06/19/08 Hiking Clear Lake Trail:
Low 40's, maybe high 30's this morning... bright blue sky though.
The Highline Trail runs along the east side of the Lower Green River Lake. Once the upper portion of the Lower Lake is reached you find the junction of the Clear Lake Trail. I wanted to do this trail because I had lost a very nice picture of the canyon and peaks and wanted to replace it with a new one.
The 2 miles along the Lower Green River Lake is great all the way because Table Top mountain is sandwiched between two other sloping peaks the entire way. The best photos are had near the upper portion of the lake when trees give way to open space and a clear view of the peaks. When the day is calm there's also a great reflection of the peaks.
When the Clear Lake Trail junction appears you hang a left and go up an easy incline to some very nice falls created by Clear Creek. The trail flattens out and passes along the edge of a burn area with a large meadow on the right.
In a mile or so there's a bridge across Clear Creek leading to Slide Lake. This is a pretty steep trail that goes up and over the ridge (I think) on the far side of the meadow.
I went a little farther until I saw a horse camp and a very large tent. I thought I had taken the lost picture along this section but couldn't find the spot I had taken it from so I turned back.
I did the 6-7 mile trip without any undo pain. I did find myself stepping off the trail a couple of times and stopped for 10 minutes to rest up. I had several other lengthy stops too but got back to the trailhead in pretty good shape. This was my first real hike in a month what with snow and rain and cold.
06/20/08 Hiking Clear Lake Trail:
Mid/upper 40's last night and bright skies this morning. Decided to try the Clear Lake Trail again to see if I could improve my time. I did but I wasn't impressed. I knocked 1/2 hour off with fewer and shorter breaks. I was pretty tired when I got back to the trailhead though.06/22/08 Hiking Clear Lake Trail:
Mid/upper 40's last night and overcast this morning. Took a day off to rest my legs. I left camera, GPS, and a water fileter behind and tried the Clear Lake Trail again with better luck. Came across a couple I met on the Pyramid Lake Trail last year while backpacking and we hooked up for a while. They're locals (at least 6 months a year) and were out after some trout.
They stopped to fish and I went on a little farther and picked them up on the way back. We stop and chatted on the way for maybe 1/2 hour altogether. I stopped for lunch and they kept going. The last mile or so was a struggle but I still knocked another 20 minutes off my time (I think).
06/24/08 Hiking Clear Lake Trail:
One last time. Upper 40's this morning and a bright blue sky. Clouds moved in and out throughout the day.
I finally got the time for the 1st 2 miles down to 1 hour which I think is pretty good for me at this time. I went another mile and then took a long break and then had an early lunch while waiting for the sun to move for a better photo of the peaks at the end of the long meadow.
I was able to do the same 2 miles at about the same time on the return trip. I stopped one or two times on the way back and had to sit down before tackling the last small uphill stretch to the parking lot.