Decided to take my 12 year old for a hike since the weather was pretty decent.
We started late at around 11:30 AM and there were maybe around 12 cars there. We saw quite a few hikers on the trail, maybe like 9 different group of hikers but it never felt crowded on the trail.
The trail was "drier" than expected. Yes. It's wet with some stream and falls crossings, but it wasn't too muddy. I was also prepared with spikes and gaiters but honestly a pair of waterproof hiking boots work just fine with today's condition.
Yes, there were snow patches at around elevation 2,000ft (after we logged around 3.5 mi), but it was pretty slushy in the afternoon so I didn't feel the need to put on my spikes. It was fine without them too when we hiked down.
The lake was stunning and looked partially frozen. We went up to lunch rock and had a snack and hiked down quickly.
We also stopped by the Falls on our way down as I wanted to see the 'finished' rock staircase. My first work party with the WTA was helping to build the rock staircase this past summer and it looked pretty neat.
It took us around 4 hours and 15 mins to hike both Lake and Falls with a snack break at the lake.
I think this trip report will still be applicable until this weekend as long as there is no new snow accumulation on Friday 12/22.
Happy Winter Solstice!
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