Spectacle Lake, Pete Lake — Tuesday, Sep. 12, 2023

My wife and I did a three-night backpack trip with one night at Pete Lake on the way in, and two nights at Spectacle Lake. The hike to Pete Lake is an easy 4 miles in forest without much elevation gain. When you first get to the lake, there is a large clear area under tall trees that has room for maybe six or seven campsites with easy access to the lake. We lucked out and had the whole place to ourselves. Pete Lake is a pretty lake with a nice view of Lemah Mountain and Chikaman Peak to the west. There were only two other parties camped at the lake at sites further west. No bugs. Three deer kept us company at our campsite. There are two pit toilets, one at each end of the lake. 

We spent seven and a half hours the next day on the hike up to Spectacle Lake. The crossing of Lemah Creek was easy. The water didn't come up any higher than mid-calf if you paid attention to where you stepped. The switchbacks on the PCT going up to Spectacle Lake are a workout. The first half of them goes through a burn area so you climb in direct sun exposure. Good to do it in the morning. The second half after the waterfall and bridge is in forest. The waterfall is a great place to take a break.

The trail is well signed all the way from Pete Lake to the turnoff to Spectacle Lake. The side trail that drops down to the lake is steep and surprisingly rough. It crosses a couple rock domes where it isn't obvious where the trail goes but it can be figured out. We camped on the peninsula where there are quite a few good sites. The peninsula is riddled with many social trails but it's still a beautiful place with a great view of the lake and the surrounding peaks. The water was chilly but very swimmable. Wednesday night, there was only one other couple camping at the lake, but Thursday afternoon, seven or eight other camping parties arrived and privacy went away. Fortunately, all of them were good, considerate neighbors. As soon as it got dark, everyone crashed for the night and nobody was up making noise and everyone was quiet when they got up in the morning. Most of them were through hiking the full PCT or section J of the PCT from Stevens Pass to Snoqualmie Pass.

If there is a pit toilet at Spectacle Lake, we couldn't find it. No signs for one anywhere. We did find three decommissioned pit toilets around the base of the peninsula including the "precarious" one in the WTA trail description, but no useable ones. If someone found one there, please comment on its location. As popular as this lake is, it should absolutely have one if not two of them. 

We spent Wednesday dayhiking up the rest of the switchbacks on the PCT below Three Queens Mountain and over Chikamin Ridge. There are fantastic views from the ridge to the east and north that include Mt. Stuart, the Citadel, Mt. Daniel, Mt. Hinman, Summit Chief, Chimney Rock, Lemah Mountain, Chikamin Peak, and Mount Jerry Garcia. After crossing over the ridge, there are great views of Hibox and Alta mountains. 

We hiked from Spectacle Lake to the Pete Lake trailhead on Friday our last day which took us seven hours. We were surprised that there were no campers at Pete Lake when we passed by there. The trails were uncrowded all four days. It is hunting season and we met a deer hunting party with rifles and two bow hunting parties along the way. Otherwise, it was mostly through hikers.