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Heather Lake

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Another weekend, another hike! 

This week, we went to Heather Lake - billed as a popular, short but steep hike where you're rewarded with an alpine lake filled with fish, flanked by huge cliffs and wildflower meadows. Sounds idyllic, no? 

The description was pretty accurate! The hike about 5 miles r/t, with a 1,000 ft elevation gain so there was a steady incline up the mountain. We went through a lot of old forest growth and had LOTS of roots and rocks to scramble over. It made for a hike that was never boring and if anything, you had to be really careful or else you'd turn an ankle. We also passed by lots of berry bushes and grabbed salmon berries and some huckleberries. 

The lake itself was very picturesque - it was in the shadows of some very tall mountain peaks, and there was snow still in many crags and several waterfalls cascading down the cliff walls. The sound of the waterfalls, the greenery, the mountains and snow all reminded me so much of Switzerland! We just needed cowbells to complete the mood. The pics don't do it justice, especially because it was fairly overcast and gray all day. I can imagine it being spectacular if the sun was out.

I was really impressed at the lack of whining from the kids, and both of the girls said they enjoyed the hike but liked Greenwaters better (less incline and lots of access to the river). They completely conked out on the drive back. I think that means it was a successful day!


Nora didn't carry a backpack. Do you spy where she held her water bottle?

We passed many many huge tree trunks like this that had been chopped down.

Up and Up, past fallen trees.

First view of the lake.

View of the lake

Rounding the bend

Going around the lake. This meadow was filled with delicate flowers and greenery!

Lunch stop on top of the rocks. Can you spy the waterfalls? We counted 7 in total.

Scrambling over the rocks was fun.

See Scott fishing? This was my lunch view.

More fishing


View from the other side of the lake. See the snow cave?

Girls fell right asleep when we got back to the car.

 

Comments

  1. WJuly 12, 2023 at 1:13 PM

    Such pretty scenery! And it looks empty of people too!

    ReplyDelete

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