Fantastic! A classic subalpine lake, with some sharp peaks in the background and dots of snow. But you really gotta work for it. Not for the faint of heart or the inexperienced. I think it took me 4.5 hours to get from Lower Lena to Upper…the heat didn’t help. Still, I was there on a Saturday night and there were at least 10 other people spending the night, plus another dozen or so just up for the day. So even the steep climb doesn’t guarantee real solitude.
Lower Lena was mobbed. This is where families do their first backpacking trip with kids, church groups do their annual outing, and people go on first dates (all judging from snippets of overheard conversations). When I emerged Sunday at 1230 pm, there were probably 100 cars at the trailhead. With the views and easy access, it’s not hard to see why!
The whole trail was a berry FEAST! Red huckleberries, salmonberries, thimbleberries, big salad berries, and the most wild blueberries I’ve ever seen.
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