[Bootpathguy]

Long, busy and rough week. I convinced myself Thursday afternoon that I deserved Friday off and I was going to go hiking and revisit one of my favorite destinations of all time. I was excited until the alarm went off @ 4:30 am Friday morning. I felt really tired and unmotivated and told myself to go back to sleep. But, what was I going to do when I woke up? Have a lazy morning and then go mow the lawn? Then drink a beer... or 3? Then take a nap? Then wake up and drink another beer? Get your ass up and go hiking! You live in Washington State! A person couldn't see all the Alpine Lakes in a lifetime! Go see as much as you can given the opportunity! You Pussy! I got out of bed, got dressed, gathered my sh##, ate a banana & a peach still feeling unmotivated and tired. Tossed my hiking gear in the back seat of the truck, including a cooler with 3 beers on ice Didn't toss that, that's precious! Put the key in the ignition, started the truck, looked at the gas gauge to see I had less than 1/8th of a tank. f###! Now I have to stop and get gas! In my unmotivated mood, pumping gas seemed like a monumental task. What a pain in the ass! Just go back inside and go back to bed. I was looking for any excuse to stay home, but, I would be feeling like a lazy piece of sh## if I stayed home and the guilt would set in. I'd be hanging out later in the evening wishing I had gone hiking. I backed out of the driveway, drove down the street, and pulled into the Fred Meyer gas station. Punched in my rewards number. Yee Haw! 40 cents off per gallon! Yawn... still feeling unmotivated and imagining that drive through Monroe, Sultan, Goldbar, Baring ( not necessarily in that order, and yea, I know! Im forgetting Startup ) bla, bla, bla. I Hate that section of Highway 2. Maybe I should fill up the tank and just go home I cradled the gas nozzle, got in the truck and headed to Stevens Pass. I arrived and the Tunnel Creek Trailhead @ 7:45 and filling out my day permit @ 8:00. Just about then, and for no apparent reason, the silence is broken when a huge tree comes crashing down on the hillside in the forest just behind me and to me left. What the hell! Is this a indication that I should about-face and go home? I'll rewind and mention that I attempted this hike the previous Saturday and turned around @ Trap Lake...I think. I say "I think", because I couldn't see sh##. I couldn't see 100 feet. The weather forecast for that day said morning clouds to burn off by the afternoon. WRONG! It was thick! Trailside vegetation was saturated and I was soaked clear through 2 hours into the hike. Anyway, back to the trailhead. With that memory still fresh in my mind (and the fallen tree) I wasn't looking forward to the uphill slog for 1 1/2 miles to Hope Lake even though the weather was completely opposite of what it was 6 days prior. Clear skies and 62 degrees at the trailhead. Still feeling tired and unmotivated, I talked myself into continuing. I arrived @ Hope Lake in 45 minutes. What a disappointment. Kinda of a ugly little lake anyway, but when I arrived the surface was littered with airborne debris and particulate. Tiny bits of...stuff! Thousands of little insects skimming the waters surface. f### This! Just turn around and go home! You've only got one and a half miles and just over a 1 hour drive invested! It's not too late to reverse course. I took off my pack, ate 2 protein bars, and opened a bottle of Gatorade! Threw a quick "bitch fit", mounted back up and trudged off towards Trap Pass. Still feeling tired and unmotivated I've always listened, and trusted my gut feeling. If its warning me, I listen! I convinced myself my gut wasn't warning me of any potential hazards or danger. I was just in some sort of funk. Something just turned on. I hit a different gear. I'd like to say that I saw or experienced something or someone on the trail that inspired me and turned my attitude 180 degrees, but I didn't. I think I just woke up. My only explanation was the 2 pieces of fruit, protein bars and Gatorade kicked in. That simple. Go figure. I had 3 destinations I wanted to hit. Trap Lake & Pass. Thunder Mountain Lakes including Thunder Mountain & Nimbus. The Lakes and Tarns above Trap Lake and I wanted to lay my eyes on the 2 Murphy Lakes Saw 6 people all day on a absolutely beautiful Friday morning / afternoon. All of'em on the PCT. Nobody after I stepped foot off the highway. One guy coming from a overnighter @ Trap Lake. Said he caught, and released, 14 fish. As a catch & release flyfisherman I can appreciate that, but absolutely do not frown on people who choose to keep their catch. He also mentioned that he uses barbless hooks. Obvious tackle for somebody who practices catch and release. With that said, I did notice a dead fish in one of the other lakes I visited. If you plan on fishing and then releasing, please use barbless hooks. I'll admit, I don't know what killed the fish, but it's just a reminder Lots and lots of frogs anywhere there was standing or running water. I even saw a school of tadpoles swimming up current in a little stream. I've never seen that. Pretty cool

The high plateau is gorgeous. Not just the views from it, but the plateau itself. If I were asked to describe the area, my only comparison is Robin Lakes and the upper Enchantment basin and in my opinion, this area easily rivals anything east of the Cascades. The tall jagged spires just add to the beauty. One reminds me of a mini Prusik Peak. Great views of Glacier Peak, Mt Baker and countless other peaks. I arrived @ Trap Pass @ 10:30 and in the Thunder Mountain Lakes Basin @ 11:45. Spent some time @ Upper TML and then scrambled down to the lower terrace above the rim of lower TML. I wanted to scope a route to the lower of the 2 lakes and also see if there was a reasonable path to Square & Wolverine Lakes. I'd also like to visit that beautiful turquoise lake / tarn just above Square Lake. 2 lakes so close in proximity with 2 complety different colors. Strange. Marmots galore. They have a vocabulary I didn't know existed. I was serenaded all day long with marmot calls, whistles, shreaks, barks, chirps. The area echos beautifully and it was a really neat back country experience I scrambled back up to the upper TML and took a quick lunch break and re-hydrated. I then scrambled up Thunder Peak for some great views of Mt Daniels, Hinman, Mt Index, Square Lake, the lake just above Square Lake, Surprise Lake, Glacier Lake and way off in the distance to the west, I believe its Fisher Lake. Descended back down to the lake and traveled over to, and up, Nimbus for a different look down into the basin. Great views from this vantage. Took the untraditional back door out of the basin from Nimbus Peak. Back @ Trap Pass I took a quick look at my map for the easiest scramble up to a couple of unnamed tarns and lakes above Trap Lake. Beautiful unforested open area. Unnamed lake would be a very secluded retreat. Scrambled down the outlet of this lake that feeds a lower tarn and then over to a area where I could look down on the 2 Murphys. Pretty little lakes from my vantage. Access to them from where I was looks doable. Back to the PCT and headed for my truck. Back at the vehicle @ 5:30 and 17 miles. Dropped the tailgate and tipped back one of the bottle of suds I had on ice. This beer tasted way better after a hike and more than it would have after mowing the lawn Turned out to be a wonderful day!

One of my destinations

Upper Tarn & Lake above Trap Lake

Murphy Lakes

Mother Ptarmigan & Chick

Fish & it's Shadow in the crystal clear lake

[cartman]

Man, I gotta get back in there one of these fall weekends for an overnight. I've day tripped Thor & Nimbus, but never been to Thunder Mtn Lakes. Thanks for all the eye candy.

[Nancyann]

Thanks, Bootpathguy! It's only been two weeks since I was up there, but that trail is already calling me again.. What an EPIC (sorry, I couldn't resist) day you had!

[Get Out and Go]

Hey, do I ever know what you mean!....Exactly the way I feel sometimes when I'm trying to get myself motivated. I too, can find a million excuses to call the whole thing off, even when I'm on-trail. Funny, how things turn around though. And by the way, I love your destination. Will be there again soon. Excellent TR!

[Backpacker Joe]

Awesome trip and report! Those lakes above Trap are the Murphy Pots. Nicely done. Is the boot path from Trap Pass up to the TML's easy to find?

[forest gnome]

nice pic's but I think you forgot to label all the people and dogs that are there even mid-week now!

[mbravenboer]

Looks great! Never been there, but really should.