Yesterday we stopped at the Eagle Lake dam, a steep hike on a tough trail out of Mineral King.
Wait—isn’t there supposed to be a lake? Isn’t that the purpose of the dam?
Well, oops. The dam either didn’t get closed last fall or it got opened too soon this summer. Looks more like Eagle Pond.
However, these gentlemen caught quite a few fish (catch and release, using a spinner).
Little Sis replaced her cat ears with a Kevin jacket (ever seen “Up”?). We watched the raindrops on the pond while discussing circles, ripples, and shiny places.
The Farmer found a checkerboard as he explored the edges of the pond, formerly known as Eagle Lake. My guess is that some youngsters’ phone batteries died so some oldsters showed them this primitive, non-tech game.
The exposed rocks in the lake are bizarrely geometrical.
This is the “normal” view of the lake, looking back toward Mineral King.
And this is looking toward the upper end of the lake. 
I’ve painted it from a similar angle.
Enough recreation and lollygagging. Time to make like a cowpie and hit the trail.
The Farmer found this rock, and we all thought it would make a great paving stone but had the good sense to leave it as a concept rather than a reality. It is a weird geologic formation, not someone’s early attempt at mosaic.
Does this look like a trail to you?? I turned back toward Eagle Lake to take this photo, because even though I’ve hiked it many times, it still astonishes me.
Finally found some flowers. These are Pride of the Mountains. Sawtooth is in the distance, with its “shadow”, Mineral Peak just to the right.
Well, yea. A little bit of good trail bed.
Haha. Fooled you. Climb over these rocks, you mountain goat.
After the rocks, I stopped taking photos with the exception of two more of the scene that I have been struggling to paint for 2-3 years now. (Not gonna show you that sorry mess today.)
With 2 miles left to go, Little Sis ran out of gas. She asked for breaks about every 20 yards. That is the slowest mile I have ever walked on a trail, and we were quite relieved that her pa was waiting at the White Chief junction. They did a pack shuffle, and she rode the last mile on her pa’s shoulders. I chased Big Bro for awhile at a rapid pace, marveling that the child never ran out of steam, never slowed, never complained.
Those are two amazing children who accomplished a huge journey on foot.
Tomorrow, we will return to White Chief, our favorite destination.
6 Comments
Wow, I’ve never seen the Eagle Lake level that low! But it reveals some interesting artifacts, doesn’t it?
Forget running out of steam on the way down; I’m impressed Little Sis made it all the way up!
It was slow, but there was no thought given to quitting. Even through tears, when asked what she wanted to do, the answer was, “Go to Eagle Lake”.
I react the very same way!
No kidding. The answer is to lower one’s expectations about how long it “should” take, and then even while resting, keep inching ahead.
I’m always amused when people say, “Oh, I’m walking to Eagle Lake. It’s only 2 miles!”
Uh-huh.
And then “through tears” they say, “EAGLE LAKE OR I’LL DIE TRYING!” (That’s me.)
Our total mileage for the date was 7-3/4.
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