Lake Dorothy - Lake Bear - Lake Deer — Wednesday, May. 11, 2016

Central Cascades > Stevens Pass - West

Sections of the Miller River Road are washed out, with deep ruts that will make you think twice before proceeding. I was moderately concerned, but my Subaru Outback passed. If you have a low clearance vehicle I would not recommend it. On the way to Dorothy Lake there are some downed tress, but they are easy to navigate around. However, the blowdowns get worse as you head to the south side of the lake. I did not make it to Bear Lake, mostly because I got a late start to this hike and needed to get back to Seattle for dinner. At the south end of the lake there were increasingly messy blowdowns with no easy way around them. Besides a few teenagers that were leaving the lake just as I arrived, there was not another human being around on this BEAUTIFUL, WARM weekday hike. I took my time eating lunch and kickin' around at the lake, which I had ENTIRELY to myself. On the south end of the lake there is a big boulder field that is fun to climb around on and makes the perfect picnic spot, looking out over the dazzling lake. There were also wildflowers and huckleberry blooming! Also, the rushing cascading Miller River is a main attraction in its own right. This is a beautiful trail with a lush old growth forest and I can't wait to get back and explore it further, if those blowdowns get cleared!