Enchantment Lakes, Alpine Lakes Wilderness, WA
May 30 through June 1, 2007 - My buddy Ward and I once again set out for an adventure, this time to the Enchanment Lakes region of the Alpine Lakes wilderness area near Leavenworth WA. With Aasgard Pass and the upper lakes area still covered in many feet of snow the 18 mile through hike promised plenty of adventure.
It all started when we stopped in Leavenworth to rent an ice ax for Ward. While getting the ice ax, the proprietor told us of an 'interesting' option to Aasgard pass that involved climbing Colchuck Glacier and then going around the back side of Dragontail peak. He said it was a 'bit exposed' on the back side but no big deal. We tucked this info away and headed out.
By the time we hit the trail it was about 4:30pm and by the time we got to Colchuck Lake we decided to call it a day. We had nice views of Colchuck Peak, Dragon Tail peak and Aasgard pass - the Colchuck Glacier option looked very doable…
The next morning we packed up camp and headed out. In the morning light, Colchuck Glacier looked very inviting and we agreed to try it. We honestly thought we could climb it in a few hours and even if the 'slight exposure' was beyond our comfort level we would have plenty of daylight left to come back down, climb Aasgard Pass and get into the Enchantment lakes high country by nightfall.
Indeed by 12:30, I had reached the top but the climb was much more taxing than either of us had anticipated. Ward's new boot liners were also giving him much misery and we both enjoyed a long lunch at the pass. After lunch we headed across the snowfield to the backside ridge of Dragontail peak that separated us from the Enchantment Lakes area. I got there first and scrambled up the final rock to get the first glimpse over the other side… Nothing but air! 150 feet of vertical rock! On closer scrutiny and some downclimbing, I would say mixed 5.6 to 5.9 down-climbing with no rope, no rock shoes and a fully loaded pack. Not a good idea. This was a huge morale killer and as we regrouped at the pass, Ward said he wasn't feeling up to Asgard Pass or even the rest of the trip with his feet suffering mightily in the new liners.
We skidded and glissaded to a stream near the bottom to refill our water bottles and talk over the situation. Ward still felt that his best choice was to head back for the car and minimize the to trauma to his feet - I still felt strong and eager to see the Enchantment Lakes - it was a bad moment - I did not want to part company and I felt bad leaving Ward to fend for himself, on the other hand, I really needed to make it up Aasgard pass (another 2500 feet of climbing) that afternoon in order to complete the 12 remaining miles the next day. We finally decided to part company and headed our separate ways
Fortunately the snow on Aasgard pass was nicely consolidated and I was able to kick steps without sinking up to my knees for most of the climb. By 8pm I was at the top - 7800 ft. with lots of light but no energy left. I found an island of granite in the snow with a flat spot big enough for my sleeping bag. As the day waned I took a sponge bath in a pool of glacier run off, hung my wet socks out to dry and made dinner. I slept that night under the stars and full moon and rested very well indeed.
I ended up sleeping well after dawn (dawn was about 4:45am) and woke up already feeling axious about finding my way through a complex series of lakes and creeks all covered with snow. I decided to skip breakfast and get moving as fast as possible in order to maximize my travel time on the frozen snow - it was a good decision as much of the snow in direct sun light was already rotten enough to allow me to sink through to my knees with every step.
I got on the wrong trail right away as I was following week old tracks from someone trying to climb one of the surround peaks. Finally I recognized Prusik Peak and was able to orient myself on the map. By 10am I was down to Perfection Lake and decided to stop and eat my breakfast. I set up my Pepsi Can stove and started water boiling, got the oatmeal ready, found my spoon, wait, where is my spoon? I went through my whole pack but apprently I had left my spoon sitting on the rocks at the last camp. I found a piece of dried larch and started whittling a new spoon… at some point I felt like someone was watching me - I looked up and into the eyes a very close and curious mountain goat! I was so excited to see a mountain goat and of course my camera was back at the pack. I talked to him for awhile out loud which didn't bother him at all. Eventually I walked slowly back to my pack to get my camera. The moutain goats really seem to like people (or maybe people food) and stayed close the whole time.
Another half hour of hiking got me down to Lake Viviane and the bottom of the Enchment Lakes valley. The trail crosses the creek out of Lake Viviane and there was no bridge. Wading didn't seem like a good option as the water was very swift and the waterfall into the valley below was only 25 yards downstream. The moutain goats ended up showing me the way. There was a downed tree part way across the creek that ended just short of the opposite wall, which was sheer granite about 8' high. This mountain goat just stood on the far said and seemed to say "come up this way' I walked out on the log and indeed found that there were sufficient handholds to climb up the far wall at that point.
From Lake Viviane down to Snow Lake was 1300 feet of elevation drop in about a mile of very marginal trail, mostly still under snow. I really got to the place where I was completely sick of snow and just wanted to be on a real trail.
I finally reached Snow Lake and ate lunch. The rest of the trip was fairly uneventful but very long and hot. It took about 11 hours to travel 11.7 miles and drop 6500 feet elevation.
I talked to Ward on the way home and confirmed that he made it out fine that night although on very painful feet and not without exploring a few side trails.
