Rainy Lake- 6.12.12

Rainy Lake, Middle Fork Snoqualmie
#12, 9 miles, 2700 ft elevation gain

This day was not one of my more well planned adventures but as luck is usually on my side made for a better than planned kind of day.

I met a new hiking friend early in the morning.  A fellow traveler I met several trails past and planned for a hike I may not have attempted on my own.  I prepared for a few different routes off the middlefork and mostly figured we would "go with the flow".  But some of the routes were not in the exact location as identified from the wta hike finder???

But in this instance it may have been how fate planned it to be.  We ended up

in the main parking lot of the middle fork trailhead and not really sure where to head.  So we looked to ask the most well equipped men in the lot who clearly knew where they were going.  And turns out they were headed in the same direction.  Sheer luck as we seemed to be the only ones on the trail that day and most likely at all yet this season.  The trail head was very inconspicuous with ominous looking signs to warn off hikers.

The guys we met in the parking lot, Leif and Damien, reassured us the trail maintenance doesn't happen on the weekend and we shouldn't be turned away by the "blast zone" signs.  Well, ok.


So we figured we would follow in after them and trust in their loyal middle fork guidance.  The trail was very rustic and new and if they had not been in eye shot we would have been blindly guessing which way to go.  There are a few forks that have no identification and without knowing the trail its not clear.
 
The trail was defined for the first few miles as it meandered along the creek but around mile 3 turns into a very faint boot trail.  Around this  point is when I started cursing my choice of shoes.  My feet had taken a beating from the previous days crawl up

mailbox peak and I was expecting a relatively easy nature stroll (no snow and no wet feet).  After my 3rd fall in another creek and my bloody shins I realized I can never enter a trail without overly preparing for any scenario.  Our leisurely nature stroll quickly turned into a hardcore mission of "lets see how far we can get and still find our way back".




Not to worry friends who might be reading this I am not a total idiot and when snow tracks in the woods just end into thin air than its time to turn around.

Luckily our well prepared new friends realized we would not have a clue where to cross the creek in the snow and they waited for us to catch up.  Offering us to join them they quickly became my beacon of hope.

Now pushing on with our new group there seems to be no tracks or trails but Leif is confident on which direction to head.  He told us he had hiked this trail in the summer and it has a faint

boot trail but really rustic.  Leif and Damien were headed on to preacher mtn from Rainy Lake so I knew we would be on our own to get back.  The thought made me slightly nervous so I kept looking for trail markers.

We crawled over and under fallen trees, up and down snow gulleys and cracks.  I kept looking behind me to keep a guide point to where we had come.  The snow fields would be mixed with patches of dry dirt and these are the spots you have to be aware of so not to loose your tracks.


Once we crested a ridge it was a steep snow slide down to the lake basin. 

It was beautiful and protected from the snow melt.  At a mere 3700 feet there seemed to be at least 8-10 ft of snow still.  It was gorgeous and serene.

We parted ways with our kind hearted guides. Soon after our departure I realized how confident I am in my own instincts and ability to navigate but am limited without the support of an experienced team.  The first few miles back were a bit of a challenge and struggled a few times to find the trail. 


This trail is full of challenges and obstacles and am so thankful we met up with Leif and Damien in the parking lot.  I owe them for getting us to the lake and for such an amazing day.