Starting Point: Echo Lakes. (1 hr 20 about from Folsom). Very popular trail, so often met hikers and backpackers. Not exactly crowded but don't look for a solitary experience.
As we hiked along the trail along the eastern shore of the lake, we saw several ospreys diving into the lake to catch fish.
I went on my first group hike with this excursion. I wanted to walk with like-minded folks, and I wanted to visit hikes I wouldn't otherwise likely visit alone.
The folks in the group were welcoming and generous, and I felt very comfortable with them. One thing about walking with a group, however, is that the group sets the pace. That means that, with this particular group at least, we tended to walk at a quicker pace than I would normally have chosen. I'm fit, but I like to look around and enjoy the scenery and not just blow past it on a walk. On this hike, however, I noticed that I didn't have that much time to just look around on the hike; the trail was pretty technical, so I spent much of the time looking down, and when I did look up and around, I found myself falling behind the group. Additionally, I've realized that, with my bum knee, I'm just not a fast hiker.
The disconnect was the disparity between the purposes for the hike. I think much of the group was out for a workout with a side-dish of views whereas I was looking for views with a side-dish of workout. I went out to hike, yes, but not at the expense of looking around and enjoying the views. Why go all that way and not look up, I wonder? Perhaps they did look up, but I found it hard to do so at that speed. No-one's fault; just an observation. I think, though, that this dichotomy is inherent to any group activity: the question is how best to accomodate different goals.
'T'any rate, this hike is a fine one person or two person hike--plenty of people already on the trail to witness any disaster and help if you need it, and then you can pause to see the views.
Weather: starting out around 10, the weather was mild--low 70s, so no fleece or jacket--and dry. An isolated storm was forecast, but while the sky became a little threatening, with a rumble or so of thunder, only a few raindrops fell. Most people added long sleeves at Lake Aloha but quickly removed them on the way back down again. A very pleasant weather day.
Below: Starting Point: Echo Lakes
Below: Early on the trail: people had a despairingly fast pace at first, but eventually, people settled down into groups of similar paced folks.
Below: View of the north end of Echo Lake from the trail. You can rent chalets here apparently.
Below: Another view from the trail. Trail conditions varied from flattish hard packed dirt to granite marbles to clamboring over large rocks (but not boulders). Always interesting.
Below: Looking back to the Upper Echo Lake.
Below: An example of the large granite rocks we clambored over on the way to Aloha.
Below: Resting and regrouping along the trail:
Below: Views along the trail:
Below: A pretty good example of why Desolation Wilderness is called thusly. Granite crags and boulders all around. Beautiful but, yes, desolate. An amazing place to be.
Below: Lake Aloha, finally, after some trail sign confusion, after this year's drought. This arid desert is actually the lake bed.
Below: Finally, the water part of Lake Aloha. Well worth the hike (6.0 miles to Aloha from Echo Lakes).
Below: The early part of the return trail was on a different trail to the one we took to the get to the lake. (The trail signs petered out once you got close to Lake Aloha, and with the arid lake bed, it was hard to see where the lake was. As a result, we ended up on a different trail--which was fine.) Here's a huge boulder pile we passed. It looks like a giant lost his marbles. :)
Below: I don't know how the bark of this fallen tree ended up in a spiral, but it looked interesting.
Below: Image from the return trail:
Below: View from just above trailhead on return trip: you can see Lake Tahoe in the background.
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