[polarbear]

Steve, Dale and I started hiking at about 10:30 up the Chatter Creek trail off Icicle Creek Rd to Lake Edna. I was worried that it was going to be a blazing hot day and with the southern exposure of the trail I'd be drinking gallons of water but as it turned out there was a thin cloud layer and a slight breeze which made the hiking pretty nice. I'd read some earlier reports saying the trail gets brushy after you cross the creek. The brush didn't seem that bad to me (you can easily see the trail) and at the time of day we were hiking it was pretty dry. If you were hiking in the early morning, maybe you would get wet. Once you get into the valley and out of the low growth the trail is quite scenic with open views up the valley to the saddle which you will cross. From the saddle to Lake Edna the trail dips down crossing a stream in a small meadowy area and then back up to Lake Edna. Edna has a nice backdrop to it with great views to Grindstone Mountain. I was surprised to see several people there when we arrived. A few were fishing, but didn't seem to be having much luck. One came over and asked if this was indeed Lake Edna and if it had any fish. I thought there had been fish in the lake the last time I was there but wasn't certain. We ate our lunch and took some pictures as the clouds thickened above us. The weather was starting to change and I wondered if they would have a storm there that evening. When we left just a bit later, the sun was out and it had warmed up quite a bit. On our way out we ran into about 4 groups of backpackers on there way in and one person who was going to climb Grindstone. Our legs were starting to feel like groundstones, but we had laid down a rule that one couldn't complain and unless what they had to say "resonated" with the other two so the whining was kept to minimum. We stopped in Leavenworth for some great Mexican food and got back to Seattle around midnight. I've day hiked into this area now from both Lake Edna and Margaret side and hope to do it right someday by doing a leisurely backpack loop.