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| The aspens are glowing . . . and we're just starting down the trail! |
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| The trail (at times) appeared to be an old road . . . Possibly the one they used to construct the dam, for Blind Lake, in the early 1900's |
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| It took us about 30 minutes to reach Blind Lake (10,240 ft) . . . it's stunning! |
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| We spotted this Osprey high up on a snag . . . It wasn't until we downloaded this picture that we saw he was snacking on his prize fish . . . Possibly the one Kent was trying to catch! Ha! |
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| We were really surprised to see Kokanee salmon . . . They change from silver to red before spawning |
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| The perfect Christmas tree surrounded by a hillside of orange glowing aspens . . . After spending some time fishing and soaking in the beauty of Blind Lake, it was time to continue on down the trail to some other mountain lakes |
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| The trail skirted by Pear Lake . . . we didn't stop to fish (We had read that this was a shallow "dead lake" that occasionally goes dry) |
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| The "road" became more of a trail after Blind Lake |
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| After another mile hike we came to pretty Beaver Dam Reservoir . . . If you want to test your vehicle's 4WD capability you can drive (crawl) here from the Fish Creek Trailhead . . . There were a few people fishing and seeming to have good luck on this small lake |
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| We continued on down the road for a quarter mile heading for Fish Creek Lake |
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| Fish Creek Lake was our turnaround point . . . After making a few attempts to lure in some nice brookies, we decided to head back for the solitude of Blind Lake and then head for Fish Creek later in the afternoon |
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| Here's the size of trout you can expect to find in these pretty lakes . . . Although, we've heard many fishermen tell us there are Arctic Grayling in the waters of Blind Lake |
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| Back to the tranquil water of Blind Lake . . . we had it all to ourselves! |
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| The Osprey was still sitting high on the snag . . . the fish was no more! |
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| Kent tried a few more casts . . . no fish . . . he'll settle for some great memories |
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| The leaves were fluttering to the ground as we passed by . . . A gentle breeze sets the leaves in motion and the sound can be described as whispering, rustling or rain |
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| Looking east toward the Henry Mountains (11,522 ft) . . . Capitol Reef NP lies between us and them . . . We hiked Mt. Ellen & Ellen Peak in 2015 |
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| This engraving caught Allison's eye . . . we better stop and see if it's true! |
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| Kent is giving Fish Creek a try . . . It flows out of Fish Creek Lake and Beaver Dam Reservoir a few miles upstream (We both caught lots of small brookies, but most were only in the 6-inch range) |
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| As we came down off Boulder Mountain we were treated to a beautiful view of Thousand Lake Mountain (11,300 ft) . . . we really need to do this one sometime! |
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| After a good night's rest, at Singletree Campground, we arose to this beautiful sunrise (That's Ellen Peak - 11,520 ft - blocking the sun from coming up) |
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| Here's an aerial view of our route, starting from the Blind Lake Trailhead (lower right of picture) . . . From the trailhead to Blind Lake was a little over a mile with about 450 ft of elevation gain . . . Blind Lake was the highest point along the trail at an elevation of 10,240 ft. (Click on the picture for an enlarged view) |
What a great day! The weather was perfect and the aspens were in their prime . . . what more could you ask for? Okay, maybe that the trout were a little more hungry! If you're interested in doing this hike it's about 6.5 miles r/t (closer to 7 miles if you hike around Blind Lake). Road Trip Ryan has provided directions, GPS tracks and coordinates, along with a map. You can click here for a link to his excellent website (it's free!).
Allison sent a few of her pictures, from our hike, into KSL Outdoors with Adam Eakle. We were surprised when he featured her shots on his "Snapshot of the Week" segment for November 30th, 2024. If you'd like to see the clip for this episode you can find it by clicking here.
