Enchantments Tour, July 12-16, 2009
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Sorry this one's a little late. This will be my first trip report here on BPL. Anyway, for those who don't know, the Enchantments are a stunning necklace of shimmering lakes nestled between jagged granite peaks in central Washington state. I first heard about the wonders of the Enchantments many years ago but it wasn’t until BCJ, a member of Portlandhikers.org, posted an excellent trip report there back in 2006 that I got serious about planning a trip to the 'Chants. After doing a fair bit of research I decided I wanted to do the trip one-way using a car shuttle and starting from the Colchuck Lake side. I also wanted to spend a couple of nights in the Enchantments basin so I would first need to win one of the coveted permits for the core Enchantments zone. On my third attempt I finally got lucky and won the needed permit. That was back in March.
Joining me for this adventure were three of the finest back country travelers I’ve had the pleasure of hiking with: Paul (aka OneSpeed from Portlandhikers.org), Dean (aka drm from same), and Claudio (lead organizer of the Portland Hiking Meetup Group).
We started our five day trek on Sunday, July 12. Claudio and I headed up the trail in the morning with Paul and Dean slated to head up later in the day. Arriving at Colchuck in the afternoon, we staked out a good camp and waited for Paul and Dean who joined us by early evening.
Conditions were pretty benign during the day but in the evening the weather thickened and the cloud deck lowered enough to hide the nearby summits…
Later, as the sky was getting dark, we watched with great interest as two people slowly picked their way down the rocky slope below Aasgard Pass, their headlamps blazing. Later still a thunderstorm rolled through that cracked and sparked and dumped a fair bit of rain on our tents, keeping us all awake for a while.
By morning the lightning storm had passed and though it was still cloudy we felt it was safe enough to proceed up to Aasgard Pass. Unfortunately it was at this time that Paul informed me he wasn’t feeling well enough to continue on the trip. He had been nursing a nasty cold for several days and it just wasn’t getting any better. And so it was with great regret that we had to bid our friend adieu and head on to the pass without him.
It took us about an hour to reach the base of Aasgard, negotiating the considerable boulder field along the way. By 10:30 we were taking a break at the bottom, discussing the task ahead…
Aasgard is an extremely steep, crumbly and scrambly affair, gaining 2300 feet of elevation in less than a mile.
We encountered a family of goats below the pass, the first of many…
Onward and upward…
Dragontail clinging to a blanket of clouds…
Looking back at Colchuck Lake…
Mist Pond…
Claudio crossing over the pass…
Once in the upper basin it was all gawkin’ and no talkin’…
Before too long we reached the lovely Brisingamen Lakelets…
We found a small island of trees here and decided to make camp. The clouds had slowly cleared out during the day but taking their place was a blustery north wind that just wouldn’t quit. We explored around a bit, had a very breezy dinner and crawled into bed early, our tents flapping like nylon flags. The wind blew hard most of the night but finally died down in the morning.
A new family of goats kept us entertained…
After breakfast we struck out for a day hike to Little Annapurna.
Looking back from the lower slopes of Annapurna toward Crystal and Perfection Lakes with The Temple in the background…
Claudio working his way up the hill…
Dean and Claudio on Little Annapurna's summit…
Das Boots…
Mt. Stuart…
The strange summit plateau with Edward Peak and The Temple in the background…
Claudio stalks a marmot…
Back down at the lakelets…
After Little Annapurna we packed up and moved on to the lower basin…
We met new goat friends along the way…
An iceberg on Inspiration Lake…
To avoid skeeters we camped high on the narrow strip of land that separates Inspiration and Perfection Lakes. Goats quickly found us there as well…
A touch of alpenglow that evening on Prusik Peak…
And on McClellan…
Wednesday morning we struck out for an intended day hike over Prusik Pass to the Druid Plateau. We passed Perfection Lake along the way…
And a portly marmot…
Unfortunately when we reached the pass we were stopped short by a large, steep snowfield on the north side. We weren't properly equipped for it so we scrambled around the rocks on the east side searching for an alternate route, but the terrain and the snowfield prevented us from continuing toward our destination.
Claudio scouting the area…
Dean surveys the Lost World Plateau…
For an alternate hike we decided to scramble down near the base of Prusik Peak and make our way to Viviane Lake where we could pick up the main trail and take it back to camp.
Prusik Peak in the mid-day sun…
And reflected in Gnome Tarn…
Claudio takes a photo of Temple Lake…
Above Viviane we stumbled upon an idyllic campsite that I believe was what the Stark’s called “The Guestroom”. I’m not certain this is it so I’d love it if someone can confirm…
The view nearby…
We cross an ify snow bridge on the main trail back to camp…
It was getting late, so we packed up quickly and headed down to Snow Lake for our final night.
Crossing some of the many granite slabs below Viviane…
Our final camp after a very long day of hiking and scrambling…
Upper Snow Lake in the morning…
Crossing the Snow Lakes dam…
Approaching Nada Lake…
A final look back through the burn above the Snow trailhead…
Truly an epic adventure in one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. Thanks again to Claudio and to Dean for being such great comrades and trekking companions, and to Paul for making a heck of an effort despite being under the weather. You guys were great.
Five amazing days and one fantastic trip!
Gordon
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