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Sheep Lake,
Goat Rocks Wilderness |
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With the coming weekend devoid of work, Bobby and I thought a little exercise to condition for our upcoming return to Upper Cairn Basin was in order. Not feeling like I needed such conditioning, I did want to take advantage of the time for some SUL backpacking practice along with a little peace time for thinking. Assembling my kit, a sub five pound base pack weight, the night before was fun, but at the same time, a little daunting. I arrived at Bob's at seven sharp, just in time for the traditional run to Bagel Land before the long drive to Walupt Lake.
A fairly flat trail, no one to be seen, and a clear morning, made hiking easy. As the miles flowed by, various lakes appeared, temping us with their remarkable beauty, scenery, and vacancy. We thought it best to move on to our destination of Sheep Lake in hopes it may sport the same occupancy.
We continued on, eventually intersecting with the PCT. At the intersection, we met up with four people sporting pack horses and took a few moments to admire their caravan. The stop was short lived however as swarms of mosquitoes threatened to devour us if we rested too long. Mosquitoes were not on my worry list as I have experienced them before, but not to this magnitude. I hoped that it was only our location, being so close to the lakes.
We crossed a minor stream that offered cool bandanas to drape over our warming necks. The sun was out in force and things were starting to heat up. I had some sun protection but until this time, never needed any while in the forest. Surprised a second time so far this trip, our relaxation was short lived as hordes of mosquitoes started their ravenous attacks on Bobby and I. We daftly covered up exposed skin before shouldering our packs.
The trail soon broke out into sub alpine, offering views of color and flora as well as stunning views of the surrounding mountains. I stopped and gulped down some water, waiting for the flying blood-suckers to return. I sat for 10 minutes, 12 minutes, 15 minutes, still nothing. I lounged in luxury without the constant buzzing and swatting while chewing on fruit leather.
Not wanting to leave my peaceful place, I knew I had to move on as the lake was calling our names. I caught up with Bobby as we dove in and out of small tree groves. The day, the trail, everything was fine. As we emerged from the groves, we were blessed with views. As it became too hot, we reentered small canopied tree bands. Nothing could be finer.
Through one band of trees, I noticed a PCT marker on one of them. I stopped a moment and had a think. I missed the PCT, even though I only had a small taste. I missed it enough to almost send me into a depressive state; almost. Fortunately, I was in a place and time that lifted my spirits wherever I looked and whomever I talked to. I carried on, still with a longing that I knew time would not erase.
One band of trees surprised us with a bit of encrusted, ice. Digging down a bit, I scooped out a small handful of bb-sized ice spheres and had a sit. It was a lazy day with lazy plans. 10 miles today and around 5.5 tomorrow. Being one of my shorter hikes, I was not out for distance, but rather deep thought. Past events have left a void in me that could not be filled with materialism or any other kind of instant gratification.
Being blessed with great friends like Bob and being able to hike the PCT at all lifted my spirits high. I was smiling from ear to ear as we quickly came to the north fork of Walupt Creek. The original plan was to camp at Sheep Lake. Since all the people on horses and others we had passed on the way up were heading there, we took my plan 'B' and started the climb along the creek. Plan 'B' was to follow the creek up to it's outlet and camp in the alpine, using snowmelt for a water source. The meadows were stunning and the setting, sublime.
Following the creek, we quickly cliffed out and had to scramble up the steep ridge to the left. The views were unbelievable. Above us was more climbing of steep rock and grassy slopes as we let the anticipation of increasing views fuel our laborious scramble.
A half hour of slippery, 45 degree climbing, elevated us to the more gentile slopes of the sub alpine. It was unreal here with snow fields, flowers, and views in every direction. Although we were getting tired, I pushed on while Bobby had a rest. The mosquitoes were bad here which gave me the motivation to climb higher as I did not want to set up camp without knowing where we were. We did not cross Walupt Creek as planned, continuing on the PCT. Instead, we were about 900 feet above where the Sheep Lake sat, but I could not see it. Another 30 minutes of climbing got me to 6300 feet and an unbelievable view of Cispus Pass and the Klickitat River Drainage.
The wind was high here as the bugs were non-existent. Just below me, I spotted a lake I thought was Sheep Lake, but in looking at my map, discovered it was Lake Corral. This gave me all I needed to know where I was. Now the only issue was where to camp. It was just too perfect here as we were now in true alpine with not a tree to be found. Bob arrived and as the day was coming to a close, we decided to look around at a little lower, less windy spot.
We found one. About 500 feet above Sheep Lake, we had it all here. Views, lots of firewood, although we only make a 12 inch fire, and less wind. Of course, with less wind came hordes of mosquitoes. Bob gave me some DEET to keep the bastards at bay while I pitched my tarp.
Night came quickly and with it, cooling air. In an hour, I could see my breath. The mosquitoes disappeared with the dropping temperatures as Bob and I swilled our pre-dinner cocktails. We chatted about various subjects as I was able to relax for the first time on the trip. Shortly after 9:30 p.m., I retreated to the tarp to think myself to sleep.
The morning was cold and windy. I awoke at what was late for me, 6:30 a.m. and decided it was too cold to emerge from my down cocoon. Snoozing for 30 more minutes seemed to be just right as I packed everything up except my stove, then boiled some tea. I sat at the edge of the steep hill we would down climb today, while staring out into the endless beauty. My mind was calm, at total peace, as it never seems to be back in society. I just sat, drinking tea, chewing on the last of my dried salami, staring at Mt. Adams while thinking of nothing.
A half hour later found us down climbing the hill I was sitting on top of. The 30 to 60 percent grade seemed easy, being rested up from yesterday's exertion. A short stroll led us to Sheep Lake and all it's beauty. As stunning as it was, I rather enjoyed our spot much higher up.
There were also four camps set up and I don't particularly like to camp in groups when looking for solitude. As I got one horse's attention, he started following Bob and I. I snapped the picture just before his owner came out, calling the horse, probably thinking we were trying to steal it.
As we headed towards Nannie Peak, we could spot our campsite of the prior night. As the mosquitoes were already on their ravenous rampage, I could not gawk for long. We continued on, sweating heavily from the mellow grade due to the high morning temperatures and high humidity. Making it back to the car in just two hours from camp, we sped to our respective houses where cold microbrew and rest awaited us both.
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