Like a sponge, boxwood retains water fairly well. Despite our best efforts to shake loose the rain drops so they could continue their journey to the ground, our breathable mesh uppers caught the cold droplets frequently enough to soak our shoes. However, it was hard to care.
Gaining elevation at a challenging pace, the Slate Lake Trail utilizes the steep lightly forested slope to gain a wonderful ridgeline three and half thousand feet above. Some brush down low, but no downed trees were discovered, and the tread underfoot is often soft and mostly devoid of large steps.
Once on the ridge the trail suddenly stops to catch its breath—as you will likely do—and begins a pleasant open meadow ridge traverse. This wonderful route clings to the grassy hillside and eventually drops into a mixture of fir and larch before arriving in a lovely basin complete with a lake and sloping meadows. Under grey skies and spitting rain we wandered the basin being pulled every which way through the golden grass and patches of trees.
Eventually the time of day and the promise of a tasty meal pulled us back along the ridgeline where similar to a base jumper, we made the controlled plunge back to the valley floor.
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