Diablo Lake

We left early enough to arrive at Ross Lake National Recreation Area in the early afternoon. But unfortunately, a jackknifed RV backed up traffic and delayed us for over an hour. Once we were passed the accident, everything went smoothly and we headed East to our camping destination.

The North Cascades are full of amazing waterfalls. The first turn off once we got into the park was a viewing area of Gorge Creek Falls.


The three lakes in the National Park are each formed by man made dams. The electricity they create provides Seattle with a quarter of its energy.

Diablo Dam

Diablo Dam (from the bottom)
Gorge Dam

Ross DamWe didn't get very close to Ross Dam (as you can see from the picture). We merely drove up to a lookout point on our way out of town. Ross Lake is the largest, but I don't think that any of us were disappointed for not getting a better view. We were all tired, and this seemed to be the least impressive dam.

The site we stayed at was on the shore of Diablo Lake. Because tourist season has not officially begun, there were no fees to camp overnight, and the grounds were mostly vacant of other people. The water of Diablo Lake comes from the runoff of surrounding glaciers, and it reflects a turquoise color from certain minerals that were embedded in the ice. Here are a couple photos of our campsite.


In the morning, a family of geese came by our camp. The fluffy baby geese were so adorable! I was surprised how close the adults let me get to them.


There was a lot of dead wood in the trees by our campsite. But Ian and Taylor assumed the task of chopping off a section of this huge log with nothing more than the small hatchet I brought along. Good work guys!

Ponage!!!

The fire itself was great fun.


On our last trip to Eastern Washington, Ian found a green lazer pen by our camp site. Ever since it came into our possession, it has been the source of endless enjoyment.

alien communication

lazer meets fire

green smoke

Ian cooked spiced eggplant slices and soup for dinner. But of coarse, the camping trip would not be complete without making smores. Taylor tried to eat part of the coals while enjoying his?


On Sunday morning, we ventured up the mountain to get a better look at Lake Diablo. The view was sensational.


On the drive back, we stopped at a small organic farm in Marblemont. I got some delicious homemade raspberry ice cream for the ride home!

Prosperity

We got a late start on Friday because the people we intended to drive with were delayed until 6pm. We arrived after dark in the rural town 40 minutes from Wenatchee. The last part of the drive was treacherous, and we had to stop when we reached a large stream flowing over the rocky dirt road. The people we were following drove an SUV, and agreed to come back to get us once they had unloaded their stuff. After waiting for over an hour, we gathered up the courage to drive across the water ourselves. It was a scary moment, but we were ecstatic when we made it across. Our rejoicing was soon squelched when we came across the second stream... and the third... and the fourth. Due to luck, and Ian's skillful driving, we made it across all obstacles. I was very proud of my little car's performance on its first off-roading trip. Once we arrived and found a good camping spot, we assembled the tent, and I quickly got into my sleeping bag to get some rest.

Because we traveled the night before the party, we had all day to hike and enjoy the scenery. Ian and I spent most of the day walking around and exploring the area. Here are some of the photos we took.

There were a lot of cool insects in the area.

Checkerspot Butterfly

Blue Copper Butterfly

Two-tailed Swallowtail Butterfly

The party itself was disappointing. Ian and I spent most of the night at our camp site. It is unfortunate that the event wasn't what we expected, but we had fun anyway.

On Sunday morning, we packed up and got ready for the drive back to Seattle. I was afraid of crossing the streams again, but we had no choice. The first ones went fine, but the last major water crossing (also the longest) gave us trouble. As we were trucking through the muddy water, unaware of the placement of rocks below, something pinched my back right tire.

Luckily there was a spare and a scissor jack in my trunk. Ian saved the day an replaced the tire.


Here are two photos of the stream that took my tire's life.


Overall, I had a great time. A trip like this is never complete without a few challenges. I have lots of good memories, and I look forward to the next adventure. Here is one last picture of Ian and myself on our hike.