Elevation Gain: Approximately 3000 ft.
Time: 9:20 am - 5:50 pm
Weather: Sunny, no clouds, hot, and beautiful.
I had sent out an email to the Outdoor Club students at my work right as school was ending about 7 weeks ago. In the email, I picked a few dates I knew I would be day hiking in Washington and said these could be club hikes. And a little over a week ago, a student or two had reminded me that one was coming up this weekend. So I made this week's hike a club hike. I was looking to do some distance to get in better hiking shape. I have begun contemplating what to take on next if I successfully make it through the next 5 weeks. In just 5 short weeks, 52 weeks will be complete. I have some big ideas, but for now I must finish the task at hand. If this commitment is met, I think the next will require me to be in the best physical shape of my life. As a result, all hikes are now "training hikes." Today, I carried a 35 lb. pack on a 16 mile hike back to Flapjack Lakes, the place I tried to get to 10 weeks ago on May 14th.
We got to the trailhead at 9:15 am. We hiked up to the junction to the Flapjack Lakes in about an hour and ten minutes. The pack felt good, and the weather was perfect. I drank a ton of water and ate a bit. After a short break, we took off for the lake at 10:50. From there, it took another hour and a half to get to the trail junction with Black and White Lakes and Flapjack Lakes. I recognized much of the hike until I got the snow field I hit 10 weeks ago. Here the trail became very steep, and goes up fast. I could see how weeks ago I was not following the trail.
We took a break, where I drank a lot more water. We hit the junction with the Black and White Lakes at 12:30 pm. The last half mile took us about thirty minutes, and it was the only time there was any snow. Many people have traveled to the Flapjack Lakes, and the path was easy to follow. We found a spot in-between the lakes and had a glorious 2 hour lunch, swim, and nap break. We swam in the west lake, and we were gobsmacked by the beauty of the two lakes. The ridge between Mt Lincoln and Mt Cruiser forming the eastern wall above the lakes was calling to me. I felt like I could just bound across the rock tops.
We packed up and began moving down at around 3 pm. We were out by 5:50 pm. A great day with great kids, this is why I go every weekend.
Orchid: Two hours at the lakes.
Onion: Sore legs, ankles, and wet underwear on the hike out.
Picture:
Google Map, GPS track
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