Enchantment Lakes
Jul 15, 1998
- Type of Outing
- Day hike
- Read More in our Hiking Guide
- Hike: Enchantment Lakes
- Region: Central Cascades -- Leavenworth Area
- Agency: Wenatchee National Forest, Wenatchee River Ranger District
- Trails: Enchantment Lakes (#1553)
- Avg Rating: 4.52
MM and I took 4 days
to visit the Enchantments for the first time. It was beautiful from the parking lot all the way up. And up, and up. MM knows all about the flowers, and we saw them go through their life cycles as we gained elevation. ""Time lapse botany!"" After a ways I really looked forward to stopping for a minute to look at new varieties in new stages. The combination of rest and beautiful blossoms was VERY appealing. There was a washout through a boulder field from 3,000 to 3,500 feet. The way is marked with blue flags. The flag near the first big mound over the switchbacks is hard to see. When you come to the mound, look over your left shoulder. Otherwise you cross the rock and dirt pile and wander for a while in an area that looks like trail, but isn't. We camped the first night at Nada lake. Lots of fish jumping, and enough mosquitoes to make you notice them. Mountain goats paid a visit in the morning. Snow lakes are beautiful, and the mosquitoes all seem to be vacationing there. The trip from Snow lakes to Lake Viviane was, to me, more of a scramble than a hike. Lots of hand work and, with a full pack, lots of leg work! But once we made it above the tree line, the new type of beauty boosted our energy. There is a log bridge to cross right after reaching lake Viviane. I don't walk logs, so I scooted part of the way, and dismounted to walk on small logs in the stream the rest of the way. It was cloudy at this elevation but remarkably pretty. The peaks look like something out of J.R.R. Tolkien. That night the wind blew wildly, but it was not too cold. Very exciting, but we worried about a weather change. The thought of a trip down in a rainstorm wasn't pleasant. We day hiked from Viviane to Leprechaun and Sprite, but missed the trail at one point and went around to the South of the lakes. There is a cairne in the middle of a big snowy area as you start out from Viviane. If your follow the cairnes to the south toward the toilet the take you off the trail to the South end of the lakes. It was a great walk,but not the trail. If you look over your right shoulder at the cairne in the Snow field, you see another set of cairnes leading up over the rocks and down to the next lakes. We stopped at this point because of the weather, but were told the upper lakes were still snowed in. The trip back was very nice, with a dip into the stream that is about two miles in from the parking lot. The heat during the last 1/2 mile was probably the toughest part of the trip. Drink lots even though you can see your car on that last leg!
Document Actions
- Email this page
- Print this
- Share
Forgot your
New user?
