I hiked the Lake 22 trail and it was such a rewarding experience! The trail is well maintained, though the wet rocks can make certain parts a bit tricky. Along the way, waterfalls and streams are scattered throughout, making the climb absolutely beautiful. At the top, the lake was breathtaking, the perfect spot to relax and even take a refreshing dip on a warm summer day!

After volunteering with Conservation NW at the Verlot Ranger Station, a hike to Lake 22 was good exercise before a long drive home. I well knew this was a very popular trail off the Mountain Loop Highway and it certainly is. Thanks to the recommendation of the Verlot rangers, I found parking at the Hemple Creek Picnic Area. The forest includes lovely mature and old growth trees. The trail has numerous sections of exposed roots which I expect is one reason for the midweek trail maintenance closure. The lake and surrounding basin is beautiful. What isn’t pleasant, are other hikers playing music, discarding food scraps and leaving clumps of TP under bushes and rocks. As Leave No Trace dictates, Pack Out What You Pack In. This includes orange peels and apple cores. Be Considerate of Other Visitors means using your ear pods instead of speakers. Finally, especially we women, need to pack out our TP! A ziploc bag with a pinch of powdered bleach works fine
or better yet, use a Kula Cloth. It takes ALL OF US to protect these special outdoor
spaces.

I have hiked lake 22 a couple of times before, but never while it was raining. It is an unusual couple of days of August that we just had - slightly more than 3 inches of rain has fallen due to an atmospheric river weather event just the day before. Given my familiarity with the trail, I decided to give it a go after checking that the rain was about to stop finally. 

I arrived at the trail around 8 in the morning and found a spot easily. With the weather, I was expecting this, otherwise I would've started sooner. Saw some folks were setting up a canopy over the bench near the trail entrance and started my hike around 8.20. It was mostly drizzling on my way up but occasionally the rain was pounding hard. My first time a hike during the typical PNW weather we find most of the year (except the water was nicely warm). 

It was a beautiful hike. Yes, most of the ladder steps were muddy mess and the creek crossings were moving a lot of water like a small mountain river and some part of the granite were quite slippery. The waterfall was crazy and explosive. But as I reached the bridge over the lake, I was awed to see many small streams nestled across the mountain like veins. Truly, a jaw dropping view. I have never seen lake 22 this beautiful.

As the rain continued to fall, I had my usual break with an energy bad and a trail mix. During my stay, there were only me, a party of two girls and a family of 4. Generally, this trail is super busy - so that was another pleasant thing. About two/thirds of my way back, finally the rain stopped and I started to see a steady stream of folks going up. I returned back by 11.40 and was out by noon.

I will come back during rain again! 

Lots of happy hikers despite 3 inches of rain yesterday, steady drizzle today, and the prospect of hiking a trail that, in spots, resembled a creek. People in the Pacific Northwest are a resilient bunch and donned emergency ponchos, grabbed umbrellas or simply rocked the wet look and kept moving to stay warm. 

For those unprepared for the weather, including many out of state/country visitors, we suggested Big Four Ice Caves nearby and hope they return to hike Lake 22 another day. Our summer weather will be back :). 

Happy trails! 

We got there at 1230 and the lot was full, we parked a few yards down the road at the Hempie Creek Picinic area, with spacious parking spots.  We took in the beautiful Stillaguamish river first, and then walked back to the trailhead. The trail was crowded, but people were courteous.   The trail crews are making good progress with trail repair.  Afore mentioned graffiti is removed, thank you.  Rocky trail in many areas, but hiking poles helped navigate that on the downhill.  We saw a couple of people struggling in flip-flops....Not a good idea at all for this rocky trail.  A beautiful afternoon hike!