The Enchantments — Saturday, Jul. 11, 2009

Central Cascades > Leavenworth Area

We began this hike from the Lake Stuart Trailhead to Colchuck Lake, then up Aasgard Pass and through the Upper and Lower Enchantments down past Snow Lakes and Nada Lake, and ending at the Snow Lakes Trailhead. We went over to Leavenworth Friday evening and stayed at a hotel there. The next morning, we left our Jeep at the Snow Lakes TH and were shuttled to the Lake Stuart TH. Eileen, a beautiful spirited lady of 81 years, runs this service. At $40, it’s cheaper than taking two vehicles over from Seattle and paying extra FS parking fees. Her contact number is (509)548-7433 She was waiting for us at the pr-arranged time of 5:20 am. She dropped us off at the Lake Stuart TH and we were on the trail by 5:58am. For those of you who are interested in (or crazy enough to try) tackling this hike in one day, maybe knowing when we reached certain landmarks will be helpful in planning your journey: We reached the first footbridge at 6:34am and the Colchuck Lake turnoff at 6:57am (about one hour from the TH). The trail up to Colchuck is a wee bit rooty and rocky but an easy enough grade (especially considering what lied ahead). We reached the “no campfires above 5,000 feet” sign at 7:27am, the first box toilet at 7:59am, and Colchuck Lake itself at 8:05am. The reflection on the lake is a sight to be seen in the morning. And NO bugs. Blessed were we. Just over two hours to get to this point. The trail proceeds along the right side of the lake, and toward the far side, be prepared to climb around and over boulders (watch for the cairns or little rock piles and head straight for them) and then hike around to the left to reach the bottom of Aasgard Pass. It took about 35 minutes to get around the lake. After a very short break to gape at the climb ahead, we started up the Pass. Very important: keep a close watch for the cairns. We looked for them constantly and still went off trail in a couple of areas. The hike – or as a recent fellow hiker more aptly wrote, scramble -- to the top is less than one mile with over 2,000 foot elevation gain and it took us 1 hour and 40 minutes to reach the top of the pass (about 10:25am). This was definitely the hardest part of the entire day and not for the faint of heart. The feeling of success was in our hearts when we reached the top, but then we realized we still had 12 miles to cover. We walked around marveling at the stark landscape. It’s breathtaking and made the climb up the Pass worthwhile. We ate a snack at Tranquil Lake and were visited by four mountain goats along with their kids. They walked right by us. Simply amazing. There was also a marmot playing on the ice and snow on the lake. Needless to say, we had to force ourselves to leave and were on our way at 10:24am. (If you haven’t already figured it out, my camera has a timer on it.) We took our time ambling through this area of beauty passing small lakes, tarns, and tall peaks along the way. We encountered no one, and the area looks like it may have looked for thousands of years. I cannot describe the feeling up here. We wished we had the luxury of camping for at least a couple of nights but no such luck. The landscape changes as the trail descends, and we encountered more green as we went along. We passed yet more mountain goats and reached Inspiration Lake just before noon. The camera didn’t do the reflections of granite, snow, and trees on the lake justice. We reach Perfection Lake at 12:20pm, walked along the left side of the lake, and encountered more goats hanging out on the rocks, as goats do I suppose. We arrived at Sprite Lake at the end of Perfection Lake at 12:40pm. This is a gorgeous little lake with two waterfalls pouring into it. Next was Leprechaun Lake; I felt a bit o’ kinship to this lake for some reason. I was reminded of a poem I learned when I was a lad back in Ireland. Up the airy mountain, Down the rushy glen, We daren’t go a-hunting For fear of little men; Wee folk, good folk, Trooping all together; Green jacket, red cap, And white owl’s feather! I digress. We then headed towards Lake Viviane. Somewhere along here was the half way mark of our trip. We reached Lake Viviane at 1:11pm, where there were yet more spectacular views. And they were even better as we walked towards the end of the lake. Well I should say ‘climbed’ down. It’s necessary to climb down a granite slab where rebar has been placed in the rock and you must take extra care. One slip could ruin your day on the mountain. Viviane has some great reflections at the end too. This was the last lake in the Lower Enchantments before heading to the Snow Lakes, which can be seen from above. We reached this overlook at around 1:15pm and made our way over rocks and through forest. We got to Upper Snow Lake at 1:16pm or about 1hour and 13 minutes after seeing it from the overlook. It took us about 34 minutes to travel around the right side of the lake and reach the dam that separates Upper Snow Lake from Lower Snow Lake. There was water pouring over the dam and our feet were wet by the time we reached the other side. We took another short break but there was still 6.5 miles to go so we headed off at 3:18pm greatly refreshed from the wee rest and snacks. Down the trail we’re off like the goats we spied above. Nada Lake appeared below us at 3:27pm and we actually arrived at the lake at 3:42pm. This was the last lake of the day. About two miles from the end of our journey, we saw a wall of rock on our left where reportedly rock climbers can be seen but we didn’t see anyone this day. Finally, we crossed the bridge over Icicle Creek at 6:10pm and up a final 50 feet in elevation to the Snow Lakes TH at 6:12pm. That was the longest part of the trip really, the 2 hours and 30 minutes from Nada Lake to here. So today we walked by spectacular lakes, over all types of terrain, with views of high peaks, deep valleys, flora and fauna. This 18 mile trek took us 12 hours and 14 minutes from trailhead to trailhead including time for short breaks, nearly 400 pictures, and even getting a little lost. This hike can be done in one day but it would be preferable to have several days to spend time hanging out in the Enchantments. Happy trails.