Leg 7 - Echo Lake to Barker Pass

Well. That was quite a day. Left the house at 4:00 am, and got to Echo Lake at about 5:45. By the time I found the trailhead, filled out a Wilderness Area permit, and got set to go, it was 6:00.



Echo Lake sure was beautiful in the morning - and quiet. I felt like the sound of my footsteps on the rocky granite path must have traveled for miles.



Here was a sign that I didn't expect to see - apparently they run a water taxi service to drop people off at the far end of Echo Lake. I guess I was a bit too early for that...



After awhile, I entered the Desolation Wilderness Area. Kinda sounded like it would be lonely out there, but that wasn't the case.



After this, it was just one alpine lake after another. First, passed by Aloha lake, which had some campers by it but seemed to be kind of low:




Then skirted the edge of Susie Lake, which was very beautiful but didn't have any campsites:



Passed yet another lake, Gilmore Lake, then had a big pass to climb over - Dicks Pass. This was the high point of the day, at 9974 feet. Great views coming down the other side of more lakes - here are Dick's lake, Fontanillis Lake, and Velma Lakes.



There were lots of people down in this basin - I think it's a popular day hike in from Emerald Bay. Lots of dogs, too - for awhile there, I was the only person without a dog! The trails got kind of confused down here, too - I think I left the main trail for half a mle or so, but hooked back up with it right near Velma Lake.

From here, the trail changed totally - the trail surface had been granite, either powdery of in big, hard-to-walk-on chunks. Now it went into the woods, and had that nice bark-dust surface that feels good on the feet. Miles and miles, now, of tromping through the forest, with very few landmarks. The first major thing was 8.5 miles later, Richardson Lake.



Slightly farther on, the next landmark was the Rubicon Trail, an OHV (Off-Highway Vehicle) trail. Not too exciting where I crossed it, but I had to have a picture of myself crossing the Rubicon. (Jeez, I'm a nerd.)



Only had about 4 miles left at this point, but about a mile into that, I ran out of water. I had a 100 oz bladder filled at the beginning, and went all the way through it. Those last three miles were pretty thirsty - luckily, some people that were camping at the Barker Pass trailhead had some extra water they shared with me. Here I am at the end:



So, almost exactly nine hours on the trail, and I only ran for about an hour of that. Pretty sore today, but I'll live. Only have 16 miles left to complete.