14.9.08

Spectacle Lake

Trip pics in sequence from Spectacle to the end. Pete Lake is unremarkable so there are no phots of that area. First mts pictured are 3 Queens and the other set is Chikamin Peak, Spectacle Lake is nestled in between the two.










































this trip started out like no other and I'm surprised it even went on at all. Ive never come more close to bagging anything in my life, I almost wonder if that's what kept me on pace. I was supposed to be on the Coast working things out with the Toad but late night shenanigans from her found me on Sat. am looking for something to do, and a heavy fog on Alki. I knew the weather would be killer all weekend so I began packing but the phone wouldn't stop ringing....somebody came over....basically I was in the weeds before I was even out the door, just like the night before. I ended up getting out of the city around noon, and finally Pete Lake trail head by 2sh. I laughed to myself as I dieseled up the trail, thinking about the praises I heaped upon Slug for taking his time, saying how that's what this is all about...yada yada yada...So much for that.

I musta passed everybody on the planet headed up to Pete, but this is the trail you could push a wheelchair up too so its no big feat. At the junction I ran into Rick again, from the previous trip so that was an instant 20 minute delay just catching up. He told me Id be lucky to get to the lake by dark, then I realized my camera wasnt with me, then I realized I didnt have a lighter....the trip was starting to go South fast! One look at Pete lake and I was more irritable than before....thats a dumb lake. I dont like it at all and I refused to stay there. I thought about beating feet to Kachess and making for Mineral Ridge but I decided to roll the dice and hammer up the mountain towards 3 Queens. Ive never been more bummed in my life, a legendary lake in my sights and no camera. Killer dinner but no matches. Awesome ex but no gf. I kept going because Im Irish; that's it. I did NOT wanna hike in the dark so I gear jammed up the mountain switchbacks, just about killing myself int he process. I passed a guy at the waterfall with a Euro accent and found out he was headed the same place so i said so long and asked to borrow a match topside. Finally got to the lake with plenty of light to spare but no energy....I dropped halfway into the basin and stopped to look, I musta sat there 20 minutes, it was truly majestic! I was awestruck by the place, Spectacle Lake. Soon I caught a whiff of soap/clean clothes..then I heard a tentative bearbell, then Euroboy showed up, surprised to see me so we toiled together down towards the water. Once there we split ways to find the best site to camp, I had been earlier tipped off by an old salt coming down the mt that I should bang a left at the lake and circle into the spit where the best sites were. I shared this with Euroboy but he chose to explore the East end of the first lake and eventually settle there. I found a great site ....well, I settled for what I thought was a great site until later at dusk when I found an even better site and moved my gear there. Uber tent was pleased to be once again in my loving employ. (i love that damn tent!)

Once relocated I spent the evening pumping water, which always reminds me of hippies who pump milk in public and watched the glamorous 3 Queens dance in the fading light. What a sight to behold, that mountain is captivating. I didn't realize....or I forgot the full moon is coming so I snapped some dusk shots of the moonrise and watched an Owl hunt for 20 minutes. That's the only bird of prey I saw the whole trip. (I did see a nice bull elk on the other ridge the next morning).
Oh yeah I forgot to mention I WAS ELATED to find my camera at camp, scuttled down in the bowels of the bag, and with it a lighter, a green lighter. I was in luck mostly, the only thing missing now was my ex....and if she had been in the bottom of the bag with everything else gone awry...well this would be a prison journal.
The night was spent uneventfully, except for the two guys that came in late and were fairly loud, nothing much else happened. I heard owls throughout the night and that was nice but I never did hear the dawn chorus or the "bird sounds" I had read about in a previous report.....one of the big reasons I went up there. The best dawn chorus Ive heard all year is at Little Kachess when I spent all of June kayak camping since everything was still snowbound. Havent heard anyhting since that compares.
I spent the morning easily, up before dawn and watching everything, again fascinated by this place. The entire camp on the spit had bailed, leaving the lake to myself. Euroboy and another latecomer also had left, I nejoyed the utter solitude.
Around 11am I was packed up and off the spit, I spent time on the dougans above the lake and enjoyed the sun before fastracking down. Along the way I met Jim who had started from Stevens Pass the night before and was aiming for Snoqual that evening, I couldnt believe it; He said he passed out for two hours on the trail at Escondido and that was it. Im impressed.
Further down the line I ran into Rick again who told me about a problem bear down at Pete overnight. We chuckled about bearbags and parted ways.......always a pleasure to see Rick Pringle.
Once arriving at Pete I was tired, the night before offered little sleep of value so I was looking forward to the truck, and a burger in Roslyn. Right in the trail at Pete I saw 2 guys working on an animal.....it looked like a medium german shepherd on its side, I figured it was injured with a thorny paw or something. I gave the boys a jolly hello as I approached and then I watched em stick a knife in the beast and then I realized it was no dog...it was the bear Rick had just told me about....but damn it was a cub! I would put it at 2 years tops. They were skinning for a new rug and excited about sausage. Certainly no sport in this kill; I felt partly bad for the cub b/c it clearly was killed looking for food cuz some douchbag cant hang a bag right, or contain their trash properly. If the bear was an adult then it would have been less lame to me. I cant believe the moroons out there who willingly habituate these bears, who are doing nothing more than what they are supposed to do: forage.
Hang your damn bags up high. I dont know hunting laws, I dont give two damns about them either, I dont hunt. Either way; whether those boys were in the right or in the wrong is beyond me but what I do know is that the young cub musta been blown out of some tree and its unfortunate to consider. My first and second and third impression of the furry thing on that tarp getting gutted was a MEDIUM SIZED GERMAN SHEPHERD until I was close up..
Everything else aside: I come from a big time hunting/fishing family and theres enough guns to arm us all, in any way we desire; Im not anti hunting, Im not a hippie scrote nor am I an eco freak. Prius, organic soda and pacifism irritate me greatly.
All im saying is a cub got blown away and its all b/c some douchebag didnt hang a bearbag.
So much for your big wilderness adventure at Pete Lake, you hapless douchal tourist. I left as the final skin was whittled off and the cub was about to get beheaded like jihad.
The rest of the way down I spent considereing the cubs fate, then dreaming of chesseburgers and cold beer. I met 3 girls on horseback and then three more guys in a pack train heading out for a week.
Pete Lake trail is as boring as it gets. Spectacle is incredible, I recomend not taking the Pete trail, lots of idiots about the place, next time I will buck up and eat the extra 5 miles on the PCT.

4 Henchmen:

BeBaUno said...

Absolutely fabulous. We missed you at the beach. Bagina boy actually came with us. We built forts on the beach.

Anonymous said...

I know, Toad and I were gonna go out there but we got in another pile of crap Friday night and she took off, again.
Going to the mtns: its what I do.
I will meet you guys there next time, probly leave the motorhome here though.

BeBaUno said...

Ryan's best friend is coming up next weekend from Boise for another adventure. He's bringing sea kayak I think. Anyway, if you'd like to come out, I'm sure we'll be coastal somewhere.

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