Rachel Lake — Thursday, Sep. 12, 2024

A forecast for a mostly cloudy morning with increasing sun in the afternoon makes for a great hiking opportunity and had me looking forward to a day hike to Alta Mountain and Lila Lake, especially with the great views in that area. Alas, it was not to be as drizzle started about an hour into the hike and didn’t let up. More problematic were the low hanging clouds that had settled in just above Rachel Lake, obscuring the views, especially at higher elevations. Still, a day hike to Rachel Lake made for a respectable backup plan.

Road: The 3-mile forest road is in good condition, with only a few potholes but some sections of washboarding. The rather spacious parking area is mostly paved and has room for 30-40 cars. Three cars were in the parking lot at 8 a.m., and 8 cars at 1 p.m. The two pit toilets were clean, but were out of TP (bring your own supply).

Trail: The first 2.7 miles of trail are in very good condition. A few sections of the trail are brushy, which means getting wet from the morning dew if you are the first on the trail (as I was), and there are a few small streams to cross by stepping on rocks or balancing on logs, but nothing difficult. There were also several blowdowns to navigate, only one of which was a challenge, unless you are a dog.

But the trail becomes much more difficult when the one mile climb to Rachel Lake begins. Steep, rooty, rocky, slippery (especially when wet), and difficult to follow are all apt descriptors. GPS was helpful keeping me on the correct trail, as was simply following the most rooty and rocky path.

I arrived at Rachel Lake around 10 a.m.. With low clouds and a constant drizzle, I decided to explore the boot paths along the eastern shore of the lake while I waited for the clouds and rain to lift. There were a lot of ripe blueberries along many of these boot paths. After about an hour and with no significant improvement in the weather, there didn’t seem much point in hiking to higher elevations, so I “called it” and returned to the trailhead. I sure hope the rain stopped and clouds lifted for the few overnight hikers that came after me.

GPS recorded 9.3 miles with 2300 feet elevation gain.