I told everyone in my group as they were huffing and puffing up the last quarter mile of rugged terrain to Rachel Lake - you got to read the fine print of the WTA descriptions and at least two trip reports! Then, you won't be surprised by almost 2000 feet in elevation gain at the last quarter mile. The first 2 and a half miles of this trail is lovely walk verdant, shaded path accompanied by a babbling creek and a few sweet waterfalls. There's an initial ascent just to get you warmed up and then it levels out beautifully as a peaceful, sun dappled, tree-lined dusty trail. Oh, and berries! Berries are ripe galore! You do want to make noise as bears do really like berries. This Sunday was well populated with very happy hikers and many had their very sweet dogs (on-leash, thank you!) so, I felt pretty safe. But, oh, boy oh boy, that last quarter mile. Nothing but boulders and tree roots all the way up, up, up! Nature's stairway to heaven for sure. Because Rachel Lake is stunningingly beautiful and swimmable. (Is that a word?)  As half our group headed up to Alta Mountain, the rest of us waded in the cool mountain waters It was nice to take off the boots for a minute, lounging after lunch in the warm sun.

I did get stung by a bee on the way out. Fortunately my friend had "StingEze" for insect bites. It was amazingly effective. There is no swelling a day later. I will definitely be adding this to my first aid kit.

My All trails says I did 1969 ft. elevation and 8.3 miles. All in all a fabuluous long day hike.

This was a nice end of summer backpacking trip! We expected lots of biting flies like we've had at Lila Lake but that was not a problem at all. The water was not too bad and we could even hang out in it for awhile.  Even with nice weather be sure to pack some layers as the wind does pick up quite a bit sometimes.  Our trip was Sunday to Monday and we practically had the lake to ourselves for most of it. Highly recommended! This was a great trip. #FirstTripReport

Another amazing night in the mountains! I backpacked this with my 8 yo son. WTA reports 4 miles to Rachel, I clocked about 5.5 miles. First 4 miles are mostly flat, slight incline. Last 1.5 are straight uphill/scrambley. Trail is in great condition, with plenty of camp spots around the lake. We day hiked up to Rampart Lakes for some glorious mountain scenery and swimming! Blueberries are the best around at rampart! 

#firsttripreport

When I looked up directions to this hike, the map showed the road to Kachess Campground was closed, but it is open. There is construction about a mile from I-90 where a culvert replacement is underway. One lane is open on the two-way road at the construction area, there is an automated temporary traffic control signal.

NF Road 4930 was in good condition and appeared recently re-graded from the culvert work. Remnants of old corrugated metal culvert pipes were along the roadside in places, which was neat to see. I drive a CR-V and maintained a speed of about 15 mph to help keep the dust down. Good for travel by any vehicle.

The trail has several trees across that are causing side trails. They are too large to easily go over or under. I took my time on the last mile. Way finding was not difficult for me, but could be confusing to novice hikers so be aware and have a good map. Weather at the lake was not very good. Clouded in, and rained overnight. Aside from the occasional shower, it was one of the quietest overnights I have experienced. The only sound was the lapping of the waves on the lake, and just a few planes overhead.

Slept in, made breakfast, and waited for the showers to lighten up before packing out. The lake was fogged in pretty badly. Packed up and picked some berries on the hike out, they were so ripe and delicious - made the trip entirely worth it.

A friend and I hiked Rachel Lake Saturday, August 20. We didn't hit any other lakes or peaks, just took the trail from Rachel trailhead to Rachel and back.  Started just before 10am--lot was full but parking was available on the side of the road just outside the lot.  Bathroom was clean and stocked.  Road is dusty but almost entirely un-potholed, which was nice.

In general, this hike is lovely.  It's mostly flat for the first three miles-ish, and has several little waterfalls along the way.  There is a good amount of shade and also some open meadows that provide wildflowers and views of the nearby peaks (primarily Hibox).

A couple things surprised me, though.  First was that the trail was wetter in spots that I'd think for this time of year.  There were a couple little creek crossings which were no big deal (worst case is you get your feet wet, nothing was terribly deep or fast water), but I was just surprised that there were little mud puddles and whatnot this far into August.  Second surprise was how steep the end felt.  I'm a frequent and enthusiastic hiker of trails that pull about 1000/ft gain, and I still felt the burn here.  The last push is where all the gain is, and it's a bit scrambly from time to time (barely a scramble, though, Class 2 max) so requires use of other muscles.  Overall, the trail is still suitable for most hikers as long as you're in decent fitness, but just something to keep in mind.  I was glad I hadn't brought my dog since he probably wouldn't have loved the rocks--though many other dogs were there and seemed to be doing just fine.

Also worth noting, as others have, is the route finding challenges.  Even this time of year when the trail is busy and everything is melted, there are still opportunities to get off-route and find yourself having to backtrack.  I was deliberate about following Gaia when I wasn't sure which way to go, and was glad I did--we ran into a group that had passed us earlier then had to pass us again because they had gone the wrong way and ended up behind us.

The lake itself is beautiful. Lots of places to sit and eat.  I heard there were goats around but didn't see any myself.  Note that there's a toilet on the map near the lake, but it's purely a pit with a seat--no shelter/privacy.

We moved pretty slow on the way up and broke for lunch at the lake, and still were on the road again in under 6 hours.  Between shorter breaks and lunch, my Strava reported actual moving time as more like 4 hours.  Gain was 2,037 ft and distance was 7.66 miles.