Apple Maps refused to give me directions to Rachel Lake Trailhead because of 'road conditions'. The Chainsaw Fairy had just been, and what a busy entity they had been. The road is nice and open, and my little Toyota Corolla had no trouble. I've never seen that trailhead empty before, but we were the first there, even though late starters (9am). We had Rachel Lake and Rampart Ridge and Lakes to ourselves all day. We met two guys coming up to Rachel at about 5pm but that was all.
First snow patches are early on the trail. These get big and deep by the time the steep part starts. We put traction aids on before reaching Rachel Lake - me with snow crampons and my 11yo daughter with microspikes. Lots of snow bridges collapsing. On the way down I broke a lot of them because they were unsafe. All snow above the lake except for the south-facing rocks which were a quicker alternative to the snow-covered trail. Used the Alltrails map - pretty good although the trail is hard to find under the snow.
Forget about keeping your feet dry. You end up crossing so many strands of the snowmelt-supercharged Box Canyon Creek that you're going to get soaked no matter how hard you try and preserve the sanctity of your socks.
Rachel Lake is about half thawed. Rampart Lakes are a mixed bag - some of the potholes on the eastern side are almost ice-free, the south-western cluster are still pretty icy. The trail is all snow.
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