A Cold Night In Heaven

In early October, I joined a small group heading up to Rainy Pass. When we met at the park and ride in Lynnwood, the weather was perfect for hiking -- temperate, with a clear blue sky and some puffy white cumulus clouds.

When we stopped at the Washington Pass overlook, it was 28 degrees.

When the sun set fully, it got cold.

Fortunately, we set up camp before the cold really set in, and the Lone Pine campground has fire pits, so we had a nice warm campfire going. We spent most of the evening close to the campfire in the interest of staying warm.

Overnight, the temperature dropped down to the low teens. The jacket that I left in next to me in the tent had frost on it when I awoke. After a hot breakfast with some hot coffee and a lot of time around the campfire, we packed up and headed for Blue Lake.

On the way up, we hiked pretty quickly in the interest of staying warm. Once the sun crested the high ridges, we felt a lot better. We ended up relaxing on the shores of Blue Lake for quite a while.

This is autumn in the Pacific Northwest... rugged, beautiful, and decorated with blue lakes and golden larches.

Prusik Peak

A few minutes' walk from our campsite on Lake Vivianne I found this view of Prusik Peak. There was just enough of a breeze to break up a nice smooth reflection, so I located a boulder with a lot of texture as a foreground instead. Not long after I made this photograph, we packed up our camp and headed back toward the trail head.

Though I wish that I had a color version of this, I find the black and white image has a texture and timelessness that appeals to me. I actually did expose two sheets of Astia (color slide film, for the non-film folks reading this), but the first one I lost because the clasp on the Quickload envelope jammed in the film holder, and the second came back from the lab black... I probably neglected to reset the shutter when I put the second sheet in.

The Road to Asgard continues...

In case you missed them, you can find part one here, and part two here.

That evening, the wind started blowing across Lake Viviane, and the temperature dropped. We slept fitfully with the gale flapping our tents, and rattling the branches. Some mountain goats explored our camp site during the night, but they didn't bother us.

The gale didn't let up overnight, if anything it strengthened. And the morning also brought snow.

After thawing ourselves out, we embarked on the final leg of our journey to Asgard.

We planned on heading quickly up to Asgard, so that we might have time enough to scramble up Dragontail or Little Annapurna... but there was too much to see, too much beauty to not stop and admire.

We paused for a snack along the shores of Perfection Lake, admiring Little Annapurna, and began to realize that we would not have time to reach its lofty summit. For now, we were going to have to settle for admiring its graceful shape.

Onward, we passed Inspiration Lake and on to the upper tier of the Enchantments.

Crystal Lake gleamed like a jewel below us, and beyond lay the magnificent desolation of the Upper Enchantment Lakes.

Even here, among the granite boulders there are plants and wildflowers.

The wind continued to buffet us, but finally getting a look at Dragontail rising above the boulders and crags gave us the energy to continue a little farther.

And at long last, after hours of effort and toil, is our reward: Asgard Pass... and nearly 3000 feeet below lies beautiful Colchuck Lake.

The wind here was the strongest we had encountered yet. The gusts were so strong that it was difficult to stand still atop this boulder.

Wishing that we had time to scramble up to the summit of Dragontail, we reluctantly began the return trip toward the Lower tier and our camp at Lake Vivianne.

The gale didn't abate that afternoon. Or that evening. We ended up moving our camp to a more sheltered location, and bedded down for our last night in the Enchantments. We photographed during the early morning hours, enjoying the first sunny day of the trip.

With regret and heavy hearts, we turned away from this beautiful place and began the long, steep return trip that afternoon, already looking forward to a return.

Well, some of us were looking forward to returning. I found several photographs that I was not able to make on this trip, and I am keen on reaching the summits of Dragontail and Little Annapurna.

More images from the trip are available here.