Arrived at the trailhead at 7:15. There was a bit of silly parking despite plenty of room at that time but it wasn't awful. 

We started early to avoid the crowds but the crowds started early too. 😄 The only time it felt really crowded was at the lake. The noise from all the chatter was loud so we made our way pretty far away from the beach area. You can make a loop around the lake and some people were doing so. 

We saw two trees that had the lime green, yellow hues. Most trees looked dark yellow, orange. We were probably a little past peak. In the photos they still look pretty bright. 

The trail goes up and up. The last quarter mile or so to the lake is very rocky, sometimes requiring two hands to get through the boulders. The trail can be hard to follow through the boulder fields and we lost it several times. It seems there are many routes to get back onto the trail. You can never go too far wrong.

Plenty of other reports for this trail, so real quick:  road and trail in great condition, weather perfect, lots of folks enjoying the larch, which did not disappoint.  A great day.

So, three quick complaints.  1) Why won't the NFS make more parking?  The lot holds about 30 cars, and I know there were 300+ on this day (1.5 miles of clogged road).  2) Drivers need to be more respectful.  I realize parking a long ways from the trailhead is a bummer, but please do not park in places that cause a single passable lane.  This is a dead end road.  3) While I appreciate WTA and am a longtime supporting member, perhaps promoting an already overly crowded trail is not the best decision.

First off, thank you to the WTA volunteers posted at the trailhead in the morning answering questions and making sure hikers properly filled out their wilderness permits!

Let’s start with the not so great: Not surprising for one of the most popular larch season hikes in the state on a bluebird October Saturday, Lake Ingalls had probably the most hikers on a single trail I’ve ever seen. We arrived at 7:45 and parked 0.4 miles from the trailhead. Thankfully the Forest Service recently regraded the 10 mile gravel road to make reaching the trailhead a breeze. It was about a 25 minute wait for the single trailhead bathroom. When we left in the afternoon, cars were parked more than 1.5 miles down, in many areas on both sides of the road.

All that aside, braving the hundreds of other hikers was all worth it after cresting Ingalls Pass at mile 3.5 (with plenty of also lovely red and yellow foliage under the evergreens on the way up). The larches are pretty much at peak and the basin was teeming with them. After cresting the pass the trail descends through a short rocky section to a mostly flat trail through meadows and a bog with a terrific view of Mt. Stuart and a backdrop of hundreds of larches in every direction.

Following the meadow section the trail turns rocky once more, with the last push to the lake requiring a short bit of scrambling up steep terrain. The larches stop at the meadow, but in the summer I’m sure the lake is undoubtably the highlight.

10/12/24 - Arrived at the TH at 7:40 AM on a Saturday and the parking lot was completely full. Cars were parked 1 mile down the road. Due to this, the road became a one lane road. The last 10 mile drive to get to the TH is on a dirt road. Any vehicle can make the drive. It did get very dusty on the way out so make sure to drive carefully. One toilet is available at the TH. Bring extra TP just in case.

The incline is for the most part gradual until your get to the lovely views of the larches. For the most part people stop here and hike back down. I continued hiking to the lake which required some rock scrambling. It can be easy to go off trail when on the rocks so make sure to look for the cairns. This is a long hike so make sure to carry plenty of water and snacks. The trail is mainly exposed so on a sunny day, it can feel warm. I didn’t use it but there was a sign of a toilet on the trail.

The lake was beautiful! It’s a bit of a rock climb to reach it but it was the perfect place to enjoy a break. Saw one person jump into the cold water. It was crowded that day but the lake is ample that people weren’t sitting right next to each other. Overall it was a beautiful but exhausting hike. Parking was awful. Crowded during larch madness. Views were great!