We got to the trailhead at around 7 a.m. and due to it being MONDAY, no one was around. The destination was Lake Desolation. It doesn't sound too inviting, does it? Right now I'm suffering from a few maladies, all on my left side. The one that was bothering me today was my left achilles tendon. It has been injured in the past and has visible scar tissue built up. I've been doing some H.I.I.T. lately and my achilles doesn't like it.
So we started out, with me baby-ing my poor achilles and not really sure what to expect, since I'd never been to Desolation Lake before. I was surprised that this was one of the prettiest and well kept trails I've been on. Sure, there were a few steep parts, but nothing I couldn't get up using some care and caution.
We walked virtually the entire 4.5 miles to the lake without seeing a soul, until right at the end. There were 5 hikers that came up behind us and caught up to us right as we got to the lake. If you have been to the lakes in either Little or Big Cottonwood Canyons, this lake is a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10. But a 5 is gorgeous in comparison to most lakes. It's just that the alpine lakes here in the canyons are so beautiful and pristine and so spectacularly gorgeous.
Seeing this lake for the first time, I could see that the extremely dry winter had taken its toll and the water level was way down. But "desolation" is not a word I would use to describe this lake. It was still absolutely beautiful!
In another effort to keep our hikes fun for both of us, my husband got us a set of two-way radios to keep us connected, even if he wanted to hike up even further and summit a peak, which is not something I will be doing any time soon. He left me at the lake and we communicated through the radios for the rest of the time.
Desolation Lake |
But I know that interruptions happen, and this interruption happened to be a beautiful one. I learned that goals can still be met, even though they might happen in a different order than you originally planned!
Image - Betsy Kasper |