We started our planning for this trip with the simple idea of doing the loop hike from the Sol Duc Trail head to High Divide to Heart Lake and out via Sol Duc Park and the Sol Duc Trail. Two of the four on the hike had already done this loop multiple times so I was interested in finding something interesting as a side trip. We looked into the area East of Sol Duc Park for some off trail exploration and discovered an area called Swimming Bear Lake (used to be known as Cat Lake). Basically from the Bailey Range Traverse trail there is a side trail that will take you around the East side of the peaks between Sol Duc Park and Cats Basin. The old trail eventually makes it Oyster Lake and Appleton Pass. We discovered this trip with the help of Ron Howard (http://ronhayward.net/catlake-0 and http://ronhayward.net/catlake09).
The first part of the trip was the normal hike up to Sol Duc Falls and Deer Lake. We made great time and quickly pushed for the ridge to High Divide and Seven Lakes Basin. The trip around the Bogachiel Basin was amazing. It was my first time seeing the area with clear skies and no fog or snow. I was really surprised when we didn't see or hear any elk in the area but we were reward with a black bear eating his way along the trail (eventually we saw 11 bears for the entire trip). Once we made it around Bogachiel Peak we stopped for lunch and the amazing views of Mt. Olympus. Again it was great to have clear skies and no sign of the smoke from Eastern WA. We passed a number of hiking groups along High Divide (most going the opposite direction) as we headed to Heart Lake. When we got to Heart Lake I was regretting changing our reservation to Swimming Bear Lake (another 2 to 2.5 miles away).. I was ready to call it a day, but the guys helped push forward and with some patience we found the waytrail/boot path to Swimming Bear Lake. We were immediately reward for the extra mileage by a herd of 50 elk and multiple bears gazing along the hillsides. Even better we got some amazing views of Mt Olympus and the Bailey Range as the sunset for the evening. Through the night we were serenaded by the bugle calls of the bull elks and the sounds of falls rocks and the herd moved along the hills near camp.
In the morning we headed North/Northeast to find the boot path trail that would take us to Appleton Pass. It appeared the elk had the same idea as we entered forest we weaved our way through the trees with the elk following the same path. Eventually we took a higher route to avoid spooking the elk. The rest of the trip just felt like a dream as we were rewarded each time we cross over another ridgeline to find basins and valleys that have rarely been seen before. All the time I was looking down into Cats Basin and thinking about the tales I've read of the Press Expedition exploring the area. The trail was barely visible in areas but was always easy enough to find (don't try this if you do not have trail finding / route finding abilities). It had its ups and downs but arriving at the valley before Oyster Lake we knew our adventure was almost over. We stopped at Oyster Lake for rest and then beat feet down the South side of the Appleton Pass trail to the Sol Duc River Trail and back out. All together it was 25 miles in two days and some great times with my good friends.
Some other pics can be found on skydrive (http://sdrv.ms/RtW0lB)

We had absolutely beautiful weather for the High Divide trip this weekend! We did the loop clockwise, starting with the Sol Duc River trail. There were some wildflowers in the Sol Duc Park area -- many more on the divide. Spent the first night at Heart Lake. No issues, save for some tired feet. Didn't see any goats at the lake...but boy were we glad we had a bear can. When we woke up the next morning, there was a bear calmly chomping his breakfast in the lake basin not even 200 feet from our campsite. So folks, take Olympic National Park seriously when they require bear cans in wilderness areas. This bear we saw was quite big.

The second day we left the basin and hiked up to the High Divide. As we ascended the divide, we got beautiful views of Mt. Olympus and the Bailey Range. It made my hiking partner salivate (he's a climber), and made me wonder what I'd need to do to hike the Bailey Range. If y'all have any tips, let me know. We ran into a backcountry ranger on the High Divide trail, and he suggested taking the Bogachiel Peak cutoff and exploring the Seven Lakes Basin. So we took the back way into Lunch Lake. It was really neat walking around the moonscape. Not like anything I'd ever seen before -- huge boulders and lightly vegetated rocks around small tarns. We clambered through a small canyon and came out at Lunch Lake. Snagged a pretty decent campsite.

On the third day was where we found some adventure. After a gorgeous hike out of the Seven Lakes Basin via the trail marked on the map we came out on the High Divide again. The wildflowers in this section were just beautiful -- lots of Indian paintbrush blooming right now. As we were coming off the divide, just past the overlook where you can see Potholes and Deer Lake, I hit a root funny and rolled my right ankle. We still had about six miles to hike out. My boyfriend took my pack and started shuffling down the trail like a pregnant crab. I used my trekking poles for support and started limping. Two people going our direction passed us and asked if they could help. I told them to get a ranger, as I wasn't sure if I could make it out.

Three hours later, we made it to Deer Lake. Countless backpackers stopped to ask if I could use any Ibuprofen (I'd taken enough to topple a horse already, so declined). We rested for a while at the lake. My boyfriend needed a break from two packs, and I felt like I could maybe carry a mostly emptied pack, so we put all the heavy gear into his and left mine light. We started down the trail again, limping our way through the steep spots. As we were taking a break, Brian the awesome volunteer ranger showed up. He taped my ankle, asked if I could make it out, and "called off the dogs" as he said. Apparently the national park staff were pretty keyed up -- they'd done a SAR nearby the week before. Their plan for me, had I been unable to make it out, was to have us camp at Deer Lake in an overflow site and fly me out on the "poop flight" with the privies the next morning. I opted to try to hike out. Brian took my pack and we made our slow way out of the park.

Brian was cheerful and friendly. Didn't complain a bit about the inconvenience -- he had to hike all the way into Lunch Lake for the night after escorting us out. He said great things about the volunteer program, and we got into a nice conversation about hiking and climbing. National Park Service, if you know what's good for you, HIRE BRIAN PERMANENTLY! He's a great spokesperson for Olympic National Park, and really loves devoting his time to the park and the people who enjoy it.

A big, big thank you, too, to all the backpackers who stopped and asked if I needed help. Brian was alerted by a man who literally came running down the trail to warn him, concerned that I couldn't hike out. And every backpacker he saw on the way up to us told him about the "Ankle Lady." Thank you, thank you, thank you. Backpackers' kindness towards injured backpackers is really amazing. I appreciate it, and if I'm in a situation where I can ever return the favor, you know I will.

Beautiful hike on a trail starting from the end of the Sol Duc Hot springs road. We went on this hike and up to the high divide last year but only made it to Deer Lake this year. Trail sign says it's a 4 mile hike to the lake and we took almost 5 hours for the round trip.
First .8 miles gets you to the Sol Duc falls..a great short destination in itself. We got there about 10:30 and the sun was streaming through the trees and mist creating a spectacular rainbow. After taking many pictures we crossed the bridge and began our climb. The first 1/2 mile after the bridge is snow free. The last 2 1/2 miles are all SNOW..deep snow, and yes, we fell through in many places. We did have some boot prints to follow but they were very faded and old and were not always reliable making our trip to the lake more like 5 miles? Thanks for whoever put the orange metal squares on a few of the trees...But there were not enough of them..and they always seemed to be on the opposite side of the tree where we couldn't see them so we had many diversions. There were 3 areas where avalanches crossed the trail but no major problem to cross. Made it to the lake and the bridge over the outlet is melted and dry..provided a great picnic spot. All the campsites are in deep snow. The howling wind across the lake was freezing cold so we didn't stay long. We did not continue on the trail around the lake and up the ridge..the snow was very deep and we didn't see any tracks to follow..maybe we were the first to try to go around the lake. We'll be back later this summer and hike further to the ridge and the peak.

My friend Kim and I departed from Bremerton at 4:30 AM and proceeded to the Sol Duc forest for a day hike and some photographic opportunities. It was great being able to bring Kim to this area, because she had never visited it before. On the Sole Duck Road to our parking area, there is some heavy construction going on. There are four portable green/red light set up to move traffic through the single lane road. It was not a big deal, but worth mentioning.

We hit the trail at around 7:00 AM and proceeded along the ever popular and well maintained trail to the Sol Duc Falls. The flow of the river was lower than I can remember. The recent heat wave must have melted off much of the snow in the high country, not to mentioned the lack of rainfall in the past month. These combinations all played a part I suppose in the low flow. When we got to the falls, I considered dropping down to the base of the river for a rare low perspective photograph of the falls, but I decided against this, knowing that we still had some hiking ahead of us. There will be another time!

After passing the entrance to the Lover's Lane Trail, we started climbing up the trail towards out destination of the day; Deer Lakes. It should be noted, there are actually two lakes side by side, although one is much smaller than the main lake. The trail has about a 1600' elevation gain over three miles, so it is not very difficult. The walking conditions however constitute some awareness on each step taken. There are lots of in planted rocks and loose stone as well along the trail. None of which is dangerous in any way (unless you roll an ankle, from not paying attention). There was evidence of some exceptional trail maintenance along the way, including new cedar planks and well placed steps. I suppose these rock steps help remove water from the trail during rainy episodes. In addition, we were moving along the Canyon Creek and we passed several waterfalls along the way. It is always great hearing moving water while hiking! All in all, it was a great hike in an old forest, complete with peekaboo views of the surrounding peaks (all snowless).

Once we got to the lake, we encountered a hard working backcountry trail ranger. We had a pair of loppers and he was just sprucing up the area a bit. We talked briefly and mentioned that neither of us had ever been to the lakes in the past. He explained that a trail goes around the lake and that there were various camp spots as well. He mentioned that there we signs indicating closed off sections to allow a complete re-growth of some vegetation. Kim and I decided to move around the lake and we crossed a footbridge and began looking for a good spot to have lunch. We crossed a small boardwalk that is tilted a bit, but totally safe. The large lake was just gorgeous. There was barely any wind and most importantly---NO BUGS!!!

After snapping a few photographs, we continued around the lake and we came across a way trail that was open for hikers to sit down on the sandy shore amid a few large boulders. Lunch was great and we just rested and enjoyed the views of a perfect weather day in the Olympics! While here, we noticed several groups with large backpacks that were obviously heading up to the ever popular High Divide, Seven Lakes Basin or perhaps, to the start of the reclusive Bailey Range backcountry experience. A goal of mine is to hike into all of these areas and spend some time just exploring the tremendous rugged beauty of this place.

After our rest period and lunch, we continued on around the lake and happened to the much smaller second lake. The waters of this lake were a pure, dark, rich emerald green. There was old blowdown in the lake that could easily be seen in the clear water. It was a really nice area to behold. The one aspect of our time around the lakes was that the entire area was devoid of any litter whatsoever. It was spotless. A couple of years ago, I camped at the Mildred Lakes and although it was a beautiful area, I was stunned to see so much garbage in the designated camp spots and behind the large pillow basalt rocks. Unbelievable, that people do not pack out what they bring in.

There is my rant for the day!

We proceeded back down the trail and we encountered a fair amount of hikers coming up the trail, each was heading to their reserved camp spot on the High Divide. I couldn't help but think that some were really getting a late start, as it was nearly 3:00 PM. All were very friendly and clearly excited about their opportunity to be hiking in the beloved Olympics.

I would highly recommend this hike if you just want to stretch your legs and enjoy a part of the Olympics!