Quantum Guru says: I had visited Rampart Lakes once before, on an overnight backpack with the Intermountain Alpine Club (Tri-Cities). The year was 1967 and, in the intervening 38 years, both I and the trail have aged. This time it was a day trip for two of us, I and my hiking buddy ""Blue Towel."" The initial three miles of trail is much as I remember, a gentle climb through forest, sometimes brushy, with frequent flowing water vistas of Box Creek and an occasional dramatic look up at Hibox Mountain - seen in this southern view as a sharp pyramidal summit. The following climb up to Rachel Lake seemed, in '67, steep but the footing then seemed much smoother. Time, and many feet, have removed a lot of soil from the trail. It now is choked with roots and boulders and, in places, becomes a small creek bed. Rachel still is a beautiful lake and, as we paused briefly, we were treated to the sight of an osprey, which dove upon a hapless fish then, with a loud ""kreee..."", flew off to a tree to dine. The trail up the next ridge was steep, but with generally better footing than on the hill climb to Rachel. At the unsigned T-junction, we turned left and followed the gentle ups and downs to reach the several Rampart Lakes. Wildflowers were out in great abundance; so were the mosquitoes, plus a few flies. Most - not all -were kept at bay by generous application of Jungle Juice. We strolled to the southernmost of the lakes, then followed an obvious, if faint, footpath steeply up to a high point at the top of Rampart Ridge. (See photo of Blue Towel on top.) Footing was secure on this easterly approach, but the western face is precipitous as can be seen from I-90 near Hyak. The summit ridge seemed dryer than the lakes basin, but that did not deter the mosquitoes, which were even more numerous at the top. It was a great day for viewing. Rainier, Adams and Glacier Peak all were out. As were the many non-volcanic peaks of the Alpine Lakes and Stuart Range. Overall, the weather was just about perfect. The wildflowers were at their peak. We counted 40 species, including a few whose names we did not know. The paintbrush, elephanthead and rosy spirea were particularly beautiful. In addition to the osprey, we saw several dippers and a grouse. Plus the usual chipmunks and a dark-colored squirrel. Blue Towel says: There are a few things in life that are so affirming than following one's own shadow on a sun-dappled trail. This was one such day. Although the trail was quite rough, I made a game of it to be as nimble and swift as possible without compromising the pleasure of the landscape. I was happy on this hike in ways too hard to describe with words. Let's just say it was a great day to be ""Alive and Kicking"" to quote a Simple Minds tune.