Gertrude Lake

This hike we did with a small group of "Monday Hikers". Gertrude is a cute little lake a bit out of the way, but you are almost assured of having it to yourself.

The trailhead begins across the road from the parking lot between Wrights Lake and Dark Lake.

The first half of the trail is an easy, gentle rise that takes you past Beauty Lake.

There is also a loop trail that is good for a short hike around Wrights and Beauty.

Once you start breaking out of the pines, the trail starts to climb up the granite outcrops.

As we continued up, the path leads past a very distinctive 'landmark' tree. If you don't see it, you are lost.

Still climbing through the occasional patches of Greenleaf Manzanita we began to ask "Are we there yet?" None of us had been to this lake before, so we thought it a valid question.

After cresting the last ridge, there it was - nestled quietly in a bowl surrounded by granite talus covered peaks.

While the rest ate and napped, Jym walked around the lake to find another sliver of water (look closely at the map), and to get a closer look at the broken granite blocks that cover the slope on the far side.

On the way back down, we stopped to marvel at a fallen giant. The roots were reluctant to give up the rocks they had become intimate with.

Although coming back down the trail was a bit easier than going up, it still required close attention to navigate.