[HermitThrush]

We did a three day, two night backpack in the Deception Pass area, spending one night at Tuck Lake and one night at Marmot Lake, day tripping to Jade Lake from Marmot Lake.

Hyas Lake Reflection Tuck Lake is beautiful. The large camp on the north side of the lake, where we stayed, does not leave a lot of room for privacy but is more sheltered. There are some sites used for camping on the west side of the lake but they are more exposed to the weather and elements. The climb up to Tuck Lake is as difficult as advertised, very grueling especially with a heavy pack. The climb up to Robin Lakes from Tuck is even harder. Make sure to bring lots of water with you, as there is no water source between Tuck and Robin. Fatigue and lack of water stopped us about 300 feet short of the high point before reaching Robin Lakes. We still enjoyed lovely views of Mount Daniel and the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. We shared the lake with a Boy Scout group that was, to put it kindly, a little boisterous and noisy at times. Please remember that some of us, while not expecting absolute silence, would appreciate it a whole lot if you were not yelling expletives and making conversation at the top of your lungs. Have fun, but be considerate also. Tuck and Robin Lakes may not be a hike to do in peak season, if you are like me and prefer something more remote and quieter. It was still beautiful and the views of Mt. Daniel more than made up for the noisy camp.

The second day we hiked back down to Deception Pass and up the Marmot Lake trail. The trail will drop to 4100 feet after the pass and then ascend to Marmot Lake at 4900 feet. It was a steep and tiring climb at times. There is a small creek at approximately the halfway point between the pass and the lake that provides a good water source, at least right now, just below Hozzbizz Lake. We took a smaller, more isolated site north of the main camp with good lake access and a great view. The loud noise of a military plane surprised us as we were setting up camp. It had apparently already broken the sound barrier farther back, so the noise came after the plane, which is part of what made it so surprising. I think this occurs with some regularity up here, so be aware that it could happen. It passed over again in the evening.

We headed up to Jade Lake in the afternoon. It took about an hour and a half to get up there and a little less than that back down. Route finding is challenging, but not impossible. A map and GPS are very helpful and recommended, but the route is partially marked with cairns. As a guide, look at the picture of Marmot Lake below.

The trail to Jade ascends, generally, up the left side of the boulder field (as you come up from Marmot) directly below the highest, snow-covered peak shown in the picture. Follow a rough, but visible trail around Marmot to the boulder field. There are many social trails that you can encounter, especially on the way back, but following the obvious boot paths and using the lake for perspective will get you back to camp safely. Once you reach the boulder field, then ascend very carefully, generally on the left side (as you come up from Marmot) of the boulder field, following the cairns. The footing is terrible in places with loose rocks. Once you top the ridge, the trail is very visible and easy to follow down to Jade. This time we were not skunked, and the lake was beautiful. I'd think twice about camping up here if you have a heavy load, because climbing up to Jade with a heavy pack would be very, very difficult. The trail can be treacherous at times as well, so I don't recommend it for newbie hikers either. The view is definitely worth the climb.

It took about five hours to hike from Jade back to our car on the third day.

[Backpacker Joe]

Nice work there Thrush. Kind a sad you got to Tuck and not Robins. Nice pics.

[Bootpathguy]

Thanks for the report. Nice images I've done Tuck & Robin twice. September 2014 and June 2015. First time I think I saw maybe 6 people. Second time about double that. Both weekday day hikes. So, I didn't experience the annoyances you did. I'll echo the previous comment. Yea, too bad you didn't get to experience the Robin Lakes basin. You crest that nasty solid granite slab ridge and the basin punches you right in the face! In a good way

[HermitThrush]

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[geyer]

[Bootpathguy]

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[olderthanIusedtobe]

Nice TR. Lots of good destinations in that area.

[olderthanIusedtobe]

What's this business about nasty granite slabs? Those two things are mutually exclusive in my book. Granite slabs are awesome.

[Bootpathguy]

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