Forum Index > Trip Reports > Ecstasy of the Larches – Enchantments Traverse (10/13/07)
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the Zachster
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the Zachster
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 1:28 pm 
Oh, man....what a trip (with great pics to prove it!!!) Timing IS everything and you hit it right! I'm really happy for you (jealous, of course, but happy!) I especially liked the Vivianne reflection shot. I haven't been there for 15 years...I need to go again.

"May I always be the kind of person my dog thinks I am"
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Matt
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 1:38 pm 
Yeah, I particularly liked that one also. And it seems especially fitting with the "Enchantments" theme. In the Arthurian legend, the Lady of the Lake offers a magic sword from the depths of the lake. On this day, Viviane offered a magically dramatic mountain framed in the depths of the water.

“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
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Mount Logan
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Mount Logan
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 1:55 pm 
Gorgeous! up.gif

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Dayhike Mike
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 4:36 pm 
Matt wrote:
In the Arthurian legend, the Lady of the Lake offers a magic sword from the depths of the lake.
And appropriately, Excalibur Rock is located in the NW corner of Viviane. wink.gif Nice pics, BTW! I still haven't gotten around to sorting mine. wink.gif

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke "Ignorance is natural. Stupidity takes commitment." -Solomon Short
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TrailPair
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 8:11 pm 
That is why they are called the Enchantments!!!! agree.gif Just enchanting!!! up.gif cool.gif

This thing called work is interfering with my play
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Yet
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Yet
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 10:01 pm 
Quark wrote:
Wow! Marry me, Matt!
Can I be the flower girl?

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Matt
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 10:54 pm 
reststep wrote:
You mean Dayhike Mike did not go swimming? Oh well he has probably already swum in all of those lakes many times.
DHM mentioned that he has swum in a number of the lakes. Since he’s originally from Wenatchee, his knowledge of the area is encyclopedic. Along the way, he named all kinds of places to swim in the lakes, or even in the streams in the valleys, on hot days. He also knew some very helpful shortcuts. For this trip, both DHM and Tom weren’t feeling well, so not much interest in swimming. Even sick, however, they both outran me all the way on the trails. By the way, there are two different sets of names for the lakes. In our trip reports, I used the USGS names, and Tom used the Beckey names, so here’s the correspondence: Brynhild - Isolation Freya - Tranquil Talisman – Inspiration Rune – Perfection

“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
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Matt
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 10:58 pm 
kyled wrote:
Sunlight filters through the water with snow and larches in the background.
Sunlight filters through the water with snow and larches in the background.
I especially like the water in this one.

“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
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Tom
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PostWed Oct 17, 2007 11:09 pm 
Matt wrote:
I used the USGS names, and Tom used the Beckey names
Actually, I used the Stark's names.

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Matt
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PostThu Oct 18, 2007 12:13 am 
Along the course of this thread, many people have commented on the great timing and wonderful conditions we experienced on this trip. We were fortunate, I’d even say blessed, to enjoy such a good combination of circumstances. But I was thinking about it, and I realized something – my enjoyment of this day didn’t arise just from one good day in the mountains. It’s also a product of all the other trips I’ve made to the Enchantments and other places in a variety of conditions. Without those trips, this one would be just a pretty day, with none of the depth of context. As I wandered through the Enchantments on this day, what I experienced was magnified by memories of other trips, weather, and conditions. Even in unpleasant conditions, each trip has provided it’s own special highlights that just multiply my overall experience. I was also thinking about some of the trips I’ve experienced just this year: * The Enchantments traverse was the most beautiful single day, but other trips stand out just as special, in entirely different conditions. * For example, my most outstanding summit experience this year was on Goode, when the summit was completely socked in by clouds. (I still haven’t finished the darned trip report, but here's what I was working on writing about it.) * And my most memorable larch trip this fall was actually the cloudy, chilly trip to Ice Lakes last weekend with Dicey. The snow was deep and the larches mostly weren’t very gold or shiny, but the struggle to get there actually made it more special. The non-peak larches provoked me to really look closely and notice the finer blends of colors in their needles. The difficult progress created a warm feeling of partnership and shared endeavor with Dicey. Decreasing our goals and carrying on to reach the lakes provided a rewarding feeling of accomplishment. The high basin felt extra dramatic among the swirling clouds, like a special hidden world. And the scarcity of colors and sun made the occasional breakthroughs of light and color all the more exciting. What I’ve learned from my experiences in the mountains, good conditions or bad, is that joy and beauty are always available. Those things don’t just come from outside, but rather from within. Fundamentally, joy is a product of own my willingness to notice what’s around me, appreciate the value in it, and celebrate being part of it. For me, mountaineering has been an especially productive way to learn joy, because it combines the beauty of glorious physical scenery, the fulfillment of strenuous physical effort, and the warm companionship of fellow hikers. Not just the most fortunate times in the mountains, but all the variety of times, have helped expand the capacity my own heart and spirit to find beauty, experience wonder, and feel joy.

“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
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Backpacker Joe
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Backpacker Joe
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PostThu Oct 18, 2007 12:14 am 
Nice Matthew. Nice. up.gif

"If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time or die by suicide." — Abraham Lincoln
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peltoms
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peltoms
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PostThu Oct 18, 2007 4:42 am 
Isolation lake looked just that. I would have thought the snowy conditions would take away from the larch scenery. But the starkness and the extra lighting from the snowpack makes for awesome scenes that you captured so well. Wish I had been there, but your pics are the next best thing.

North Cascade Glacier Climate Project: http://www.nichols.edu/departments/glacier/
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reststep
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reststep
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PostThu Oct 18, 2007 7:15 am 
Very well put Matt. up.gif up.gif up.gif

"The mountains are calling and I must go." - John Muir
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silence
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PostThu Oct 18, 2007 1:09 pm 
Matt wrote:
What I’ve learned from my experiences in the mountains, good conditions or bad, is that joy and beauty are always available. Those things don’t just come from outside, but rather from within. Fundamentally, joy is a product of my own willingness to notice what’s around me, appreciate the value in it, and celebrate being part of it.
When I first saw your post in the Index I thought, oh ... just another Enchantments post with purty pix -- glad I finally decided to check it out. Thanks for sharing your insightful thoughts and beautiful images.

PHOTOS FILMS Keep a good head and always carry a light bulb. – Bob Dylan
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Backpacker Joe
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PostThu Oct 18, 2007 1:22 pm 
Now I'm not gay or anything, not that theres anything wrong with that! HA! But Matthews pictures of him bloody well swimming in WINTER waters are my fave. Man after my own heart. I didn't know (until meeting him) anyone besides me krazie enough to do that!

"If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time or die by suicide." — Abraham Lincoln
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Forum Index > Trip Reports > Ecstasy of the Larches – Enchantments Traverse (10/13/07)
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