Lena Lake — Saturday, Nov. 4, 2023

Lower Lena Lake is absolutely beautiful. However, do be aware that roughly 40% of the trail is covered in an inch to 5 inches of stream water. There is a specific section at roughly 1850 feet elevation, right before you reach the lake campground, where there is a pretty difficult stream crossing on the trail roughly 15 feet wide, which had depths exceeding a foot in a couple places. See the red circle on my GPS data attached to this report for the exact location. My girlfriend, dog, and I managed to ford the stream, with my girlfriend and I staying mostly dry by wearing knee high gaiters, rain pants, and waterproof boots. Trekking poles were a must for that particular section, in my opinion. I would personally NOT attempt to cross that section again without good knee high gaiters and waterproof boots at a minimum. Water levels for most streams were pretty high. No fish caught at the lake. We did see what we believe were two Columbian black-tailed deer, however. Overall an awesome hike that provided more challenges than anticipated - glad we came prepared "just in case"!