Anderson LakeRecent Trip Reports
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Day hike
Issues:
Mudholes | Water on trail
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I found this one in one of my guide books and had been wanting to bag it all year. ...
I found this one in one of my guide books and had been wanting to bag it all year. Today was the day! It was a mostly cloudy and cool day, perfect for hiking. I knew the clouds were gonna block most of the mountain views this trail has to offer but I also knew I could bag multiple lakes in one day. The road up is long but in good condition until the last couple miles where it gets bumpy. There were also some sweeping views of Baker Lake on the way. The mountain would have been there if not for the clouds. At the trail head I was greeted by 8 other cars and a group of men and boys going in for an overnighter. Looking at the trail registry I noticed a couple other groups camping on the lakes. I liked my chances to at least be alone on the trail.
The trail was wet the whole way from the recent rains. Mud holes and standing water are starting to build-up in places. Not to mention the wet has made all the rocks and roots that stick out along the way slick. I would recommend leaving your shoes at home the rest of the season. This trail was up and down the whole way offering a workout both ways. The trail starts off with an easy climb before coming to a meadow and the Anderson Butte cutoff. I passed it as the clouds were blocking the view of Mt. Baker and continued uphill. I dropped down to the Anderson Lake cutoff in another meadow and took the 1 mile side trail to the first Anderson Lake. The meadow around the lake was wet and the ridge was cloudy. I spent my time here alone enjoying the solitude. After a short rest I climbed back out and was off to the Watson Lakes. Back at the main trail I went up another series of switch-backs before crossing into the Noisy-Diobsud Wilderness and dropping once again to the Watson Lakes. From the top of the ridge you can see both lakes and Bacon Peak was mostly covered by clouds in the distance. I dropped to the shore of the first Watson Lake where I enjoyed some more time alone before being joined by others. Bacon Peak did show its slopes a little changing with the clouds the whole time I was there. On the way back I ran into more people coming up the trail. I stopped and talked with a mom-son-granddaughter that were stopped in the first meadow. They really liked my trekking poles and asked if they were worth it? Oh yeah, I told them! The top of Mt. Baker was poking out of the clouds and I decided I HAVE to come back here on a clear day. In all I hiked about 7 miles in a little over 3 hours, a real good run for me! Day hike
Features:
Wildflowers blooming
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A great day for a hike, and a great hike for the day. I arrived at the trailhead at...
A great day for a hike, and a great hike for the day. I arrived at the trailhead at 8:00 AM and at the lakes by 9:00. The up-and-down trail makes going in and coming out about equally difficult, but it is only 2.5 miles to the lakes. There were friendly campers everywhere. I met several day hikers on the trail on the way out and passed several vehicles driving to the trailhead when I drove out. It is great to go early while it is cool. The bugs were tolerable and the scenery magnificent. The views of Mt. Baker are awesome!
Day hike
Features:
Wildflowers blooming
Issues:
Bugs
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The last report from a month ago had snow on the trail within the 1st mile. I suspected it would...
The last report from a month ago had snow on the trail within the 1st mile. I suspected it would be entirely clear by now (it was).
Trail in excellent conditions, returning at 2pm the TH temperature was a very pleasant 73F (bottom of skagit valley was 93F). Did both Anderson lakes and both Watson lakes. Lots of families on the trail, dogs and 2 mules; as well as some former vintage hippies from Minnesota... (they decided against skinny dipping...). No berries yet, but lots of wild flowers. Went a little nuts with photos (it was such a lovely day)... more photos at: http://www.facebook.com/alb[…]=700341335&l=af718e42df Day hike
Features:
Wildflowers blooming
Issues:
Snow on trail
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Bob and Kolleen were free for a day hike. We came up with a trip that none of us had...
Bob and Kolleen were free for a day hike. We came up with a trip that none of us had done. Watson Lakes are just east of Baker Lake and south of Mt. Shuksan. We snowshoed up to Park Butte lookout to the west on March 6th on a beautiful clear winter day. Now we had a beautiful clear very hot day. Just like the day before at Summit Lake this trail begins high at 4300'. We met in south Everett at 7:00 am and it still took until 9:20 to reach the trailhead. The 11 miles of dirt road after crossing the dam took a lot of the time. This is not a heavily reported hike and I was surprised to see about 20 cars in the lot. A small portable sign provided the reason for some of the crowd. There was a Washington Trails Association crew at work up the trail.
Our goal was to climb up to Anderson Butte first while it was still only moderately hot and we had good morning light. After that we would head over to Watson Lakes and maybe Anderson Lake. The trail splits at only .8 miles. Left heads steeply uphill to the butte. This trail is less well maintained but still easy hiking. At the ridge top we found some snow and the other side still has quite a bit of snow. Nice views immediately and they only get better along the ridge to the old lookout site. There are a few short snow patches but for the most part it is all dirt to the top. Really spectacular views from the top. Baker and Shuksan dominate to the north. Mt. Watson and other snowy peaks are to the southeast. Many more peaks off to the east. Only 1 1/2 miles with 1050' of gain to this great viewpoint. After a round of photos we headed back down. We passed the WTA work party in the first half mile and saw one of them back at the junction. The next section of trail is up an open meadow and part of it is still under snow. Not enough to cause any problems. We crested the slope and dropped to cross a meadow on a long boardwalk. At the end of the meadow is the junction. Right to Anderson Lake and left to Watson Lakes. We chose to go left. The trail drops down in a series of switchbacks to Upper Watson Lake. Along the way is an open view down to both lakes. There is still snow on the far side of the lake. The trail along the lake is easy walking though a little muddy. We could see the ridge across the lake as it ascended from the end of the lower lake. Bob and Kolleen thought it would be a nice scramble. At the end of the lake we crossed the outlet and climbed a little before dropping to the lower lake. Big snowy peaks sat over the far end of the lake. A really beautiful view. Lots of heather in bloom between the lakes. Easy log hopping took us across the outlet to the lower lake. We met a number of hikers and fishermen at the Watsons. A short climb brought us to a viewpoint right above the lake. It was getting very hot now as we sat down to lunch. What to do? Head down the lake and see about getting onto the ridge across the lakes? Head back and then drop to Anderson Lake? We chose to head down to the end of the lake and see what the ridge route looked like. We figured it would be like hiking along the first lake. Nope. It was much more difficult. The route gained and lost 400' along the lake. Many short steep climbs followed by steep descents. None were all that hard but in the heat of the day it was not a lot of fun. At long last we reached the end of the lake. One trail dropped to near the lake edge and the other remained high. We followed both. Neither went very far. That nice grassy ridge we saw from the other end of the lake was now some grass and a number of large rock points. Definitely not easy climbing. Our ambition waned fast. We did get some nice photos so the effort was not totally without benefit. Sweat was pouring off me as we climbed up and down along the lake once again. An easy walk brought us to the first lake and now we just had 700' to climb back to the high point. It was slow and steady for me. At least we had snow at the top to help cool off. It's only about 2.3 miles to the first lake so it was not really all that tough to hike out. On the way down we even met a group of backcountry skiers hiking in. Back at the parking lot the WTA volunteers were packing up to head home. This proved to be a very nice place to be on a hot summer day. A nice peak with views of the peaks of the North Cascades and two very beautiful lakes. I can see why this would be a very popular place. Minimal effort for maximum enjoyment. If you like starting high, having great views and cold clear lakes this is a fine place to visit. 30 photos have been posted at: http://www.hikingnorthwest.com. To to "Trips-2010" on the left margin. This was the 400th trip report on my website.
Anderson and Watson Lakes
— Jul 17, 2010
— RC
Day hike
Issues:
Snow on trail
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We hit snow roughly 1 mile into the hike where the trail exits forest and enters a meadow area. The...
We hit snow roughly 1 mile into the hike where the trail exits forest and enters a meadow area. The snow pack was slushy and we did not see an end to it; however, the trail through the snow appeared well marked by footprints. We did not have waterproof boots, so we turned around at the snow line.
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First Anderson Lake, photo taken by Outdoor Dan.
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