Made it to the Barclay lake parking lot at 4:30, out by 4:45. Quick 40 minute walk to Barclay and we decided it would be best to keep on going up to Eagle lake. We were new to the area and unaware of the unmarked terrain, but happily accepted the challenge. Their is flagging for the first portion of the way up, but it soon disappears after the first rock quarry. After arriving on the top of the second rock scramble we hit snow up until the edge of eagle lake. The snow is still hard enough to maneuver, however we did fall through a few times (1-2 ft). Eagle lake is completely snowed in, but beautiful. As we assessed the area we noticed a bear tree (claw marks). The average range of these bears is 5 sq. miles so it is best you cook far away from your campsite and don't leave food out. We stopped in at the cabin and made friends with the adorable deer mouse inside (he's nice don't worry).
First thing in the morning we headed back and slowly descended down the mountain with beautiful views of the mountains in front of us. Going down was much harder and more painful on the knees than up, most likely because of the 40 lb. backpacks we had on. Regardless its was fun and a beautiful time of year to be up in the mountains.
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