Last weekend, the pups and I made our first trip out to Lake Chelan-Sawtooth Wilderness. So today, they rested while I went up to Alta Mountain. The few reports I read on NWHikers had encouraged me to visit the mountain.
See more trip photos here.
Alta Mountain at a Glance
Access: Rachel Lake Trailhead
Round Trip: TBD
Elevation Range: 2760′-6240′
Gear: none
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: yes
Rachel Lake Trail
The weather was perfect. There also were not many people on the trail. It could very well be the fact that it was a Thursday. The path was excellent, with just a handful of down trees. On the way to Rachel Lake, I met three parties and chatted with them a bit.
The elevation gain wasn’t as noticeable until about a quarter of a mile below the lake. That part of the hike was a great workout. Insect repellent wasn’t necessary until I reached the lake. Then most bugs had disappeared from the south ridge and onward.
See more trip photos here.
Alta Mountain Summit
The lake was more beautiful than I had imagined. It was also very serene. It was my first time here. So it was a surprise to see that the trail took me up to the summit. Before the trip, I thought I would need to start scrambling from the ridge. But I was glad that wasn’t the case.
Later I met a couple on the ridge. I thought I would see them at the top, but they never showed. Once on the summit, I could see some peaks I had climbed with the pups. The constant clouds would sometimes obscure the west view. Also, Chikamin Peak‘s ridgelines were in the way of much of the northern landscape.
See more trip photos here.
Outro
I waited 20 minutes, hoping the clouds to the west would disappear. But that never happened. So I went on my merry way down the mountain after taking enough photos. There was snow around the lake earlier. But later, it had turned into patches because of the warm weather.