Hike: Coldwater Lake, Toutle, WA

 

Getting There

From Portland, take I-5 north to Castle Rock (Exit 49) - 51.2 miles. Then, take the Spirit Lake Hwy (WA-504) for 45.7 miles to Coldwater Lake.

The Hike

AllTrails map

Length: 8.17 mi
Elev. gain: 840 ft
Moving time: 3:05:11
Total time: 3:34:21
Avg pace: 22:40
Calories: 1,864

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was such a nice day out, 2nd or 3rd really sunny & warm day of 2023. I started the hike around 1pm.

This side of the Lakes Trail is mostly flat (I got about 840 ft of gain from small ups & downs). There are a few spots where it's a shear drop to the shoreline and several spots perfect for relaxing and getting down the water.

I finally encountered a creek crossing that required getting in the water. When I first reached the obstacle I wasn't sure what to do. I studied the options and hemmed & hawed. After a couple of minutes, several hikers came through and watched how they fared. They all went through with boots on. I still didn't like the idea of getting my boots soaked so I thought I'd take off my socks and at least have those dry (until I stuck them in the wet boots).

Then, another pair of hikers came through and went barefoot. Again, I watched them cross safely. No sharp rocks and they weren't slippery. I tied my boots together by the shoelaces, stuffed my socks in my front pocket, and rolled my pant legs up. I used my hiking poles for a proper 4-point stance.

On the other side, I sat down to dry my feet and put on my dry socks and boots! Success!

At this point, I was still considering do the loop but I kept eyeing the snow on the ridge on opposite side of lake. I could see a snowy line cutting across, so it was going to be slow going without microspikes or snow shoes. I looked at the time and started to second guess my plan.

I decided to just go to the end of the lake and come back when it's warmer and minus the snow. (Or, return with proper gear).

The end of the lake seemed like a mirage, the closer I got, the more distance there seemed to be. I crossed a few more creeks and kept going. I got to lake access trail and made that my turnaround spot after taking some photos.

---

On the way back I encountered a few more hikers and could here a couple of people near the shorelines off-trail.

I was ready for that creek crossing again. The conditions had changed. The water was muddy as it flowed into the lake. The water through the creek/falls was noticeably brownish and flowing more vigorously. I took off my boots & socks and stepped carefully through the water. 

On the other side, I sat down and put my dry socks & boots back on. When I stood up, my lower back seized up. Uh oh! Not good. I had pain shooting down my leg.

When hiking at BRSP on Thursday, I had twinge of back pain when I sat briefly on my way back to the Hardy Ridge Trail from Phlox Point.

I was still about 2.1 miles from the trailhead. The good news is that the trail was more or less flat and not too many obstacles. (I imagined being up on the ridge with this problem. Yikes).

I took my time and relied heavily on my hiking poles to stay upright and steady. Despite the discomfort, I stopped to enjoy the views and snap a couple of photos. Such a gorgeous place.

As I got closer to Kim Island, I could see a few kayakers and knew I only had a 1/2 mile to go.

I was so glad to make it back to the car. Whew!

I've been focused on foot, ankle, knee pain - I hadn't thought about dealing with debilitating back pain. Need to improve my core strength.

Mt St Helens

Near the end of the Lakes Trail

 

Hike: Hummocks Trail #229, Toutle, MSH, WA

Distance: 2.4 miles
Type: Loop
Elevation Gain: 246 feet
High Point: n/a
Duration: 1 hrs

Cool little trail across from the Coldwater Lake parking lot. It's also the last parking lot for the Boundary Trail since the road (Spirit Lake Highway) to Johnston Ridge Observatory is closed (March 2020).

https://www.alltrails.com/explore/trail/us/washington/hummocks-trail

Hike: South Coldwater Trail to Lakes Trail Loop

Distance: 11.6 miles
Type: Loop
Elevation Gain: 2011 feet
High Point: 3948 feet
Duration: N/A

 

The Hike 

We parked at the boat launch and headed out on the west side of the lake. It hugs the shoreline pretty closely until the far end of the lake. From there it climbs up some switchbacks.

There was still snow covering the trail in spots as it was just mid to late spring.

We'd assumed the trail was same on the east side of the lake, i.e. hugging the shoreline. When it didn't, we should have turned back but instead forged ahead.

At some point we lost the trail and we traversed the hillside, sometimes through knee-deep snow.

We were woefully unprepared for this outing: not familiar with the trail, a late start to the hike, under-dressed for the weather, little water if any.

We hiked SW on the ridge as best we could but eventually it got dark.

There was a glow on the horizon but nothing to illuminate where we were. I remember steeping through a bush and down a little embankment. I imagined 100 ft drops that I'd seen on previous visits to the area. Scary.

We finally made it to a point on the ridge where we could see the lake and amber lights at the parking lot, hundreds of feet below. I think we futilely yelled for "help" a few times.

It started to sprinkle a little so we tried for find anything to shelter against. There are no standing trees for many miles, esp. in the blast zone. It would have been epic if we'd been there on purpose.

By luck or fate, we found some logging equipment, it's wheels deflated & half buried in the dirt. 

Not much of a shelter by at least something to lean against. There were a few logs nearby that we were able to pull some tinder to start a little fire. S. had some notebook paper and I had a lighter so we got a fire going.

It was so quiet out there. Just wind and far off howls of wolves or coyotes, seemingly miles away.

Neither of us got much sleep. Every so often the fire needed more wood. I remember N. didn't even have long pants. Like I said, we were so not prepared.

Just before dawn I was so parched. I blinked repeatedly trying to will my eyes to see through the darkness. I could see the difference in color between the dirt and a little embankment of snow.

It was more or less solid. I scraped a little bit off the top with my fingernails and put it in my mouth. Finally some moisture, hydration, even just a thimble's amount.

With each minute, the sky brightened. We were anxious to get moving and let the fire die out.

The trail was discernible at this point. We continued downhill through the curves. It was easy to see there was no way we could have done this without a flashlight.

We were so glad to finally reach the road. My mind was already thinking about what I wanted to eat & drink as we walked back to the parking lot.

All I had in the truck was a bit of water from the ice I'd had in my fountain drink the day before. 

Soon we were driving out of the park. A park ranger passed us just before the gate he'd just opened. I'm sure it was confusing to see us coming out at 6 am. We camped there but not on purpose. LOL.

Say what you will about Burger King, but that breakfast sandwich we had in Castle Rock tasted so &^% good.

https://www.alltrails.com/explore/trail/us/washington/south-coldwater-trail-to-lakes-trail