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After getting almost no sleep the night before because of the wind, we decided to look for
a new campsite. We walked further along the shore and into the forest, eventually finding a
good spot. The views weren't as good, but the forest would protect us from the wind. We
spent some time moving our campsite in the morning.
After the move, I explored the northwestern shore of the lake, which is pretty interesting.
It's not your basic shoreline, as there are actually one or two (or maybe more) little islands
in the lake. One I could hop onto, but the other was just out of reach. There are nicer
campsites jutting out into the lake, but are very exposed to the wind, so only consider
using those if the wind isn't present.
Granite Dome over Iceland Lake
Granite Dome over Iceland Lake
Channel in Iceland Lake
Channel in Iceland Lake
Granite Dome over Iceland Lake
Iceland Lake is a curved lake, so it's hard to really see all of it at once. It's larger than
first glance would suggest. Anyway, after taking some pictures around the lake, I decided to
go for a short day hike.
Granite Dome over Iceland Lake
Clouds over Iceland Lake
Clouds over Iceland Lake
Northeastern part of Iceland Lake
No one else wanted to join me, so I did the hike solo. I started by walking back toward Ridge
Lake. I saw a couple backpacks and bear canisters, but not the hikers who owned them. I
could only really visit the northern part of the lake. The western part is backed by steep
Granite Dome, and the eastern part is bordered by mostly impenetrable talus.
Ridge Lake
I then headed mostly east in an attempt to reach Sardella and Lewis Lakes. There were
large granite slabs to walk on, but the path was not always easy. I had to veer more
northeast at times to find a good path before I reached more level ground. From there,
I headed up toward the saddle where I knew Sardella Lake would be. Unfortunately I now
ran into lots of marshy areas which made the going tough. Eventually I saw some people
descending from above Ridge Lake (a bit to the south of where I started). There were
about 4 hikers and 2 dogs, doing a day hike from Lower Lewis Lake. I asked one of them
if it had been windy where they were last night, and they assured me it had been just as bad for
them.
Outlet stream from Sardella Lake
At least they knew the route, since they were now returning to camp. They had thought
about hiking up Granite Dome (which I had also briefly thought about), but abandoned it.
Now I basically followed them, though the path was pretty clear: up granite, avoiding
the marshy areas as much as possible. Eventually we topped out and came to Sardella Lake.
Sardella Lake
Sardella Lake
Sardella Lake and path up to Lewis Lakes
I stopped here to take some pictures while the others continued on up to Lewis Lake.
Eventually I went up after them. The path here is easier, as it's mostly solid granite on the
way up, with a snow field on the right. After a few minutes I reached Upper Lewis Lake.
I didn't really see any good places for camping here (maybe one small area at Upper Lewis, and
nothing to speak of at Sardella, though I wasn't paying too much attention). In my
opinion, Iceland Lake is the prettiest of the lakes I saw in the area.
Upper Lewis Lake
Upper Lewis Lake
I briefly considered climbing up to the top of the ridge to view Lower Lewis Lake, but decided
that was enough and turned around and headed back the way I came. When I returned to Sardella
Lake, I saw another group of day hikers at the far end of the lake. More people with more dogs
(I didn't count). They were just starting to hike along the shore when I left to return to
Iceland Lake.
Descending back to Sardella Lake
Sardella Lake
We had an early dinner and went into the tent early, but I popped back out to take
some sunset pictures. Later (around 3am), I came out to take some night pictures.
It was clear enough that I could see the Milky Way. It was actually clearer last
night, but it was too cold and windy (and I was too tired) to take pictures then.
Iceland Lake reflection
Granite Dome reflected in Iceland Lake
Granite Dome reflected in Iceland Lake
Granite Dome reflected in Iceland Lake
Granite Dome reflected in Iceland Lake
Milky Way above Iceland Lake
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