Saturday's main event:

3 mile hike up to Little 8 Mile Lake

and 1/2 mile more up to Big 8 Mile Lake
Crossing the creek on the fallen tree bridge is sure to be remembered as a highlight of this hike by our adventurous crew. Seen here, Peter and Enoch take it nice & easy coming across as the others behind them prepare for their crossings. (We found out later that a more cautious group ahead of us crossed on hands & knees.)

Lunch at the shore of Little 8 Mile Lake began with a safety talk about why we would not be swimming.

Having fun at the lake, while not allowed to swim (safe Scouting) meant negotiating a fallen tree or two. Following Riley's lead, see Joseph and Judah taking cautious steps along the log in a test of balance prowess. Shortly thereafter, a few of our guys waded up to their knees (or maybe it was their thighs?) and took a quick plunge at the shore line (this activity was only for those not wearing cotton). The water was so frigid that anything more than a quick step in & out was pretty well impossible.

After lunch at the little lake, about half the hikers continued up half a mile to the upper lake, which provided vistas well worth the extra effort required.

Coming down the trail, we stopped frequently. Besides the fading energy levels we also had a few "hot spots" on our feet to be treated with good old duct tape. (See Tim offering a patch to Enoch to help prevent blisters.)

Our last big adventure on the trail was finding the giant garter snake who had just eaten his lunch.

Unfortunately, being held upside-down for the viewing pleasure of our Scouts meant that gravity got the best of his nibbles, which... well, you get the point! (I spare you the photographic evidence of his lost lunch.)



A few drops of rain began to fall just as we reached the trail head and made way to the vehicles. Great timing, wouldn't you say?