[jeannette]

Anyone interested in going to Blanca lake very early in the day (to avoid the heat) either tomorrow(Sunday) or Monday 7/5 or 7/6? I have never been there and I heard from a fellow hiker that it is quite pretty. My thought would be to leave the TH around 6:30 AM and hike up and spend some time before it got too hot and then hike back out in the early afternoon. My pace uphill is about 2.5 miles per hour or a little less depending on the load I have.

[Kim Brown]

Jeanette, Blanca Lake is pretty. If you don't care to hike alone, Blanca is fine if you go solo. It's popular. Of course, it's more fun to have someone to hike with. Perhaps in fall you'll have better luck getting a Blanca partner on this site; folks here by and large do bigger, longer trips in summer to take advantage of summer daylight. And most here don't care for crowded trails. So: long story short - it's not you, it's a combination of other factors!

[jeannette]

Actually, my friend and I went there yesterday and left the parking lot at 5 Pm and camped overnight. Yes it was very crowded with people coming down however there were only two other parties that were camping. It was very nice however I cannot believe how much garbage there was. I just found it to be very irksome that people leave their tissues all over, water bottles all over and plastic bags. It seems like they should know better but don't care. Anyways, yes I normally go on longer trips too in the summer. I had just heard about Blanca lake and I thought I would check it out. A very pretty place, with beautiful views, I just wish that people were better stewards.