Wallowas trip

[drm]

I did a 4 day backpack in the Wallowas July 17-20. My three camps were at Douglas Lake in the Lakes Basin, along the West Fork Wallowa River where the Ice Lake trail crosses it, and at Ice Lake. I had planned to camp night 1 at Glacier Lake but the weather was not so good so I thought it better to turn right at Six Mile Meadow and head up into the basin instead: a bit lower and more sheltered.

There was a little snow in the upper part of the Lakes Basin and I expect the trail up to Glacier Pass from Moccasin Lake probably had a lot of snow. But there was no snow getting up to Ice Lake and only a few tiny patches on the route up the Matterhorn.

Bugs were moderately bad at Douglas Lake - they chased me into my tent in the early evening. But they were gone by sunset. There were almost no bugs at Ice Lake, even in the calm of the morning. Six Mile Meadow was very buggy.

Flowers were peaking at Ice Lake, though lupine wasn't out yet, so maybe it will continue a long time.

I got a bit of rain day 1 and it was mostly cloudy that day. Other days started clear and sunny and then thunderclouds built up. They never rained where I was but made it chilly and breezy a lot of the time. 11am was often the warmest time of day - before those clouds formed.

You can see my full trip report at http://www.deanmyerson.org/wallowa-2016-part1 but here are a few pics

Six Mile Meadow on the West Fork Wallowa River


Horseshoe Lake


First view of Ice Lake


Northeast wall of the Matterhorn


Ice Lake reflection in the morning


Ice Lake bouquet

[retired jerry]

snow melting off nicely

[texasbb]

Thanks for the report, Dean. You got several really good shots of Ice Lake there. I still haven't made it to Ice, but someday. It's in a bad place for loops, especially loops I haven't already hiked.

[derwoodynck]

Thanks for the report, hoping to head up there soon.

[drm]

It's in a bad place for loops, especially loops I haven't already hiked.

That's probably why I hadn't made it up there till now. The area has a number of lake trails like that: it's an out and back from a longer trail. If you're into XC, I talked to a guy who went south from Ice Lake to the Lakes Basin over the ridge and via what he said was Razz Lake. He said it was tough at a few spots.

But I had heard enough about Ice Lake that I just had to force it.

[woodswalker]

Thanks, I'm heading out to those trails soonish.
Woodswalker

[kelkev]

Good stuff, Dean. Ice Lake has to be one of my all time favorites spots for "wow" when you first see it. Sunrise there is pretty awesome as well.

Kevin

[Bosterson]

If you're into XC, I talked to a guy who went south from Ice Lake to the Lakes Basin over the ridge and via what he said was Razz Lake. He said it was tough at a few spots.

I went to Razz in 2012, and it's definitely a bit more adventurous than even the route up to the Matterhorn and might be a little unwieldy with a full pack unless you're into the alpine scrambling thing.

Ice Lake is definitely worth the trip, though, even if it's not part of a loop! And if you really needed a loop and didn't mind the detour, you could go from Ice up over Matterhorn and Sacajawea and exit down into the Hurricane Creek drainage (all on "trail," I think), and then loop back around into the Lakes Basin. Though the Sacajawea route would still require a bit of alpine scrambling...

[miah66]

I'm kind of afraid to tackle a long trip up to Ice lake because if someone is already camped there, you're probably screwed, right?

[drm]

I'm kind of afraid to tackle a long trip up to Ice lake because if someone is already camped there, you're probably screwed, right?

I think that there are at least two dozen separate campsites. Many are concentrated on that peninsula but there are a few across the lake and off to the left on that far lobe. You could also find some on top of the knoll on the east side of the lake if it's not windy. I'd certainly rather not go there on a Saturday night if possible, but it's unlikely you will just get shut out. If you can make do with one tent on a small flat spot, there is lots of space to improvise, also on the far side of the peninsula. At that altitude there is a lot of flat ground with no growth that is not necessarily an established site. Big groups are another story.