As well as the Thimbleberry:
The Baldhip Roses are blooming with more on the way
I think this is Rocky Mountain Maple?
Moving further east a crown fit for any angry king appeared above. Wyeth Crown with dark clouds looming about:
Back under the tree tops a fellow woods walker was found fleeing the oppressive king!
The moss covered stream side of Gorton Creek is always a welcome sight:
The gate to Wyeth is open and their were folks camping at Herman Creek too. After a little stop near the creek I hopped onto the Wyeth Trail for the next 4 miles up to Green Point Ridge. The Harpan Creek ford was a rock hop and prettier than usual with a little rain falling. The Wyeth Trail gains almost 4,000 feet as it climbs and switchbacks up the mountain side just east of Harphan Creek:
I hit some slushy snow just before the junction with the Green Point Ridge Trail around 3,900 feet. The trail from there had continuous coverage of the melty garbage snow all the way to North Lake. The clouds circled around Mt Defiance as I made my way towards the lake:
I found a nice little spot free of snow just above the lake shore to rest my pack and feet for a bit while the clouds continued to move in:
North Lake and Bear Lake both drain old glacial cirques just west of Mt Defiance and serve as the headwaters for Lindsey Creek:
A quick trip over to the Defiance Trail where I ran into a few awesome guys who were camped out at Bear Lake for the weekend:
I had never been to Bear Lake before and it was even prettier than I imagined it would be:
The crystal clear waters suddenly became inviting as the sun forced its way through the clouds but it was still a little cold for that summer dip:
To get over to the Herman Creek Trail I hiked a short section of Wahtum Lake Rd #2820 over to the Rainy Lake Campground:
The road was melted out where the guys were parked but had some snow a little ways past there. And lots of animal tracks:
The campground was empty and the temptation to explore and check out the short side trip to the lake was too much:
Green Point was going in and out of the clouds while I took a break at the lake for a while:
After about 15 minutes the sun made a grand appearance and it sure felt good:
Rd 670 or the Rainy-Wahtum Trail from the campground to the Herman Creek cutoff trail had more animal tracks , including some black bear prints:
There was also a lot more snow and several areas with drifts that are still a few feet deep:
I picked through a few layers to check out the old snow beneath about 8-10 inches of slush that fell over the last few days:
The newer snow was perfect for snow balls and some remote snowman making
The old Herman Creek balloon shelter and just a quick drop from the swamp on the old cutoff:
The snowman followed me to the cutoff. I told him he would melt inside the cabin and that it was too hot for him in there but he insisted he would be fine
All that was left was his hat hanging on the windowsill:
Part of the door hangs in the ceiling above with the old keyhole still intact:
It looks like the bear decided to take a short cut up Green Point Ridge and drop down the other side hitting the cutoff trail just before the switchbacks:
There were some nice red currants in bloom on the way down:
The cutoff isn't hard to follow and doesn't have many downed logs but it needs some foot traffic and brushing out to beat back some of the encroaching undergrowth that will turn this great little trail into a forgotten mess:
You can always tell when you're getting closer to the swamp as the biggens start showing up in earnest trail side:
There was a couple at camp looking to make an afternoon fire when I arrived for a detour to some of the biggest cedars in the swamp:
A little closer:
I tried to make good time getting back to the TH over the next 6 or 7 miles passing a very friendly couple and their happy four legged trail friends at Whiskey Creek. The creek crossings werent bad and Casey Creek was still pretty much dry where the trail crosses it. Nobody camped at Casey Creek and no one at Herman Camp either. The clouds kept playing on and off as I hit the oak meadow towards the end of the trip:
All in all another great day out in the mountains. Watch out for Poison Oak on the 400 trail and lingering snow in the higher elevations.
You always find em. Great shots of each lake
