[contour5]

Pat and Pete at Coney Lake

I'd been wanting to visit Coney Lake for a while, and finally found myself with enough free time to get out there, so I made some hasty plans, threw a bunch of random gear in the car and took off up the North Fork road. Forgot to bring my belt, my warm hat and my gloves. Then I left my foam sleeping pad in the car by accident. So, I spent most of the trip trying to pull my pants back up while boulder hopping, talus dancing and wiggling through tightly woven trees. Nights were spent waiting for my inflatable "uberlight" pad to burst on the sharp rocks, but it survived the trip without any damage. On Bare Mtn., I became nauseous and was unable to hold down food for most of the rest of the trip. I may have inadvertently poisoned myself with a dirty water bottle.

Fungus Trumpets

Bare Mtn.(Photo by Pat M)

Camp on Bare

The trail up Bare Mtn. is completely brushed out and easy to follow. I camped on top under a nearly full moon, with owls hooting all around me. In the morning, as I was making coffee, Patrick showed up, followed by Pete. Pat and Pete are a couple of 70 year old guys who have been hiking and climbing together for decades. Pete also turns out to be Pete Doorish, a legendary big wall climber with dozens of first ascents in the Cascades and elsewhere. We talked a while and then they took off for Lennox, all figuring we'd probably see each other somewhere up the trail. As it turned out, I spent most of the next three days walking and talking with these two new crazy-amazing climber/philosopher friends.

Breakfast on Bare (Photo by Pat M)

I thrashed myself pretty good getting onto the ridge east of Bare. The vegetation was a nearly solid wall in places. Ended up on the wrong side of the ridge; flailed, climbed, suffered, shouted and cursed my way back to the nose of the ridge. Once there, new vistas appeared, and steep, wet, mossy talus, heather and grass led down to the great river of talus that heads off toward Lennox.

Talus (Photo by Pat M)

Pat with Phelps in background (Photo by Pete D)

Looking back toward Bare (Photo by Pat M)

Same picture with more talus (Photo by Pat M)

Paradise Lakes

Paradise Islands

I ran into Pat and Pete again somewhere in the river of rocks and we set off toward Canoe together.

Heading toward Canoe (Photo by Pat M)

We worked our way over to the little pass above Bear Lakes and then turned North to climb over Canoe's West ridge.

Bear Lakes (Photo by Pat M)

Starting up Canoe

Steep, easy heather slopes lead right up to the ridge-top on the West end of Canoe. Then a short, descending ledge dropped us down; back into the river of rocks on Canoe's North side. Patrick and Pete set off across the talus, but I was tired of boulder hopping so I went the long way around, traveling the thin strip of heather and grass at the lower edge of the talus apron.

Slabby mossy heather ramps at talus margins

Grassy Ramps are My Friends

I caught up with Pat and Pete again lounging around at a nice water source on a slabby bench half way across the North side of Canoe.

Pizza Boxes

Pizza Boxes Everywhere

Summit Blocks in Meadow

Streamliner

Pat on the slabby bench (Photo by Pete D)

Lennox (Photo by Pat M)

We discussed route options and then Pete went and climbed up Canoe to scope out a possible Eastern approach to Bear Lakes. I headed over a little closer to Lennox and camped in a meadow.

Camp2

The next day I ran into Pat and Pete again, on the long south ridge of Lennox. They decided to skip the summit and come check out the lake with me!

Hell bent for Coney Lake (Photo by Pete D)

Coney Pano

We knew the rain was coming, but didn't know exactly when or how much. So, after less than an hour at Coney Lake, we started back for Canoe. I basically collapsed on the slabs, unable to continue any further. My legs were burning from the exertion. I hadn't really eaten anything in a couple of days. Pat and Pete wanted to continue on to Bear Lakes and tried to persuade me, but I was just too whipped. They did me a colossal favor by sticking around and walking out with me the next day. I was really starting to feel like a "bundle of firewood", but I also felt incredibly lucky to be in such amazingly good company. The rain hit before dawn. It wasn't much- just enough to make everything soaking wet. It continued sporadically as we made our way down to Bear Lakes. Steep, wet heather, bushes and rocks finally got us down to the lake shore, and then we set about trying to find the trail in the rain and fog.

Bear Lakes in the rain (Photo by Pete D)

Good luck with that. We were essentially off trail from Bear Lakes until we reached the first switchback leg of the Bare Mtn. trail where it branches off from the mine trail. It was a total hell road of steep forest, thick bushes and slippery rocks all the way down. At one point, in the steep, slippery forest, Pete whipped out a big coil of half-inch, twisted, nylon ski rope and lowered both Pat and me down a 20 foot cliff.

Pat and Me at the mine (Photo by Pete D)

Big Wheel

Mine Opening

Donkey Engine

Cables

So we found the mine but we still didn't find the trail!

Curse words, probably

Pondering the Universe

Back on the trail

I'm back home safe and alive now. My guts have recovered and the pain in my legs is decreasing.

[Backpacker Joe]

Love that place. Great report guys. Nice work.

[H. Hound]

Thanks for the report. Brings back memory's. Bear Basin has a lot of history to explore, and Coney lake is a solid, if a bit hard to get to favorite.

[zephyr]

Man, what a trip! You were soooo lucky to have run into those two. What great company! The power of the team. Loved those shots of Coney Lakes. I've been up there when they were frozen. So much prettier in the summer season. ~z

[timberghost]

Nice report that will get some more people up there

[kitya]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbinellus_kauffmanii nice shroom!

[HitTheTrail]

Hmmmmmm, quite an adventure.

[Backpacker Joe]

[puzzlr]

What a treat to meet Pete Doorish (and Patrick). He's a legend in my book, having pioneered several routes on Mount Garfield. I'm not sure if these have ever been repeated. After 3 trips in 1990-1991 he wrote in the register "I think that's enough of Garfield for now". BTW, the dates in the CAG about these climbs are a little off -- I trust the register and think Becky probably mixed up the dates in the process of collecting the information.

Garfield register (photo by Franklin Bradshaw)

[timberghost]

Just been up there 4 times myself. It's a nice hike

[Backpacker Joe]

[Tom]

timberghost, how many times have you read the TR comment policy?

[Sky Hiker]

[contour5]

Please extrapolate, Sky Hiker. What exactly do you mean to say?

[Sky Hiker]

What I mean to say is this is a thread drift from the original post. Clear enough?