Hike #71 in the Bauer/Nelson Best Desert Hikes guidebook. I finished up a weekend over in central WA with an early morning hike on a clear sunny day. Still some leftover wind from the bigger windstorm that whupped up things across central WA the day before, but not bad. This plateau and it's canyons beckon you on to explore every nook and cranny. A few old jeep tracks run through parts of the plateau and it's easy to imagine them created by old wagon wheels from a century ago. The place really has Old West written all over it. I love the wide open grasslands separating several large and small mesas, canyons rimmed with columnar basalt cliffs and further on the Upper and Lower Goose Lakes as well as Black Lk.

The grasslands exist due to past wildfires that burned away most of the shrub-steppe plants. A few silvered little stubs of sage and what have you tell the tale. At this time of year the green grasses have shot up and in the wind undulate in a hypnotic way. Many different types of desert wildflowers are beginning to bloom. I've seen bigger displays in past spring visits so I imagine the bloom is a little late this season.

Since there really aren't any formal trails other than the few jeep tracks spread out in the vast acreage it's basically a go where your feet take you kind of rambling, but the guidebook directions can be helpful especially for first timers. Eventually as you head westerly toward the lakes you may come to a cliff edge and below you the lakes. You can walk along the cliff edge and eventually find a way down in a broad cut that comes out next to Lower Goose Lk. To get to Black Lk, which I highly recommend, (I did that portion on a previous visit- I recommend a full day for exploring the grasslands, visiting the canyons and exploring down to Black Lk.) at the low dam hike along the narrow riparian zone next to the lake's outlet, passing an interesting deep narrow cut the stream makes through rock as it flows down into Black Lk, a couple small waterfalls can be viewed along the way. The cut is just wide enough that unless you are a long jumper I'd advise not to risk trying to leap across it. (<: Then retrace your route back to the dam, cross it, and head down once again to the Black Lake shore. A small waterfall empties into the lake- a great spot for lunch. Nice views south of a mesa above the lake and the Saddle Mtns further off in the distance.

Lots of birds around the lakes, and nesting up in all the plateau's mesas and cliffs- you hear a lot of coo-cooing coming from up there. A I returned back to the parking area after 4 hrs out (directly across from the trailhead to another fun hike Frog Lk/Crab Creek marshes (Hike #69) and lots of bird activity). Several birders pulled up with spotting scopes and cameras and headed that way as I walked into the parking area. Yet another nice hike nearby is #70 Chukar and Blythe Lks. Just a wonderful assortment of great hikes within minutes of each other in the potholes just south of Potholes Reservoir and O'Sullivan Dam (one of the longest dams in the USA, btw).

I imagine especially near water sources like Crab Creek/Frog Lks for example watch out for rattlesnakes and be aware that you're in tick country too- though I came out unscathed on the Goose Lk Plateau and its high grasses.

Goose Lake Plateau was the climax of a 3-hike trip into Eastern WA over a long weekend. Umtanum Canyon and Juniper Dunes (north access) came prior, and both were exquisite with their blooms, wildlife, and tranquility. I'm refraining from entering trip reports for those two hikes, since it seems they've been adequately documented already, and since it seems that conditions don't change too quickly in these parts. Goose Lake Plateau has only one trip report from a couple of years ago, and I admit to being somewhat confused by it. Doesn't sound anything at all like what I did. The _55 Hikes_ directions to the preferred starting point at Frog Lake TH are generally accurate, though there is one junction beyond the Soda Lake CG turn-off and before the split at 3.2 miles that's not mentioned (stay right). After parking at Frog Lake, my companion and I walked the 0.4 mile down the road until reaching the obvious side coulee to the west. I didn't see a rusted gate or fence here as mentioned in the book (1990 edition). Instead, there is a minimalist path running along the lower slope of the hill to the right (north) that skirts heavy brush about 80 meters or so into the mouth of the coulee. Once there, the country opens up nicely. We followed this gorgeous coulee up on faint tread (no real need for a maintained trail here) to the old, unused jeep track that's mentioned in the book. Right and left on the jeep track are both interesting, and enable easy exploration of more grassland and coulee scenery. Many birds and flowers of all sorts. Excellent napping opportunities, with enough birdsong to add a soundtrack to one's dreams. Going left on the jeep track is also the route to Goose Lake Plateau, which we wandered happily and aimlessly for a while until desiring a return to the intimacy of the coulee. On the way back down, we followed a higher bench of the coulee, a few meters above the bottom that we had ascended earlier. Tough to depart a place so serene.