The snow is finally melting out well enough in the high country that you can pretty much go anywhere you want. I had a hankering to get up in the high country for quite awhile now, so with a weather forecast for high temps (85-90) at home, we decided to head up to the high country to try and beat the heat. Originally the plan was to just drive up somewhere and hang out, lets the kiddos run around and enjoy the afternoon in the mountains. I was thinking along one of the glacial rivers that come off of Mt. Rainier, but then my better judgment was to not have one of my children swept downstream in a glacial torrent, but rather something like a nice lake would be better. As I teenager my friends and I would spend many afternoons after school up bouncing around in my parents truck in this part of the world. But there had been a couple places that I had not yet explored even some 18 years later now. I found Lonesome Lake on the map, its in very close proximity to the National Park boundary and was fairly far off the pavement (about 15 miles via logging road). I checked the map and found our route. After driving about 40 minutes up the highway we made the turn-off to a Forest Service road. Got about a 1/4 mile up and found it was closed due to wash-out. A quick check of the map revealed a slightly contrived, but viable alternate route. I wasnt sure if it was going to be snow free all the way up or not.
We bounced our way up the relatively smooth but washboarded Forest Service road. We passed thru Haller Pass, where this picture was taken at about 4500'. On the north slopes leading up to the pass, I started to see some snow in the trees and in the ditch in the shade. It had me a little worried the deeper we got we might hit a section of unpassable road due to the snow blocking our way.
View from the Dirtymax at Haller Pass.
Google maps for Haller PassOur destination is below the white snow patch you can see on the ridge line just left of center below the mountain. Ultimately we wound up out on the road you can just make out climbing left to right to that ridge line.
We drove another 3-4 miles to where we thought we needed to be headed. But we started downhill and going to the North. After another mile or two, I realized something wasnt right. Well it was a map error. I should have caught it too. We needed to turn off on FS road 7330 per the map. But we were in the 75 road series, so it should have been 7530. I noticed the traffic pattern in the road, but drove straight thru it, should have trusted my intuition a little more also. So we backtracked back up hill and turned off onto the road we needed to. Another couple miles and we were at the lake. We had the place to ourselves, which surprised me quite a bit. Usually a holiday weekend and a drive up alpine lake like this would be busy. Only thing I could think was that because the "normal" route was washed out, some people may not know about the alternate route up the 75 road. Lonesome Lake is about 10 acres, sits at about 4800, nestled in amongst old growth timber (true fir, noble fir, and yellow cedars) in what to me looks like a glacial cirque.
{PS Im waiting to download the rest of the pictures from the digi-cam tonight, but thought I would get a teaser up now}
Google maps for Lonesome LakeWe hung out at the lake for a hour or so, and it was really nice. A light breeze kept the bugs at bay and it was a very pleasant 75* or so...I spied another road leading up the ridge adjacent to the lake, I knew if we could get up it, we would have a great view of the mountain. I was a little concerned that the road may be washed out or grown over because its a spur road, and the Forest Service does very little maintenance these days. Well it was close to both. The beginning of the spur road was really rough and fairly steep, I put in 4WD because it was pretty loose. We crept up the hill and made it up to the point I could see from the lake. But another 1/4 up the road I could see a huge snowpile on an outside corner. I wasnt so sure we could make it around, and it was marbly enough in the rocks I wasnt so sure I wanted to back down it. So I found/made a parking spot off the edge of the road in a saddle. We started hiking up the road and met a Jeep coming down, we exchanged pleasantries and we kept hiking up the road. We got up to the snow pile and confirmed my suspicion there was just barely wide enough path alongside the exposed edge around the snow patch. I would have wanted to shovel about 2 foot more of the bank to get more room for my truck, but a Jeep would be no problem, although a tad exposed down 2-300 foot down the steep hill.
So just as we get around the corner- BAM theres the mountain. An absolutely beautiful view of the rugged north side of the mountain. Ive always had a preference for the more remote northside of Mt. Rainier. It's features are striking. Massive Willis Wall dominates the north side of the mountain- four thousand feet of nearly vertical rock and ice. The ubiquitous Emmons Glacier- largest glacier in the lower 48 runs up the left skyline. Then at the base of Willis Wall is the Carbon Glacier, the lowest glacier in the lower 48. Liberty Ridge, a very classic alpine climb runs up just right of Willis Wall between Liberty Gap glacier and the Mowich Face. Ive spent a fair deal of time backpacking in the environs below the glaciers but above the treeline on this side of the park. Not only does the terrain appeal to me, but also the fact that it is the more remote side of the mountain, which lends itself to far far far less crowds than the drive-up southside of the mountain. We snapped a bunch of pix and drunk in the incredible view for a while longer. Finally deciding we needed to get headed home to get some dinner and get ready for that nights fun blowing stuff up, we begrudgingly headed back to the truck.
More info on Rainier:
http://www.summitpost.org/mountain/rock/150291/mount-rainier.html#chapter_11 I put it in 4 low, to get low range to not ride the brakes back down the steep loose incline back to the more travelled 7530 road. Thankfully no one else was headed up, but just as we got the 7530, there was a Samurai wanting to head up. I think they were at the Lake and saw us coming down and then decided to head up as we cleared the road. A rather pleasant drive back down the hill, except I noticed a sign that pointed and said 73 Road. The 73 road is similar to the 74 and 75 road, it comes up quite a ways up the Huckleberry Creek drainage. So we took that road, probably the most excitement that day came from the idiot kid driving the Forest Service truck. Going way too fast for the conditions and on the inside of a curve. I pretty much put the truck in the ditch to avoid that retard. A nice cruise down a bit further to Elanor Creek. Steph and I had hiked up the Lake Elanor in the late 90's together. Its a nice way to back door into the Park. From the Park trails its some 8-9 miles to the lake up and down some pretty brutal hiking country- but from this way you follow the outlet of the lake (Elanor Creek) up fairly tame terrain to pop out at the Lake. Its not a formal hiking trail, but quite a few people use it, so its not too hard to find your way cross country.
Google maps showing road and Lake ElanorWe drove the rest of the way home without much more excitement from idiot drivers, but did hit some rough road where some culverts had gotten plugged and started washing the road out. The Forest Service has quite a bit of work to do to repair some of the roads and prevent future damage. However I have a hunch most of it wont get done and many of these roads may be unpassable in the near future as they continue to degrade. We made it home in good time and it thankfully had cooled off to a mere 85 at 5PM when we got home. We hid out in the AC in the house until around 830, when I started lighting off some fireworks for the kids. By dark we lit off the rest we had and then watched the spectacle around the neighborhood and lake as people went nuts. Our neighbor below us went especially crazy with mortar shells- they were HUGE. A big big whhhuummmp and them BOOM a huge display in the sky. It sounded what a battlefield in full fight must sound like for well over two hours as everyone lit off their stuff. It was pretty crazy actually- we normally are at the dunes for the 4th, so being at home and seeing the craziness was especially surreal for us.
As noted more pix to follow as soon as I have them downloaded!!!
