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Slugman It’s a Slugfest!
Joined: 27 Mar 2003 Posts: 16874 | TRs | Pics
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Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!
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Wed Aug 29, 2007 10:39 pm
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I took the pooch for a three-day backpack into the Alpine Lakes Wilderness last weekend (Sunday to Tuesday, August 26th to 28th.) We got a very late start on Sunday, and the persistent drizzle made hiking somewhat unpleasant. I hate that cold, clammy feeling. I had hoped to make Marmot lake the first day, but bailed on that when we got to Deception pass at 5:30 pm. We found a nice campsite in the woods a little ways before Hozzbizz lake and went to bed early.
Monday brought a complete weather change, clear skies, hurray! The pup and I took our time hiking over to Hozzbizz lake, and checked out that area some, as it is very scenic and pleasant. We then dropped down a really annoying 600 vertical feet, though the trail is actually nice, sweet old growth forest and huckleberry parkland, interspersed with meadows rich with salmon berries. "Berry delays" would "plague" us the rest of the hike. The elevation lost must be immediately regained, and then some, on the push up to Marmot lake. The trail was a bit brushy in a few stretches, no problem otherwise.
Marmot is an impressive lake. It's pretty big, and has a very clear blue color. The shores are rocky with several convenient access points, great for swimming as there's no muck or mud. Cliffs surround the lake, one high enough to be named, Terrace Mountain. Daisy and I camped on a little peninsula about a quarter mile from where the trail meets the shore, going to the left. There was no one else there, from Monday afternoon until Tuesday afternoon when we left.
We crashed early again, since I had plans for the middle of the night. My alarm watch went off at 2:45 am, and I grabbed my sleeping bag and sleeping pads and went outside, down to the smooth rock slab that bordered the lake. There I stretched out and watched the lunar eclipse go "total". It was awesome, in a slow-motion kind of way. The result was the moon was dark, dusky red in the exact center, with a lighter, salmon-red around the edges. What I saw was very similar to the pictures Opus posted in this thread about the eclipse. I stayed up long enough to hear Dark Side of the Moon (of course), then hustled back into the tent to continue my slumbers. Daisy wanted no part of any old moon, she stayed in the tent.
Tuesday was another beautiful day, so we lounged in the sun, and went swimming in the lake, and generally enjoyed ourselves. We spent hours and hours Monday and Tuesday picking blueberries. I must have eaten a gallon, between both days, including the dozens of huge salmon berries on the trail to and from marmot. Daisy picks her own blueberries, at least she does when I make her. She's content to eat any I'll pick for her. She moves the leaves aside with her nose, then uses her tongue and top teeth to pluck the juicy morsels.
The hike out turned into a bit of a death march, about 8.5 miles from where I camped. But it was only bad at the end, when I was tired and hungry.
A few things I forgot to mention:
Elk. We heard them bugling, then heard some crashing off through the woods upon our approach, and saw some elk poop.
Bugs. There were some around, biting gnats and mosquitoes, but they were never really bad, and mostly left us alone. Some DEET during the evening hours or around swampy areas when hiking did the trick nicely.
Road to Hyas TH: Bad as always, potholes, washboarding, rocks, a real crappy road, and long, too. There are a couple of short stretches of recent repairs that are crappier than the rest of the road. A low-clearance vehicle could bottom out.
Trail conditions: generally good. A WTA work crew was out doing work in the Hozzbizz area. They made the "Salamander" pictured below. They said Daisy was the first "person" to cross it. I was second.
OK, I've run out of things to say, so here's the pics:
'Shroom Driftwood at Hozzbizz outlet Fireweed "Council Rock" Marmot morning Reflections Clear water Wonder Dog doing her thing Terrace mtn More Marmot lake The "Salamander"
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Galadriel Member
Joined: 17 Jun 2003 Posts: 249 | TRs | Pics
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I love your photos and imaginative names for "Council Rock" and "The Salamander". I'm always seeing faces in rocks, or mountain gods , or goblin dens. Thanks for sharing!
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Slugman It’s a Slugfest!
Joined: 27 Mar 2003 Posts: 16874 | TRs | Pics
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Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!
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Thu Aug 30, 2007 8:40 am
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I like naming things.
A couple more things I forgot to mention:
My hydration bladder sprung a leak inside my pack on Sunday, so a lot of my stuff got wet. Luckily it was just some spare clothing and some waterproof items. Everything dried in the sun on Monday.
When I went to fill my cook pot with water on Tuesday morning, it slipped out of my hand and floated off into the lake. Before I could wade after it, it was in deep water. I had visions of hiking with no coffee. I had no visions of swimming in the cold morning temperatures. So I sent in Daisy. She swam after the errant pot enthusiastically, but when I told her to "get that water dish" (she is trained to do that trick), she couldn't get her mouth around the edge of the pot. I kept after her, and eventually she managed to snag the brim of the pot with her teeth, just enough to get it to shore. Good dog! Since she was already wet, I played "water fetch" with her until my arm got sore, as her reward.
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solohiker Member
Joined: 23 Jan 2004 Posts: 1081 | TRs | Pics Location: issaquah |
How can you hike all the way to Marmot Lake and not go just a little further to see no name/Jade???? It would be like going to Tuck and not continuing on to Robins. It doesn't make any sense.
I have never been lost, but I'll admit to being confused for several weeks. - Daniel Boone
I have never been lost, but I'll admit to being confused for several weeks. - Daniel Boone
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Slugman It’s a Slugfest!
Joined: 27 Mar 2003 Posts: 16874 | TRs | Pics
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Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!
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Thu Aug 30, 2007 8:22 pm
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Not by itself, it doesn't. But on Friday night, after work, I helped a friend move, and it took six hours. I was so sore, I could hardly move. Plus I wasn't able to do thing one to prepare for this trip. I had to work Saturday, and had a very busy and stressful day, then had to do all the prep work for the hike, laundry, shopping, packing, etc. I got to bed at 2 am, once again very sore and just plain beat. Then get up early Sunday, drive to the trailhead (over three hours), and hike for hours and hours in the rain. I was just plain too exhausted to hike, and basically quit at Deception pass. I went to bed at 8:30 pm and slept until 9 am. Even Monday I was still on "empty", and just managed to creep on up to Marmot. Tuesday I finally felt semi-normal, but I wasn't going to dayhike Jade with the long hike out still before me.
I will return to do Jade, believe me. But I will plan things a little better. I'll drive out Saturday after work, hike in to the far side of Hyas and camp, giving me a 3-mile head start on getting to Marmot on Sunday. That l;eaves just the short scramble to Jade for Monday, and hike out Tuesday.
The plain truth is that I'm barely able to backpack at all, being so fat and lazy, so when things go wrong like they did this weekend, I'm often unable to get back on track. However, I still managed to have a good time, and see some cool stuff, and exercise myself and the dog.
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summithound Climbing Connoisseur
Joined: 26 Jul 2004 Posts: 1766 | TRs | Pics Location: Everett, WA |
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summithound
Climbing Connoisseur
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Fri Aug 31, 2007 8:19 am
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I demand some photographs of the eclipse with the natural mountainous setting in the foreground and a deep star-studded sky as the backdrop.
Pain is just weakness leaving the body.
Pain is just weakness leaving the body.
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Slugman It’s a Slugfest!
Joined: 27 Mar 2003 Posts: 16874 | TRs | Pics
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Slugman
It’s a Slugfest!
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Fri Aug 31, 2007 8:48 am
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Sorry, no eclipse pics from me. My camera just isn't capable of shooting at night, no strong telephoto lens, no tripod. I could have had a black picture with a small red spot in the middle, but I passed on that.
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