Heidi's Hotspots: Lake Crescent

There are some pretty spectacular lakes in the Northwest: Crater Lake, Lake Chelan, Stanley Lake. They are set in stunning mountain scenery and visited as destinations in their own right. Ranked right there with them is the gem of Lake Crescent.

Located in the northwestern corner of the Olympic Peninsula, Lake Crescent is an easy destination for daytrippers and vacationers. And the trip will not disappoint. The heavily forested mountains on the north of the peninsula cradle the crystal clear blue waters creating beautiful views from any vantage point.

Highway 101 hugs the southern shore of the lake and there is no shortage of all those beautiful views. It's one of those winding roads motorcyclists and sports car drivers dream of, but be careful. The speed limit is 35 for a reason. Bicyclists ride on the narrow road and the lake has a long history of people driving off the road, the most notable is Blanch and Russell Warren who drove into the lake in the 20's and no one really knew what happened to them until 2002 when their car was found by divers.

But I would hate to drive fast on this road and miss all the opportunities for gawking at the views and pulling off at the ample pull-outs along the way.

And when you're done driving Highway 101 along the lake shore, head to one of the trailheads for the railroad grade trail and meander along the "backside" of Lake Crescent. It's a fairly flat 4 miles one way and leads you past Devil's Punchbowl - a very popular swimming hole.

When is the best time to go? Anytime. Spring brings new growth and roadside waterfalls. Summer brings recreationists playing on the water. Fall colors line the shore in autumn. And of course winter capped mountains are a must see, reflected in the still waters. I've never been disappointed by my favorite lake.

A Northwest Autumn

The skies are grey today. The onset of a northwest winter when it's darker more than light, the rain drizzles through the air and bright colors look dim.

It hasn't gotten to that yet - that will be near the end of January.

Now, the bright orange, red and yellow leaves on the trees add a colorful contrast to the grey sky.

They flutter and waft through the air, the leaves, to rest in the gutters and the occasional umbrella. In the mountains though, snowflakes are already starting to fall to cover the fall foliage in its winter coat.

Soon the color will be covered or gone and we will be left with grey.

That is winter in the northwest, but golden is what we see now.

These Serendipitous Moments

We were camped at the edge of a lake along the Pacific Crest Trail, the only campers there – just me and Zillah, my faithful hiking companion. We had hiked all day and by evening were ready to snuggle into our tent. Expecting a warm evening, I had left the rainfly unzipped on the tent to hopefully catch a breeze during the night. But that is not all that we would catch. As dusk settled over the little lake Zillah leaped up, hackles raised and with her nose pressed against the bug mesh of the tent let out a low rumbling growl. Bear! I peered out the tent wondering what I should do to protect us both. The splashing from the lake told me that it was coming across the lake for us. Squinting against the darkening light I saw not a bear coming at us to tear us apart, but a herd of elk playing in the lake. They splashed in it. They chased each other. They squealed elk squeals of delight. Danger averted, Zillah and I settled back into bed and listened to the elk playing until we drifted to sleep. The next morning, I looked across the lake and one lone cow stood at the opposite shore. She trotted off into the forest when she saw me. At that moment I realized I alone had experienced that marvelous interaction.

After several years, I still treasure that evening near Fish Lake and I was reminded how special it was recently on two wildlife encounters.

The 1^st encounter occurred while walking around the grounds at American Camp in the San Juan National Historical Park. I had received advice from a couple who lived on the island regarding which fork in the trail would be the best. Their advice took we along the top of the bluffs overlooking Haro Strait towards Grandma’s Cove. The cove itself is well worth the walk but as I was just finishing up trying to capture the beauty of the cove, I turned to look into the brilliant brown eyes of a silver fox. She seemed to recognize that I was no threat to her at all and meandered around on the same bluff as I was on for 20 minutes while I happily photographed her. Finally, I decided it was time for me to head back and she decided to try hunting on another part of the bluff. All the time we spent together not a single other person joined us. It was my little moment with this beautiful creature.

A few days later, I was attending an artist and photographer retreat at Mt Baker. While many of the participants were spread out through the meadows with their easels and tripods or hiking in groups to see cloud enshrouded views, I meandered through the meadow talking to photographers and artists about the colors and inspirations. After a bit – close to lunchtime – I started back to the lodge along the road and surprised a couple of ptarmigan taking refuge in some bushes beside the road. Cars passed by as I quickly created a few images of one little gal eyeing me before jumping off her little rock. I couldn’t wait to get back to the lodge and look at the images and smiling to myself.