It was raining when I woke up. Listening to the weather report, I thought it might be nicely overcast for a short hike. By the time I arrived at the trailhead it was bright and sunny. Good thing I remembered to pack sunscreen.

Switchbacking up the first part of the trail was somewhat rocky and made for awkward footing in places. Hiking through forest, the trail is lined decoratively with plenty of ferns. It was a quiet day on the trail: I saw only seven other hikers, and I'm sure the garter snake I startled wasn't expecting visitors.

Approaching Little Greider, the bugs began to swarm. Too bad I forgot to pick up repellant; but I made do by swatting them with my trusty bandanna. Hiking up the exposed hillside above Little Greider revealed several varieties of wildflowers in bloom--including tiger lily, columbine, and purple hearts. This stretch of trail was also noticeably narrow and slightly overgrown.

Dropping down to Big Greider, I ate lunch in the shade of a campground and then enjoyed the views of the lake and creek from the sun-bleached logs piled at the north shore. Not a bad way to spend the holiday.

The trail is clear of snow but a little muddy in spots. I went midweek and no one else was there. These lakes are real gems, especially considering the short hike.

I followed the optimistic green line on the map that goes above Big Greider to a view point. Clever feet can still find the tread beneath the underbrush but this is really a bushwhack not a trail hike.

For once the whole family managed to get together for a family hike. Myself, ""the ole goat"", with ""Me Lady"", (my wife), the ""Trail Master"", our son, and our two daughters, ""Princess"" and ""Little Lady"". The trail up to the lakes for the most part resembled a small creek, as there was water on the trail most of the time. There was mud in spots but wasn't a problem. A total of six blow-downs across the trail that had to be climbed under, over or detoured around. Being that we were the first on the trail, we were also the first to both lakes. One blow-down at the first campsite you come to at the lower lake. With the cloud cover breaking up and the sun beginning to peek through, we continued up to the upper lake. Once there we ate an early lunch on a wooded platform near the log choked outlet. After lunch, the ""Trail Master"" went off exploring, and ""Me Lady"" and I strolled off across the logs to try our hand at fishing. ""Me Lady"" soon lost a lure on a sunken log and called it a day. I tried fly-fishing but also came up with a big 0. I saw several fish rise, but they were all beyond what this medicore angler can cast. We then headed up the trail to the view-point, but after a gain of several hundred feet we lost the trail where it crossed a snowfield and disappeared into some huckle-berry bushes. We consoled ourselves by having a family snowball fight. After taking several pictures of Little Grieder Lake below we turned back down the trail. The way down was uneventful, except when I broke the tip of my fly-rod while crawling underneath a log. Now I need to buy another one. $$$$, OUCH!

Greider Lakes May 27th, 2007

Greider Lakes--A perfect 1st hike for the beginning of hiking season. Not too hard and not too easy. 100% Moderate. 2 Miles to the Little Greider and an additional .5 miles to Big Greider with very little elevation gain between the two. Snow free until you’re passing Little Greider on the way to Big Grieder. However, it only last for a 100 feet or so. These lakes are named little and big greider. However, they seem to be the same size. I believe the best camp spots are at little grieder. The fishing at both lakes was lousy and difficult to access. No fish, no bits to show. We had a great time…despite the rain.