Bottom Line:
Lake Serene was just showing off today - WOW! The color of the water was mesmerizing. Lunch Rock was nice and warm in the sunshine. Busy but not crowded (on the ascent, I only saw a handful of other hikers). The lake was mostly glassy for a clockwise packraft around its perimeter, with only my paddle casting ripples in the water. I enjoyed the complete solitude once I got on the lake! The avalanche debris at the far end of the lake is much deeper than it looks from Lunch Rock, with high shelves of snow overhanging the lakeshore (CAUTION: It could break at any time), forming ice caves and calving the occasional iceberg. You can tell it was a rough winter - that avalanche debris is loaded with trees and rock, and the trail itself has a lot of storm damage, from down trees to washouts (including a washout of some of the stairs). Poles recommended (at least with a heavier load like a raft).
Stats:
- Distance: 11-1/2 miles, including lake circumnavigation by packraft
- Vertical: 2520 ft
- Duration: 5-3/4 hours (almost 2 hours on the lake)
- Road/Parking: Plenty of parking around 11am on a Monday but probably did fill up eventually. National Forest Pass required. Toilets. Lots of garbage around the toilets - "pack it out" includes from the parking lot! But did not see any garbage on the trail itself. US 2 had lots of patrol cars out looking for speeders - each town has a slow zone through its center.
- Weather: Sunny, 70Fs, light breeze at times at the lake. Could not really have asked for better weather. A little hot on the descent.
- Water: There is plenty of water for filtering on the trail, but a few long stretches with only trickles flowing across the trail, so would recommend carrying at least some water, especially with the warm temps.
- Flowers: Some flowers on the forest trail, including thimbleberry and salmonberry. More striking was all the baby ferns with their curly tips, and the fresh growth of bigleaf maple and devil's club.
- Trail: There are MANY down trees on this trail. Most are easy to walk over/under, with one exception being a large down tree near the top that I made the mistake of crawling under (in the mud!) on the ascent. Areas of mud on the trail, and some sections with flowing water. The trail had a rough winter, and even a small section of stairs was washed out. The trail is relatively flat through the falls (although washed out in sections near the creek) and then climbs steeply over a mile or so to the lake via switchbacks, stairs, big step-ups and lots of rocks and roots. A bit of a grunt carrying a boat. Poles are pretty useful for the descent if carrying a load. The falls are accessible via a spur before the ascent, but I generally skip; not as interesting as say, Mashel Falls (and there are views later on the ascent). Trail was quiet on the ascent, but pretty busy on the descent. The lake basin is enveloped in shadow later in the afternoon; both the falls and lake are best in the morning. Cell service the entire time.
- Packraft: This is prime time to get on the lake, with lots of interesting rock and ice features along the lakeshore (see video). The entire shoreline is super interesting, and I could recommend clockwise, starting with the cliffs on the east shore and traversing to the far south end of the lake, for the best views. Sheets of overhanging snow and ice at the far end of the lake, and giant granite boulders that form islands and channels on the west shore. There are also waterfalls off the high peaks that one can get much closer to. Just so much fun. The color and clarity of the water is out of this world. CAUTION: Wind can come up on the lake very suddenly; the cold water would quickly immobilize you if you fell in so a lifejacket (and a buddy for that matter) is recommended. NOTE: The lake is COLD so the air in your boat will shrink; even though I let it sit in the water and topped it off before leaving, there was that disconcerting "sinking" feeling to get used to! :)
- Takeaway: I was hoping to raft Lake Serene before the surface of the lake melted out completely, but some foggy days last week prevented that. But no worries - the far end of the lake has oodles of snow and ice to explore. This lake is nice and small for a first raft of the year. Will keep my eye on Snow Lake, whose far end will be packed with huge icebergs if you time your packraft right. It is work getting your boat up there, but oh so worth it :)
Higher resolution pics are available at the Instagram link. Will try to post a video this afternoon - it should be a cool one as the lake, and the deep snow on the lakeshore at the opposite end of the lake, were beautiful. I mostly took video on the lake - just a handful of camera shots as have to (carefully) take my camera out of its dry bag :)
The last link below is to a YouTube short that highlights WA alpine lakes prime to visit right now in the "melting season".
Comments
For years, I have been considering pack rafting one of these alpine lakes. Maybe it's time.
Thanks for the great trip report.
Posted by:
Seattle_Wayne on May 12, 2026 09:00 AM
You totally should, Wayne! Snow Lake is considerably easier to haul your boat up to than Lake Serene, but we need to wait for that lake to thaw still ;)
Posted by:
Alpine Wanderer on May 12, 2026 09:14 AM