The lake was being drained and once I was back home I did a little research and learned that Isabelle is a reservoir. It was not as pretty as the last time I was up there.
The view a little further up.We continued up to the continental divide and ate lunch.
Our group.
This is the view looking toward the west side from Pawnee Pass.
Once finishing lunch (and meeting new people) we continued on. We still had another 5 miles to go before we got to camp. It was a total of 9 miles to Crater Lake. As we got closer to our descent on the other side the view got speculator. Granby Lake is in the background.
This is the trail that we had to go down. You really can't tell from the picture but this is very steep. Coming back up was such a struggle for me.
The trail headed down to Pawnee Lake (below picture) and wrapped around the left ridge. Just follow the trees around and that is where the trail goes.
The green section in the picture above was filled with wild flowers. Here are some of the flowers from that area.
Below is what we just came down.
Hiking through the flowers.
Further down the trail we met this guy at a campsite. I was so excited. I have always wanted to see a Mountain Goat.
Pushing on was hard. I was ready to be at our campsite, but we still had a ways to go. At least the scenery was nice.
Finally, we reached Mirror Lake (which is right before Crater Lake). I have never been happier :). Our campsite ended up being right past the back side of the lake.
Once the viewing of Crater Lake was done, we went back to our campsite and crashed. I didn't feel like moving another inch. I laid in my tent for a very long time. It started to rain but it didn't last long thankfully. Finally, it was time to start cooking supper. Good ol' mac and cheese. By the time dinner was finished and dishes were cleaned it was getting dark.
Piling into one tent we all played Hearts. It was fun. Eventually my bed was calling and I happily climbed in. Not soon after did my roommate (Kiki) say that the stars were out and that I needed to go get pictures (this was the main reason for lugging my big camera). I will admit that I was disappointed to get out of my sleeping bag but I figured I would regret it if I did not.
This is our glowing tent.
Can you see the Milky Way?
Lone Eagle Peak and a better view of the Milky Way.
On the way out we stopped by Mirror Lake and I was able to get these shots of Lone Eagle Peak.
Ahead is what we had to climb up and over. Toughest part of the entire hike.
More flowers and a stream
After the painfully slow ascent up the mountain, we eventually made it to the top of Pawnee Pass. I was so happy that words cannot express. We ate some lunch and continued on our way to the car. The clouds were forming and we knew that it would be raining soon so we booked it.
Right when we got to the car it started raining/hailing. Perfect timing.
On the way out of Brainard Lake we got to see 4 bull moose (probably the same ones that I have seen before). Here are two of them. I think that brings me up to 25 moose in a year.
People: Catherine, Kiki, Ethan, & Courtney
Starting Elevation: 10,500
Highest Point Climbed: 12,550
Crater Lake Elevation: 10,350
Miles One Way: 9
Total Miles: 18
Total Days: 2
Difficulty: Strenuous/Difficult
Animals: 4 Bull Moose, 1 Mountain Goat, Marmots, Squirrels, Birds, Pikas, Fish, Mosquitos and other despicable bugs.
Laughing: Lots
Pain: Lots
Good Times: FOR SURE!
Looks like a fun trip!!! :)
ReplyDeleteWhat camera are you using?
ReplyDeleteAustin I have a canon T2i
DeleteI really like your pictures! I will never take that hike as I learned I start getting altitude sickness around 8000 ft. so I have to keep looking at your pictures.
ReplyDelete