Road is great to the trailhead!  Snow free with some very minor bumps, I think pretty much any car could drive there.  The trail was a flowing stream and snow free until about half way up.  Then the snow gradually increased until about 3ft or so deep at the lake.  Lake was starting to thaw out with some ducks enjoying the morning hints of sunshine!  Beautiful Day even though the forecast didn't look super great!  Wonderful little outing : )

Icy!  It was a beautiful day for a hike and we thoroughly enjoyed getting up to Heather Lake.  The trail is extremely icy in places and spikes are a must.  Not just the basic YakTrax that some people use on sidewalks, but a higher grade of spikes.  Without those it's easy to fall and hurt yourself.  Snowshoes are not required right now because enough people have tamped down all the snow.  If you're one of the first people right after a snow storm you'll snowshoes as well as spikes.

Made a quick and beautiful run up to Heather Lake to find some snow!  There was finally some snow just before the lake and all in the lake basin.  Winter is just starting to get going.  Very pretty!  Perfect weather : )  Brought micro-spikes and gaiters, but never needed them. 

Found an article of clothing on the trail-let me know what you lost and I will happily return it to you! 

Lovely hike but pretty adventurous around the lake. I just love the feel of this area, such beautiful forest. Lots of water on the trail throughout and knee+ deep snow around the lake. The road up there is horrible as always but we found a place to park partway up and walked. The video at the bottom is from last year, the boardwalk is still berried so you can't do this yet, but maybe a few more weeks. 

Road Walk: The road walk portion added about 1 mile and a couple hundred feel, pretty easy warm up with a couple mini waterfalls along the way. We reached the TH somewhere between 8:30-9AM and there were about 5 vehicles. No ice or snow, except a few piles. We saw several car parts on the walk up near the pothole sections :-(.

Trail: I would say that there was more of the trail with water than without. There were little waterfalls everywhere, more than I have ever seen up here and it was a lovely walk. There are also so many huge trees! Many are cut and some look like they have old faces on them :-D.

The trail has a few rocky areas that are a bit tricky to climb up and a couple minor water crossings with just enough water to get your feet wet, so it was nice to have poles. Only a couple small trees were down. The first mile was bare, then the snow was patchy for a bit, and close to the lake it filled in and got deep. There were a bunch of spots where the water had crossed the trail, melting the snow so you climbed down and back up the other side, about 4ft. We used spikes, but many managed with just poles. 

Right around the lake it got a little sketchy, with deep holes around trees, uncertainty where the water was, and an unclear path, but we found the lake edge. Right as we came around the corner a small avalanche let loose on the far side of the lake! It was really cool and a good reminder why you don't want to venture on the far side until it melts. Most of the lake was melted, but there was a little bit of open water and the view was lovely. 

We got down around noon and there were a few more cars, but still lots of parking. 

Other Notes:

Bathroom was open and relatively clean. Bring your own TP. 

We saw what looked like a tire chain tensioner (rubber strap with hooks) by one of the potholes. We left it there, but put it off on the side so if you think you might have lost one it is still there. 

The usual spot we park in at the beginning of the road (looks like a 2 car parking spot) was where the plow was dumping snow this winter so it was not accessible. 

Summary: we were able to get to the lake with just our boots and poles, no other gear required. Road is very rough and getting to the gate (.8 or so miles before the trailhead) still requires all wheel drive/clearance.

We arrived around 830am to two cars at the gate, good weather and clear skies. Note that the road is pounded down on each side (each lane) and there is a divider/median that is a lot of snow. Because a car was blocking the right lane, I took the left lane up and thought about my mistake halfway to the gate and decided to try to get over the snow to the other side. Bad idea and almost got stuck but was able to get back to the lane after lots of back and forth.

The road at the gate deteriorates into heavy snow that a huge 4 wheel drive truck might be able to get through (there are tracks) but I wasn't comfortable handling with my Forester. Parked at the gate and walked the .8 miles up to the trailhead.

Trail was very nice for the entirety, clearly packed down by snowshoers and other hikers. We brought poles and never felt the need for any microspikes or snowshoes all the way to the lake. There were a couple slippery sections and the periphery of the trail is suuuuper deep and risky so you'll want to stay focused with every step you take. I did step off-trail just a couple inches a couple times and sunk in, including once to my knee! But the main trail is stable to recover.

We got to the lake thinking we were the only ones on trail this morning, but there were two guys snowshoeing the perimeter of the lake! Even though I was sketched out by the avalanche risk, they confirmed no avalanche issues when they went around. On the way back out, there were quite a few groups of people, mostly non-snowshoers. The fresh snow really made this an easy hike today.

If you end up parking near the gate, please consider giving ample space for people to get out. I had a truck park two feet behind me and it took about 10 minutes to maneuver my way back onto the road because of the lack of clearance. Thanks in advance fellow motorists!