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| Backpack | 24.00 Miles |
6,457 AEG |
| | Backpack | 24.00 Miles | 3 Days | | |
| 6,457 ft AEG | | 30 LBS Pack | | |
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| no partners | | Back in February, a friend and I entered the lottery process to get one of the much sought after permits to the Enchantment Lakes. Although our 1st choice for a permit in the Core Enchantment zone was declined, we still managed to walk away with a permit to the Snow Lakes area.
We put together a group of 7 hikers of varying skill level and spent the last several months getting everyone up to speed. Two of the group had never been backpacking before, let alone ever been on a real tough hike, so it was an interesting learning process for everyone. When the day finally arrived, we started out in 2 different groups.
The main group departed Portland around 7am and made it to the trail by mid afternoon. Another more experienced member and myself opted to sleep in, so we departed Portland just after noon, fully prepared to hike in after dark. The first group set up camp near the dam between upper and lower snow lakes and my group joined them about an hour or two after dark.
On day 2 we planned on day hiking up into the Core Enchantment Zone. I had difficulty sleeping the night before and had been up since at least 430am, but most everyone else was still in bed until about 0930am. So for a good 5 hours I explored the upper/lower snow lakes area and paced around camp making progressively louder noise until people began to wake up. We finally hit the trail around noon and explored the upper enchantments up to Inspiration Lake. Pictures cannot possibly do this place justice- the crystal clear blue and green water of these glacial lakes has to been seen in person.
Day 3 was another late start. We had planned on hitting a brewery in Leavenworth before making the drive back to Portland, but the group wasn't on trail until about noon. The group pace was a bit slower than I am accustom to, so I would occasionally run ahead and wait for them to catch up. When we were about a mile from the parking lot a trail runner passed our group. Someone jokingly suggested that I run with him back to the parking lot- so I darted off in hot pursuit. I quickly closed the gap and hung about 10 feet behind him and held steady. I knew I wouldn't have an opportunity to pass since the trail was too narrow, but I would be content just keeping pace with him up to the parking lot. I chatted with him for a bit before he eventually stepped to the side of the trail and let me run ahead. By the time I reached the parking lot I had a full 3 minute lead on him!!! Granted he had been thru running the whole trail from Aasgard Pass that morning, but I still had a 24 pound backpack on, so I was pretty proud of my victory! |
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