear spray.

It's real touch to tell in this photo, but you'll have to take our word for it...that indentation in the mud is a sizeable fresh bear print. While we had the bear spray, we decided to turn around. Better safe than sorry, especially with the dogs.

Chloe the wood nymph

After our aborted mission on the Toutle trail, we pushed on towards to Ape Caves. We had no intention of going in (dogs don't like dark caves), so we did the .25 mile Tale of Two Forests Interpretive Trail, which is a cool little trail explaining the history of Mt. St. Helens and how it changed the landscape of the forest. There are cool lava tubes that you can spelunk through as well. Very cool.

Leavenworth, Alpine Lake Wilderness, Central Cascades: November 2014

Tim and I celebrated our 2nd year "Date-iverssary" on November 1st. We decided to take a trip up to the Central Cascades for some hiking and to spend some time in the town of Leavenworth, Washington. We drove up through Seattle (so we could knock of some stamps on our Mcmenamins Passports) and then eastbound on Highway 2, and spent one night in Wallace Falls State Park near an 11 mile waterfall hike (which I ended up too sick to see) but it was quite breathtaking to be in the car through this gorgeous country!

Below is a picture of the cabin we stayed at at Wallace Falls State Park, they were lovely. It has a separate room with a bunk bed. (top is single, bottom is double). And the main room has a futon and table and chairs. They are in the process of building showers and bathrooms along the cabin access trail. Other bathrooms are in the main parking lot a short walk away.

We spent the next two nights at a cabin about 12 miles from the town of Leavenworth. This is a link to the A-frame cabin we stayed at. It was just perfect, dog friendly, right on the river, and affordable considering the neighboring rates including dog fees. There was a wood stove, and lots of movies. (Including the entire Indiana Jones series) http://www.vrbo.com/124353 They sit along Peshastin Creek, and there are several nearby hikes you may want to check out. We stayed in the "Wolf Den". There is a loft with a full bed, a separate bedroom downstairs with a bathroom, as well as a pull out futon in the kitchen/living room area.

View of the loft.

Tim making us a lovely fire.

The following several pictures are from the Riverfront park in Leavenworth. It actually sits on island covered in Cottonwood trees. They call it "Blackbird Island", and there are miles of walking trails throughout. It's just beautiful! Here is a link for more information.

http://www.iciclevillage.com/explore/waterfront-park/

We found the last two salmon of the season, trying to find a spot to spawn. They looked so tired! Sweet things have probably swam thousands of miles to get here.



This was a lovely little nook where we found lots of ducks and a great place for the girls to chase one another.

Best friends forever!

If you have never been to the cute little Bavarian themed town of Leavenworth, I highly suggest it! It is very popular in the winter for holiday shoppers and tourists. As well as in the summer, for the amount of nearby recreational activities. In the picture below, you can see the gorgeous backround provided by the Central Cascades/Alpine Lake Wilderness.

Tim and I had our 2nd Anniversary supper at Visconti's Italian restaurant. I had the most delicious Ravioli ever ever ever. It was pumpkin and butternut squash ravioli. Paired with a local Icycle Brewing Seasonal Porter from right next door! 

The town is just starting to get all of its Christmas lights up for the holidays!

Another shot on the bridge by "Blackbird Island" at Leavenworth's Waterfront Park.

 Heaven.

 Just east of Leavenworth...(sorry going backwards a bit)

Had to stop by Big Foot Park and see Harry! Original filming location from Harry and the Hendersons. Check it out...

http://www.markhitstheroad.com/us/wa/index-harry-and-the-hendersons-filming-location.html



Tim and Harry at Bigfoot Park.

Stopped in the very quaint and historic logging town of "Skykomish". You can see the old hotel and lodge in the background. This town was so clean and well manicured! It is a hotspot for through hikers on the Pacific Crest Trail. And the local stop-n-go is known for catering to the hikers. 

One of our goals on this trip was to take our family Christmas card photo, it proved to be interesting! I was quite sick so we "car-hiked" all over trying to find a magical close to the car spot. We were supposed to hit up several hikes in the Central Cascades on the way to Leavenworth, but alas, I was too ill to go.

Beckler River, off Forest Road 6550

Family photo attempts!

 Frozen wonderland along Forest Road 6554

Alpine Lake Wilderness (just on the edge of Wild Sky Wilderness) as seen from Forest Road 6550

So beautiful!!! Also there is no edge on this road, and there are frequent wash outs, be very cautious. Here is the website for the Evergreen Mountain Lookout hike we were planning to do that is at the top of this road, over 5000 feet.

http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/evergreen-mountain-lookout