Tank Lakes, East Fork Foss - Necklace Valley — Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022

Day 1: Necklace Valley TH -> Jade Lake 7.4mi:

With some minor washboarding and shallow potholes, this gravel road was a dream for my sedan. Trailhead outhouse was stocked with toilet paper, plus someone put air fresheners inside, so all-in-all quite pleasant.

Trail starts off relatively flat, with the occasional bug. After the trail draws closes to the river ~3mi in, the bugs improved a bit, while the trail grew increasingly brushy. At 4.5mi, the trail crosses the river on a log bridge, then winds aggressively up through alternating talus, forest, and brush. Trekking poles were a nice bonus but not absolutely necessary for this section. Also noted several straightforward blowdowns to navigate. All water crossings were bridged or simple to rock-hop. Took almost 6hrs to reach Jade Lake including breaks/lunch.

Bugs descended en masse starting at Jade Lake and higher elevations. My blood generated so many free meals for mosquitoes, I believe I deserve a humanitarian award. Bug-spray seemed to grant a temporary reprieve, at best, and still I managed to get breakthrough bug-bites.

Camping situation at Jade Lake: PSA no campfires allowed after crossing the river above ~2200ft elevation. At Jade Lake, 1-2 sites at the outlet (cross the logjam), then 3 sites near the inlet (2 of these being shoreline prime real estate). If all these sites are taken, keep on going, there is a 4th site after the inlet on a mini plateau, and then many more between Jade and Emerald Lake. It seems like most people are taking the first available spots at Jade Lake, but spotted many open sites after Jade. Sites at Emerald Lake were divided between those overlooking the lake from above (right off the main trail), or taking a side trail down to the shoreline. There is also a very buggy public use log shelter with wooden slats right before Emerald Lake. Would have searched for Opal Lake's campsites, but the bugs cut my explorations short.

Day 2: day-hiked from Jade Lake to Tank Lakes ~2.1mi oneway

Spoiler alert, bugs did not improve while gaining elevation. Trail was straightforward to follow for the most part, with the occasional cairn, but lost track of the cairns in the endless talus field right below Tank Lakes, so some GPS assistance was beneficial. Trekking poles were also helpful in this section, as the cairns at times followed a ridge edge along a crumbly steep loose gravel path. Crossed two non-dangerous flat snowfields right before Tank Lakes, but otherwise no snow on the trail.

Camping situation at Tank Lakes: plenty of sites, but mostly exposed due to lack of trees, and so very buggy. Wandered around the lakes for a bit, but sadly could not sit still and enjoy the scenery, as any lack of motion seemed to be a beacon for mosquitoes. Ended up exploring some of the other lakes including Al Lake (but no lake was spared by bugs), and the bottom of the talus field below La Bohn Lakes. Hid in my tent to nurse my bugbites. Other than the bugs, it was a beautiful day to be outside.

Day 3: Jade Lake -> Necklace Valley TH:

Woke up at the crack of dawn, since I couldn't wait to escape the bugs. The mosquitoes were marginally less bothersome while packing up our gear, but still managed to get some bites. Hightailed it out of there, took ~4.5hrs to reach the car.