The Ascent to Lake Winnemucca
Sunday, 20 Aug 2017, 12:30pm.
After getting started early this morning on the hike to Winnemucca and Round Top lakes- our second try this weekend after an abortive attempt yesterday- we made good time on the first leg of the trip. This leg ascends from Woods Lake, at elevation 8,230' to Winnemucca Lake, elev. 8,980', over the course of 2 miles. It's a well graded trail, not especially steep at any point, but the thin air at high altitude always makes it more difficult.
Mt. Round Top, elev. 10,381', rises behind these horse riders we met on the trail
The trail climbs through fir forest at first, then breaks out of cover about halfway up as it starts to rise above the treeline. Here Mt. Round Top, elevation 10,381', comes into view. It is an ancient plug-type volcano.
I always enjoy this part of the trail not just because of the foreboding view of Round Top and the scarp-like wall flanking it on the left, but also because of the grassy ridge lower down to our immediate right.
Wildflowers dot the trail, even in August this year thanks to a long winter and late spring
On this trip the grass is studded with wildflowers in a riot of colors: red, orange, yellow, blue, and violet. Ordinarily mid-August would be too late to see such strong wildflower bloom, but their season stretches late this year because of the long, wet winter and belated snowmelt.
With so much beauty ahead it can be tempting not to look away. But the ballad of In Beauty I Walk teaches that beauty is all around us. So a glance backward is warranted. And rewarded.
Red Lake Peak, elev. 10,063', rises behind us on the trail to Winnemucca Lake and Round Top
Not only is it satisfying to look back on how much I've climbed, the opposite mountain is pretty even though I'm literally walking away from it. In fact, the higher I climb up Round Top, the prettier Red Lake Peak looks.
Keep reading: Winnemucca Lake, forward or back?
After getting started early this morning on the hike to Winnemucca and Round Top lakes- our second try this weekend after an abortive attempt yesterday- we made good time on the first leg of the trip. This leg ascends from Woods Lake, at elevation 8,230' to Winnemucca Lake, elev. 8,980', over the course of 2 miles. It's a well graded trail, not especially steep at any point, but the thin air at high altitude always makes it more difficult.
Mt. Round Top, elev. 10,381', rises behind these horse riders we met on the trail
The trail climbs through fir forest at first, then breaks out of cover about halfway up as it starts to rise above the treeline. Here Mt. Round Top, elevation 10,381', comes into view. It is an ancient plug-type volcano.
I always enjoy this part of the trail not just because of the foreboding view of Round Top and the scarp-like wall flanking it on the left, but also because of the grassy ridge lower down to our immediate right.
Wildflowers dot the trail, even in August this year thanks to a long winter and late spring
On this trip the grass is studded with wildflowers in a riot of colors: red, orange, yellow, blue, and violet. Ordinarily mid-August would be too late to see such strong wildflower bloom, but their season stretches late this year because of the long, wet winter and belated snowmelt.
With so much beauty ahead it can be tempting not to look away. But the ballad of In Beauty I Walk teaches that beauty is all around us. So a glance backward is warranted. And rewarded.
Red Lake Peak, elev. 10,063', rises behind us on the trail to Winnemucca Lake and Round Top
Not only is it satisfying to look back on how much I've climbed, the opposite mountain is pretty even though I'm literally walking away from it. In fact, the higher I climb up Round Top, the prettier Red Lake Peak looks.
Keep reading: Winnemucca Lake, forward or back?