Summary:  The plan was to aim for Lake Lillian and if I had the energy and time afterwards, to do Mt Margaret on the return. I ended up adding a stop at Lake Laura because I could see glimpses of it through the trees in the last stretch to Lake Lillian. And I noticed the path down to it when I went past. Doing both those lakes and Mt Margaret, I covered 10 miles, 3600ft of total elevation gain, and spent 6.5 hours out there to include taking photos and having “lunch” at Lake Laura. Because there are no toilets or trash cans, I hit the nice public ones with running water at Hyak (discovery pass required) on the other side of I90 both before and after my hike, and used their trash cans to get rid of just my stinky bags of dog poo before a long drive home. Another option is the Gold Creek Pond trailhead nearby for a vault toilet, but no trash cans. Does anyone else have suggestions for facilities nearby? The forest road up is actually pretty good for a forest road. There is a little bit of washboarding. And on a Friday afternoon, there were plenty of parking spaces available in the trailhead parking area. The most challenging aspect of this hike was the number of opportunities to slip and fall on either fine dirt or mud. Shoes with good grip and hiking poles highly recommended, in addition to the basics of sun and bug protection.

Details:  This was my first time out here. It was a pretty nice hike that’s not that difficult to get to. The paved road running parallel to the highway does become a little sketchy as it curves to the left before becoming a dirt road. It’s only wide enough for one vehicle when it does this, but you can’t really see if there’s an oncoming vehicle until you’ve already entered that section of the road. So hopefully everyone goes slow in both directions. Parking wasn’t an issue, but the parking lot was showing some abuse if you looked. I wasn’t trying to, but I couldn’t help seeing trash, to include other people’s dog poo bags in the middle of the lot and what looked like areas in the trees used as toilets. But as for hitting the trail, I was surprised by how few hikers I ran into. I only saw other hikers on their way out as I was going in and only on the section going up to where you choose between the path to Margaret Lake or path to Lake Lillian. After that and for the rest of the hike, no one. Although at Lake Lillian I did see a tent on the shore. But when I returned to the parking lot at the end of the day, my car was the last. The dogs and I were eerily alone.

At the just over 3 mile point in, I hit the first steep section going down into a basin where I felt the fine dirt over rocks was very slippery. I reluctantly pulled out the hiking poles and was wondering if I was really going to need them, but oh man I did. I lost track of how many times I went down then up over and over again. And the slopes were steep and either fine slippery dirt or mud. It was much slower going down than up in both directions.

Except for Fireweed, most of the flowers I took photos of started around the Twin Lakes basin area. This is also where the bugs became more of a nuisance. Some of the flowers still growing here were American Sawwort, Lewis’ Monkeyflower, Valerian, and I think Alpine Aster. Near Lake Lillian there were pale Columbine and Columbia Tiger Lilies, and next to Lake Laura were Yellow Willowherb and more Lewis’ Monkeyflower. On Mt Margaret you can find Red Columbine, Parry’s Catchfly, Red Paintbrush, Orange Agoseris…

Distant peak views today included rolling clouds, so most of what I could enjoy were the lakes and flowers at ground level. No Mt Rainier for me today. Twin Lakes was cute and the most mirror like of all the lakes I saw. Lake Lillian was definitely the largest and a great option if your goal is to take a dip or actually swim. But I found Lake Laura the prettiest with what almost looked like a large island in the middle of it depending on your perspective. I believe from the top of Mt Margaret I was able to see Margaret Lake, Stonesthrow Lake, and Swan Lake. If anyone can confirm, I’d appreciate it.

Wow, if you read this far, thank you! Hope you enjoy your hike, too.

Headed from Seattle 10 am and was able to snag a parking spot just outside the lot. Not crowded at all. Seemed most amount Margaret rather than Lake Lillian.

Definitely read the trailhead directions posted in the body. Signage not obvious but it was good to reference the WTA notes.

Trail is moderate in some areas and steep in others. Be ready for up and down both in and out hiking.

Gorgeous wildflowers on the trail and ripe blueberries as well!

Lovely passage through forest, meadows and boulder chutes once you get into the woods. Berries are out but so are the bugs, mosquito and black fly combo. They're not bad while you're moving or have a breeze though.
There's a spot on the last uphill to Lillian where at least me and one other person got lured onto an offshoot trail for a bit, but otherwise trail was clear. Plenty of roots, rocks and so forth especially between Twin Lakes and Lake Lillian.
Trail is mostly shaded with some sunny sections.
Lots of fireweed blooming and I was lucky to see a hummingbird enjoying them!

I couldn't stop on this trail for more than a couple of seconds without being swarmed with bugs.  I strongly recommend pants and long-sleeved shirts from now until the bug season calms down.  With over 30 bites appearing two days later, I'm regretting not having dressed appropriately.  I couldn't spray myself enough to keep the bugs off.

I also agree with the earlier posts about the elevation being more than described and how the last part of the trail to the lake is easy to lose track of.  On my way back, I took a side turn to Lake Laura and had trouble getting back to the main trail.

Starting and ending on a rocky road isn't aesthetically pleasing.  I would probably only consider this trail again for fall colors.

This trail took way longer for me than I thought it would (8h moving time; 9 h total -- 9.8 miles, 3600 ft elevation). Route-finding was definitely an issue. No snow to speak of — although it’s possible that I lost the trail at one point under snow. I lost the trail a few times — had to keep checking All Trails and trust it — if it says you are off even by a few feet, you are NOT on the trail and making your life harder for sure (especially on the descent to Rampart Lakes). Bugs were all up in my face (especially if I stopped moving for a second) but spray kept the bites to a minimum. Trail is straight up, rocky, rooty, loose in many places. Reminds me of other “unofficial” routes like Mailbox Old Trail and the Kamikaze route up Mount Teneriffe. But it was well worth it — so many views, changing scenery— this is not a boring trail. Just give yourself plenty of time and enjoy the ride! If I had it to do again I would take the small detour to the left before you descend to Rampart Lakes to get up on the ridge for a better view (and photo) and leave time to swim. Oh, also — you will hit MULTIPLE false summits before you reach the summit of Alta. And while the ascent is not technical, it does get ledgy and a bit nerve-wracking at points. But you can do it! Press on. Also — use a vehicle with high clearance to access the trail head! There was water running across the road and actively carving out new fun contours to navigate.