Day 2.
No such luck. Again, we are greeted by the dreary dampness that has settled over the area. Not wanting to be outdone by this grey cloak of doom draped over us, we match it, and raise it to the next level with our own Eeyoresque mood, and proclaim, “That’s it, guess I’ll go home…”
…we decide to not pursue going to Nordrum lake with the threat of another night here in the land of Pea Soup and man eating sticks…
Tired of not being able to see anything, and on top of that, tired of being wet with no real way to dry out, we decide to not pursue going to Nordrum lake with the threat of another night here in the land of Pea Soup and man eating sticks…Packing away tent and tarp, we head for home, dressed appropriately in the proper attire for this area, raingear.
Along the way back, we make a startling discovery! There is Deer Lake! We passed right by it yesterday, not 8 feet from the trail without ever seeing it. And, as luck would have it, we had a small clearing in the fog, so that we could actually see about half of the lake. Quickly whipping out our cameras, knowing the opportunity could fade in an instant, we manage to get some proof that we actually did see the upper lakes…
Past the trail crew again, this time similarly attired, we wound down trail once again to Dorothy Lake, where we were able to shed the raingear, as it was below the gloom that we had left behind at the pass…At the lakes edge, we met a ranger and stopped and chatted with him for a few minutes. After mentioning how socked in it was at the lakes above, with a wave of his hand, he said, “Oh, yeah, that lake has a reputation of always being covered in fog..” As his voice trailed off, I thought, “brilliant! If only I had known before!”
Helpful news now…I guess that this story can only add to its reputation. Further down the trail, we would talk to two more people, and they verified what the ranger had already told us, that they too, had been to the lake when it was like that…So, I would like to add here, to be sure and check the weather reports before venturing up to Snoqualmie Lake. That is, unless you are looking for a spot that is shrouded in mists, then I’ve got a hot tip for you…Back to the car; we load our wet gear, and head for home.
I’m sure they got wadded up when we drove off, so I would like to apologize now for littering at the trailhead…
We load all the gear, that is, except for Dave’s new trekking poles…I left them, quite by accident, in front of Greg’s truck, and didn’t realize it until I got home, and couldn’t find them anywhere…I’m sure they got wadded up when we drove off, so I would like to apologize now for littering at the trailhead…if you were the one to properly dispose of a mangled, brand new set of trekking poles, I thank you for picking up my mess…With a tear in my eye….Dorothy lake, in its own right, would be a great day hike and quite possibly is good for fishing, as we did see some telltale rings from trout jumping.
…could you do me a favor? Please send me a picture of what the lake looks like when it decides not to hide, I’d like to see!
And, if you picked a good weather day, going to Snoqualmie lake and beyond, may reward you with sights of four or five lakes in this part of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness…As Snoqualmie Lake remained shy for us, hiding behind its veil of mist, could you do me a favor? Please send me a picture of what the lake looks like when it decides not to hide, I’d like to see!