This report is for Cora Lake hiking from Big Creek Trailhead (NE of the lake). I wanted to take my aging dog on a easy hike and this fit the bill. It was a long drive from home so we did it as an overnight to make it worth the drive.
On the drive there from Yakima, I wasn't paying close attention to the GPS and it routed me off NF-52 onto NF-47 which ended up being closed so I had to back track. NF-52 is paved but there were some gravel sections that were a bit rough, especially hitting them at speed, so take it easy. NF-84 is a typical dirt/rocky forest road with lots of pot holes. I was in a RAV-4 and it was ok going slow but lower clearance might have trouble. NF-8420 was rockier but not as many potholes.
The first pullout was full of cars when we arrived at 4pm on Saturday, but we were able to park at the next one just past the trail. We encountered 3-4 small groups of day hikers coming down as we headed up. Creek crossings were unremarkable.
At the lake, there was a larger group camped right where the trail pops out. We explored down the west side of the lake until we found a reasonably flat spot to camp. Before setting up, I took a quick dip in the lake (69°F). There were tons of tadpoles, especially at the end of the lake where the shallows are protected by some fallen logs.
After setting up camp and having dinner, we relaxed for awhile before wandering as far down the west side of the lake as we could go. There were two other groups camped along this side, the furthest one out had some young kids with them.
Overnight, the group at the end of the lake was loud with their music and conversation. I was glad to find my earplugs! We got up earlish and were heading back to the car by 8:30.
Bugs: much better than at Dewey Lake last weekend! Some flies and gnats but I didn't notice any mosquitoes and did not come home with any bites
Berries: ripe blueberries and huckleberries on the trail and at the lake.
Specs:
- ~1.5mi roundtrip to the lake
- ~1 mi roundtrip down the west side of the lake
- ~50 minutes round trip to the lake
- ~500ft roundtrip to the lake
Comments