Enchantments in a Day

Enchantments in a Day - Part 2

From Inspiration Lake things started looking very familiar from my last trip. The lower basin route wraps around the jagged Prusik Peak which would change in appearance as we continued further down. We hiked along Perfection, Sprite and Leprechaun lakes. Each lake was connected via beautiful steams and waterfalls which perhaps more than anywhere else in the area lived up to the name enchanting. We were soon down to Lake Vivian the last (or first depending on the route) of the Enchantment Lakes. Far off in the distance Snow Lakes could be seen reminding us we had a long way to go before the hike was done. In fact we had over half the hike remaining and the spectacular portition was over.

The hike down to Snow Lakes was amongst steep granite slabs. It wasn't pleasant, but better than hiking down through the boulders below Aasgard pass. We took a final break at the Upper Snow Lake. The water was significantly lower than my previous visit. For reasons not entirely clear the Snow Lakes are partially drained during the summer. The shore line was a bit of an eyesore as what looked to be excavation lines were revealed by the lowered water.

We continued along the upper lake and crossed the man made dam between and upper and lower lakes. Last time the dam crossing was a bit dicey as water was flowing over it, but this time it was dry. We continued down to Nada Lake and here we could see the Snow Lakes water blasting out of a drainage pipe. Why did someone go through so much engineering work to do this? It's such a contrast to the pristine lakes above it.

After Nada Lake we still had several miles to go and there was little to see along the way. With about a mile and half remaining we could see the trailhead parking lot far below us. Our sore legs had to endure several more switch backs before finally getting down. The sun had set along the way, but we made it to the trailhead without a need of headlights.

This ended up being the best hike I've done. Few places can compare to the beauty of the Enchanted Lakes area. We were fortunate to have a sunny day to do so which made the experience even better. I'd like to return, but as multi night backpack trip so I can fully explore the area.