Steep hike to Merritt Lake. I pushed the car when we got stuck.
What an adventure! Today Karen and I hiked to Merritt Lake, gaining 2,100' in elevation over 3.5 miles one-way. We had the trail and lake to ourselves. Nobody else. Sweet.
"I can handle this steep hike today," I thought this morning. "Last year, I did it with pneumonia." The hike is rated difficult.
The washed-out gravel road was terrible for Karen's small Honda. We filled two deep potholes with sticks and flat rocks. Then Karen got stuck on a steep uphill slant. I pushed the car and off we went! We made it to the trailhead.
We hiked up a steep ridge through old-growth trees. Karen and I hugged the enormous trunk of a majestic pine.
At Merritt Lake, trout were jumping clear out of the lake after a new mayfly hatch. Karen went for a swim. Not me; I'd get hypothermia.
"The water beneath the surface is much colder," Karen said, quickly getting out.
"I can't believe we hiked up this!" I said on the extremely steep descent. Suddenly my right foot slipped off the trail. I landed on my butt with my left knee folded beneath me. Thankfully, I was not hurt.
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Lovely area. Is there a road up it?
Petter
Level 9
Aug 28, 2019
1
The gravel road is to the trailhead only.
To get to Merritt Lake, you must hike the brutally steep trail.
@LiterateHiker I'm not going then!
Lakes you can drive to are crowded and ruined by litter, human feces and pollution.
I love hiking to high alpine lakes.
@LiterateHiker What's that weird, white stuff on some of the hills?
Snow.
Beautiful country to be alone in.
Do you ever camp overnight?
ShadowAmicus
Level 8
Aug 27, 2019
2
Thank you. Yes, I love backpacking. The last time was in 2015 to Lake Caroline and Windy Pass.
I never hike alone.
Love the photo of the trout!
Glad you suffered nothing worse than a bruise to your dignity.
Haemish1
Level 8
Aug 27, 2019
3
It's a Dolly Varden trout, a fisherman buddy told me. Merritt Lake is stocked.
@LiterateHiker A sort of fish-farm is it? You should say that to whoever does the stocking just to see them getting annoyed!
Fish farms are on rivers or major creeks. They need running water.
Helicopters dump young fish into selected alpine lakes each Spring.
I don't know who pays for it. WA State Dept. of Natural Resources or the Fish & Wildlife Dept. are my best guess.
Fishing severely bores me.
@LiterateHiker They are probably useful in keeping down the populations of "nasties", such as mosquitos and midges.
I have never seen the point of spending hours flicking a fake insect over a body of water in the hope of catching a fish. When I was hungry, I would catch a grasshopper, stick it on a hook, drop in still wriggling into the water and a minute later I was bashing a trout over the head, ready for the hot pan beside me.
I certainly didn't believe in "bagging" the biggest haul I could and then bragging about it. I caught and ate what I and my companions needed. No more!
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