Annette Lake will always hold a special place in my heart and not just because the sign at the trailhead promotes the fact that llamas are allowed on the trail, although that is one of the many reasons.
When I first rediscovered hiking a few years ago Annette lake was one of the first hikes on my list. I recall convincing my friend Derek to join me on my first trip. We started up the trail in the afternoon not really knowing what to expect, moving slowly and trying to figure out how far was had left ahead of us. We didn’t have maps or cell reception but tried to make educated guesses based on the elevation data from the GPS on our phones. Not only were we lacking in navigational resources but many other essentials as well, as would become very apparent. As we continued on the trail we began to hear thunder in the distance which not only became closer and louder, but from multiple directions. Luckily we were smart enough, or more likely tired enough, to decide to turn around. The thunder continued to intensify until the sky opened up and poured down rain. Not wanting to get struck by lightning we began to run down the trail, trying not to slip and fall. After coming close to rolling my ankle a few times, maybe falling once, and getting soaked to the bone we ended up back at the car and drove home. I’d later find out that my camera, a decent DSLR, somehow got damaged to the point that it wouldn’t turn on and I had to buy a new one.
Despite a challenging first attempt I was determined to make it to the lake. After getting a few more hikes under my belt, and making sure I had proper rain gear, I cautiously returned to finish the hike. As soon as I started down the trail I was surprised by a very unexpected text message from a friend, and avid hiker, that I hadn’t heard from in a long time. I took it as a sign that I picked the right day to come back. The hike and the lake was stunning and it felt great to finally make it all the way.
Since then I have returned a few times, sometimes as an introductory hike for friends. When I discovered that Cristina had never been it moved to the top of our list and in early July we crossed it off.
Before heading up the main trail you can take a quick detour down a short trail to a nice little waterfall. The trail itself is pretty gentle, crossing under some power lines and across a forest road before hitting a series of switchbacks.
As you continue on you’ll come across one of my favorite “bridges”, a couple platforms lead to the “bridge” which consists of steps cut into a large downed tree with a wooden hand rail.
A little further up there is another smaller waterfall that cuts down through the trees.
As you near the top you’ll pass across a couple avalanche chutes where the break in the trees reveals some nice views, which apparently I didn’t take any pictures of this time. The trail flatens out as you approach the lake.
The lake itself sits below some impressive peaks and just asks to be swam in.
Cristina and I made our way around the lake until we found a place to escape the heat, set up our hammocks and relax for a while.
When we finally gave into the fact that we couldn’t stay forever we made our way back down and just like every other time I visited Annette lake I didn’t come across someone with a llama, maybe I need to become the guy with a llama.