Backpack
Trip to Warm Lake
July
20-22, 2020
As a family we decided to go for a
multiple-day backpacking trip, since the girls had never done one before. We decided to do a loop hike in the Goat
Rocks Wilderness, about an hour from our house.
The hike started at Conrad Meadows. The first couple of miles through the meadows
were hot, dry, and dusty, with lots of cow and horse pies. Once you make it through the meadows, you
start going through the trees and then start to gain elevation.
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| Starting the hike at Conrad Meadows |
The last mile was a lot of switch
backs up to Surprise Lake. It is about seven
miles from the trailhead to Surprise Lake.
There were a few people camped and fishing at one end of the lake, but
we had the other end to ourselves. There
were a lot of bugs and mosquitos, which is to be expected at this time of
year. We set up camp and ate some dinner
and relaxed.
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| Switchbacks up to Surprise Lake |
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| Surprise Lake |
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| Pumping water |
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| Cup of Soup for dinner |
The next day we set out for Warm
Lake. We went around Surprise Lake and
continued around the basin. We finally
found the trail up to the upper basin.
Once we made it to the top, the view was great, but the bugs were
horrible along the creek. The trail
basically ended there, so we needed to use our map skills to try and find Warm Lake. We made our way in the general direction of
the lake, scouting out the area as we went.
We stopped for lunch at a nice little campsite. The kids wanted to just stop and camp there,
but I told them I thought the lake was just up the hill, which it was. We hiked about four miles from Surprise Lake
to Warm Lake.
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| Starting up to Warm Lake |
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| Upper Basin |
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| Trying to find Warm Lake |
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| Lunch spot |
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| Made it to Warm Lake |
When we arrived at Warm Lake there
was only two other people there and they were just packing up and getting ready
to leave. The rest of the day we only saw
one other guy who had climbed Gilbert Peak and was making his way back. Becky and I pitched our tent close to the
lake, while the kids placed their tents back in the trees. This proved beneficial to the kids, since
there was a lot of wind at night. Becky
and I got blown around out in the open, while the kids were fine in the trees. The rest of the afternoon we relaxed and went
for little hikes around the area and played in the snow. Warm Lake is a beautiful spot with no people,
which is hard to find these days! We had
the whole upper basin to ourselves.
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| Warm Lake in the Goat Rocks |
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| Looking down at Surprise Lake |
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| Warm Lake |
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| Exploring around the basin |
In the morning we started on our way
out. We ran into a couple camping about
a mile and a half from us. Once we made
it back down to the main trail, we started our descent back to Conrad
Meadows. The temperature kept rising as
we went along. By the end everyone was
hot and tired. We cover a little over 12
miles to get out, but it felt like a lot more.
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| Sunrise at Warm Lake |
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| Making our way back out of the basin |
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| Finally back to the car |
