Summer permit season is coming soon. With that in mind, I headed to Eightmile Lake for an overnight. Until FR7601 opens, it's an additional 3 mile road walk to the trailhead. I ate an early lunch at the actual trailhead. I did a similar thing in 2021 heading to Colchuck Lake before permit season. I had photos of snow starting at the trailhead. So I went with my full winter gear. It was not needed... at all. Eightmile Lake is snow free all the way to the lake. The only issues were water running down the trail right after the little bridge, some sections of mud and water, and some vegetation encroaching the trail.
Eightmile Lake was interesting. There was a little backhoe by the outlet. Not exactly sure what they are doing but it's right by the dam. Much of the lakeshore trail is poorly maintained. It's hard to spot the trail and many trees have come down, especially in the burn zone. I went almost all the way to the end, where I believe there are a few camping spots. I could see it was all in a burn area with no attractive sites. I headed back the way I came and camped at a decent spot, except for a dead leaner. Also not great was the fact I did not bring my inner tent, expecting to camp on snow. It wasn't a problem until I found a tick crawling on my ground sheet. *sigh*
I went to bed early. I had a hard time getting to sleep. I woke up around midnight. I went back to sleep and woke up around 05:00. I did a check and found a dead tick on my permethrin treated shirt. Ha! Then I found another one, alive, on my knee. I used a tick removal tool and go it detached. It wasn't bloated so it must have been a recent addition. I crushed it between rocks.
I had a leisurely breakfast, packed up, and headed out. I met nobody until I got back to FR7061. I met a trio of ladies heading to Colchuck. I warned them it was steep, likely to have snow if not water, and they should keep in mind a turn around time. I got back to my car on Icicle Road in 4 hours. I saw two cars that had gotten past the road block sign and were turning around. Some idiot had moved the orange cones. It's there for a reason, people!
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