We were aiming for a hike on Labor Day weekend that wouldn't be crowded and we found it! After the trailhead, we didn't see a single person! This trail starts across the road from High Rock Lookout. It starts out on an overgrown, unused road then heads downhill on a narrow track for quite a ways. The rest of the way is basically uphill until the last half mile which is gentle switchbacks downhill to the lake. We all had trekking poles which were extremely helpful. At the split you meet a road where you can turn left for Allen Mtn. Or turn right on another narrow trail for the lake. There is a small sign to mark the trail here, but no name on it. I printed off a map of the area from the Forest Service ahead of time.
The lake was quiet, peaceful and mostly bug free! The kids had fun climbing on the logs. They caught a few tiny frogs to look at too. I tried to fish, but I didn't have time to wander. I saw a few small brookies, but they didn't want what I had.
The berries along the second half of the trail were abundant and ripe. We saw salmon berries, a few black raspberries, a few thimbleberries, huckleberries maybe?, and blueberries. This was a great morale booster for the kids.
Speaking of the kids... they did great! I was worried about the sections that were steeping had dropoffs along the side, but they listened to directions and took it slow.
Overall, I think I'd prefer this if we were going to stay overnight. There was one large area for a campsite. It was a long hike for one day.
5.6 miles and 5 1/2 hours
Comments