The shuttle bus that takes you from Alta to the trailhead at Cecret Lake isn't operational, so that meant I had to hoof it. It has been unseasonably warm and while I was expecting cooler temperatures up in the mountains, it was still in the upper 70's / low 80's. I decided to take the service road -- a dirt road that is the long way to the lake. There were plenty of opportunities to see wildflowers, even though they aren't all 100% in.
The dirt road is about a 2 mile easy walk to the trail head. Upon reaching the trail head you have another .6 miles before you reach the lake itself. The last .1 miles of the hike is the hardest, almost a straight ascent up. There are some fantastic views up there and the lake was pretty much deserted. With the road being closed and most people not willing to walk the nearly 3 miles to the lake probably took a hit on the number of visitors.
The lake (a pond by midwest standards) was pretty much deserted, and was plagued with some annoying flies. It was hard to relax there without having to constantly swat at them. I did get a wicked sunburn up there though.
I decided to take the trail back to the parking lot and that was a lot faster. It easily took about 75 minutes to get to the lake and I was back at my car within 40 - 45 minutes. Going downhill is so much nicer.
Enjoy the photos...
Snow on the trail in late June?!?!?
Pretty Flowers
Rock climbers near Cecret Lake
hiking down from Cecret Lake
Cecret Lake
Me, at 8500+ feet
Me, at 8500+ feet
Me, at 8500+ feet
Meadows full of flowers
I'd love to run this.
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