Devil's Lake — Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2005

Central Cascades

A good friend and I just visited Devil's lake for the first time this summer. I am writing to give some words of wisdom to any would-be hikers to this ""lake"". Although the area is beautiful once you get off the logging road, it is so overgrown with brush that you better bring long sleaves and gloves! After three hours of slow moving bush whacking we found the lake. It was a little dissapointing to see a 5 foot deep brown puddle no more than a stones throw across. Even though we went at the end of summer, it's hard to believe that this lake could get much deeper with run-off. Just over the low point of the ridge to the NW of the lake there is another lake called Helena Lake. This looked much more enticing but about 2 more hours of steep hills and thick bush helped us decide to try it another day. With all this put aside, this lake is beautifully nestled in a remote, almost human free spot that is worth the work.