Fourth Recess Lake
Part 4
The next day I explored up to the small lake above Trail lakes, Needle lake, named for the needle like spire that rises over it. While there, thunderstorms brewed in the valley to the east of the mountains, boiling high enough to be seen rising over the the 12000 ft Sierra crest.
After I finished at Needle Lake I headed back to camp for a nap. By the time I woke up large cotton ball clouds rolled across the sky, condensing in one spot, boiling over to another spot, only to evaporate and reform again elsewhere.
There is a small ridge that rises to the west of the smaller of the two trail lakes that I decided to climb to see if I could see 4th recess lake. The view that awaited me left me awestruck and speechless. Cliffs to the south reaching up from the lake to many sweeping benches carved out in steps until they ended in jagged spires of stone along the encircling ridge. The whole scene embellished in dappled light from the cotton ball clouds. From the benches above, down the towering cliffs tumbled a 650 foot waterfall, the roar of its cascades bringing me peaceful bliss. The lake lay far beneath me, filling the cirque which cradled it. That drained into a log jammed creek that disappeared into forest. Beyond the lake's edge and beneath a patchwork sky, lay a wide, low valley nestled gently within the mountainous landscape, a seemingly endless forest blanketing every inch.
Later that evening while back at trail lakes I enjoyed the alpine glow along it's shores.
Fourth Recess Lake
Part 4
The next day I explored up to the small lake above Trail lakes, Needle lake, named for the needle like spire that rises over it. While there, thunderstorms brewed in the valley to the east of the mountains, boiling high enough to be seen rising over the the 12000 ft Sierra crest.
After I finished at Needle Lake I headed back to camp for a nap. By the time I woke up large cotton ball clouds rolled across the sky, condensing in one spot, boiling over to another spot, only to evaporate and reform again elsewhere.
There is a small ridge that rises to the west of the smaller of the two trail lakes that I decided to climb to see if I could see 4th recess lake. The view that awaited me left me awestruck and speechless. Cliffs to the south reaching up from the lake to many sweeping benches carved out in steps until they ended in jagged spires of stone along the encircling ridge. The whole scene embellished in dappled light from the cotton ball clouds. From the benches above, down the towering cliffs tumbled a 650 foot waterfall, the roar of its cascades bringing me peaceful bliss. The lake lay far beneath me, filling the cirque which cradled it. That drained into a log jammed creek that disappeared into forest. Beyond the lake's edge and beneath a patchwork sky, lay a wide, low valley nestled gently within the mountainous landscape, a seemingly endless forest blanketing every inch.
Later that evening while back at trail lakes I enjoyed the alpine glow along it's shores.