[Slugman]

After last week's mellow time at Malachite lake, I decided to up the ante a bit this week and try something more challenging. TM lakes had been on my list for a while, and Cinnamon's recent trip report (and pics!) put them at the top of that list. Thanks also to Wildernessed for the helpful beta. The hike in to Hope lake on Sunday was nice but ordinary. The PCT over to Trap lake is much better, lots of open meadows and granite-boulder rockslides. The blueberries were plentiful and extra-sweet. There were several groups camped at Trap, so I camped in an out-of-the-way mini-meadow off of the PCT, in the dirt spot left over from a dried-up tarn. (Had I known of the campsite right at Trap pass I would have continued on to there and hauled water from Trap lake.) Trap lake is a worthy destination all its own, for a dayhike or one-night BP. Monday I slept really late, until 10 am, then I took forever to get started, just felt kinda lethargic I guess. The grind up to Trap pass wasn't too bad, then the fun began. The "trail" to TM lakes starts out primitive but is easily followable, then it sort of peters out and I was on my own. But I knew where I was going, and unless you drop off a cliff or hike over a string of unscalable (to me, anyway) spires, it is impossible to get lost. The "trail" from Trap pass to TM lakes is one of the finest bits of ground I have ever passed over. The toughness (to me) of it only added to the fabulousness. Magnificent boulder fields, rocky spires towering overhead, no real trail to follow, polished granite slabs to hike up, it was amazing. To veteran off-trail hikers it may seem tame, but to me it was high adventure. When I crested the last obstacle and looked down on TM lakes, I felt about as good as I ever have in the wilderness. My poor camera must have been overheating with all the pictures I took. I found a nice camping spot where previous rains had deposited sand in a fold of the polished granite slabs surrounding the upper lake. I spent the evening relaxing and taking photos of the areas best seen in evening light, saving other areas for the morning light of Tuesday. I was impressed not only by the nearby sights, but also the panoramic vistas of far-off peaks and row upon row of ridges fading off into the haze. Tuesday was another great day, waking up in a place like that. I lounged around and explored a little, but mainly just enjoyed being there. I saw another person, which surprised me a bit, clambering around at the top of one of the "unscalable" spires. It turned out to be Fred Beavon, a veteran peak bagger and member here. Hi Fred! Nice to have met you. He went on to summit T mountain and another peak in the area, called Thor I think. He has a hiking/climbing motor that won't quit. Mine quits early and often. I left TM lakes at 2 pm on Tuesday, and it took two hours just to get back to Trap pass. Man was I glad to be back on a trail again! I didn't get back to the car until 8:40, mainly due to "blueberry delays". I flashlighted it back most of the way from Hope lk. One note, there were a lot more bugs than I anticipated. No horrible plagues of blackflies, but plenty of persistent "kamikaze" mosquitos. You know the kind, they just fly right in and bite whatever they land on. Even a stiff breeze didn't faze them. I was bitten by one while the wind was strong enough to blow my hat off. Some DEET on my clothing and hat was effective and mandatory for my peace of mind. OK, now the 33 pics:

1 label

[Foist]

Nice, Slugman! I was there last week before you were, but I still haven't posted a trip report. I'm a slacker. Gotta get the photos! Stupid film... Surprised the bugs were bad for you. I didn't have a problem with mosquitos, even in the evening when the air was still (wind REALLY picked up overnight). But I only camped at TM lakes, maybe the bugs were worse by the PCT.

[Slugman]

The worst bugs were actually at TM lakes. Not huge in numbers, oh no, but persistent and annoying nonetheless. I hate those kamikaze mosquitos. It just goes to show how one person's experience can't be duplicated even the next week, sometimes. But the bugs weren't really bad per se, just annoying and unexpected. I had expected none at all after not seeing any last week at Malachite lake.

[wildernessed]

Very nice, must have been an awesome camp at TM lakes, great pics. Something else has my attention up there now, but to the N of Trap Pass on a ridge "Murphy Lakes" and Sparkplug on the other side of Glacier Lake.

[Slugman]

Has anyone noticed I labeled Fred Beavon in pic #69?

[Tazz]

nope it dosn't show slug. great tr and pics

[Slugman]

You have to open the pic and then hover the cursor on it.

[Tazz]

Ok got it. I thought you meant... oh nevermind

[Tom]

[Slugman]

Yeah, that's the one.

[Scrooge]

Hey, Slug. That would be a pretty good report ........ except there aren't enough pics! Dang. What a fine place. It's been on my list since it was Rednuht Niatnoum Sekal, which shows what a slacker I am. But you've provided some serious motivation. David

[Slugman]

I only posted 10% of what I took! Not counting the ones that are no good, or virtual duplicates, I still only posted 20%. I'm sick of letting some of my Flickr allowance go to waste. From now on it's 30-plus pics per hike. In reality, I let the pics themselves decide. As I scanned through the 300 pics I took, I simply drag/dropped to Flickr all the ones I really liked. If it's ten, it's ten, if thirty, then thirty. This was a "thirty" hike all the way.

[Slugman]

I almost forgot: I saw a naked hiker on Sunday! Really I did! It was a man, normal-looking except for the nakedness. He was wearing a hat, but I guess it still counts as naked, right? He was coming down the Hope Lake trail (called the Tunnel creek trail for no apparent reason) at about 1 pm. He said "Hot, isn't it?" and I replied "Yes, but you are taking stronger recourse than I would" and he replied "At least there are no bugs out" and we parted ways. It seems like a long time ago now. I guess that's the sign of a good hiking trip: at the end you can hardly remember things that happened at the beginning.

[Fred_Beavon]

LOL. That's pretty funny how you pointed me out in that picture. I was trying to figure out a way up that final spire. I really like your picture #04, what Jim Brisbine aptly calls Lightning Point. I would have loved to have attempted to go up it, but unfortunately, didn't have the time or energy. Perhaps next time.

[Backpacker Joe]

Nice job El Sluggo.