This was also to be a trial run for Clara's new backpack which is to say my new backpack in which Clara would ride. Up until now she's been riding in a front-pack which has been getting progressively more uncomfortable. I'll skip the drama and say now that the new backpack (Kelty's Ridgeline) was great.

Since the book (55 Hikes, Snoqualmie Pass) was written the gate has been removed so you can drive just about to the shore of the lower lake. The middle lake was easily found just a few hundred feet of elevation gain away. It was pretty, but really low. Several trails led out of the basin.

We tried one, but that headed back to the lower lake, though not the way we had come up. A trail on the other side of the lake couldn't possibly be it, but this one might be. Up we went to find it crested below a talus slope which was something we were looking for... but no lake. The clearing we did find was the lower lake again.

Back up at the middle lake we went to the other side, again, and after a quick lunch headed up the hill. The book made no mention of a grueling grade to the upper lake, but that's where the trail took us. The upper lake was beautiful and not as trashed as the middle lake (there was a bit of garbage at the campsite) which was probably due to humanity's general laziness.

After all that work to get up there it took us a total of 20 minutes to get back down to the truck and that included the time to go back and pick up Clara's hat.

As we just about at the freeway we passed a shiny Hummer heading onto the dirt road. And another. And another. In fact, there was a line of perhaps 15 Hummers, all brand-new, all clean as a whistle, all probably getting dirty for the first and last time. I suppose it's good that the dealership (with its name on the lead Hummer) is introducing these nimwits to the capabilities of their vehicles, but you'd almost hope they wouldn't need an introduction, right? Ah well, I hope the kids get to soccer practice on time.