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Granite Lake and Four Lakes Loop, Trinity Alps, June 2020

Granite Lake and Four Lakes Loop, Trinity Alps, June 2020

by Sarah JarrettPosted onGet Out!
Deer Lake. P. Jarrett.
The ever-popular Deer Lake, on the Four Lakes Loop, in the Trinity Alps. June 27, 2020. Photo by P. Jarrett.

On June 18, 2020, my husband and I, along with my sisters and one of my husband’s brothers, did an 11-mile day hike to Granite Lake in the Trinity Alps.  The trail and camping area were crowded, but still offered respite from summer heat and the omnipresent awareness of COVID-19.

False & Mt. Eddy lupines. S. Jarrett.
I was thrilled to see Mount Eddy lupine, Lupinus croceus, a true lupine, growing next to a yellow false lupine, Thermopsis gracilis, in the first hour of the hike. June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.
False lupine. S. Jarrett.
Both lupines are nitrogen fixers in the pea family, but the distinctive three leaflets of the false lupine are a dead give away. June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.
Ladys-slipper and five-finger fern. S. Jarrett.
If only I had taken my time with this picture of California lady’s-slipper, Cypripedium californicum (a CNPS List 4 plant), and five-finger maidenhair fern, Adiantum aleuticum! June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.
Western azalea. S. Jarrett.
As we ascended, we hiked through thick, fragrant western azaleas, Rhododendron occidentale, in bloom. June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.
Pitcher plant. S. Jarrett.
Cobra lily or California pitcher plant, Darlingtonia californica, stole the show, as usual. June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.
Star-flowered false Solomon’s-seal. S. Jarrett.
This plant had been eluding me for some time and I finally sat down to look it up. Star-flowered false Solomon’s-seal, Maianthemum stellatum. June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.
Waterfall. S. Jarrett.
This beautiful waterfall filled the glacier-carved basin with its thundering sound. June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.
Bald-hip roase. S. Jarrett.
Bald-hip rose, Rosa gymnocarpa, happily blooming at 75 ºF. June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.
Pete fly fishing in corn lily. S. Jarrett.
My brother-in-law Pete has been learning how to fly fish, so my husband shared his favorite fishing habitat with him: low-gradient meadow streams. Pete is not a plant nerd, so I’m sure he had no idea he was walking through a stand of California corn lily, Veratrum californicum. June 2020. Photo by Sarah Jarrett.

Plants seen along the trail that are not pictured above:

  • Queen’s cup (Clintonia uniflora)
  • Leopard lily (Lilium pardalinum)
  • Spreading phlox (Phlox diffusa)
  • Western star flower (Lysimachia latifolia)
  • Sierra gooseberry (Ribes roezlii)
  • Pussypaw (Calyptridium umbellatum)
  • One-seeded pussypaw (Calyptridium monospermum)
  • Virgate phacelia (Phacelia heterophylla var. virgata)
  • The Eddy’s stonecrop (Sedum kiersteadiae)
  • Philadelphia fleabane (Erigeron philadelphicus)
  • Purple milkweed (Asclepias cordifolia)

This day hike to Granite Lake prompted a short backpacking trip a couple weeks later.  June 26, 2020, found me, my husband and his two brothers, headed back to Granite Lake, with the intention of hiking the Four Lakes Loop the next day.

Sarah, husband, and his two brothers, and scarlet gilia. P. Jarret.
I joined my husband and his two brothers to climb out of the Granite Lake basin enroute to the Four Lakes Loop on Saturday, June 27, 2020. Scarlet gilia, Ipomopsis aggregata, covered the rocky slopes. Photo by P. Jarret.
Meadow. P. Jarrett.
When we reached the saddle below Sawtooth Ridge, we were thrilled to see an intact meadow below… and a little daunted by the switchbacks ahead of us! June 27, 2020. Photo by P. Jarrett.
Luella Lake. P. Jarrett.
We hiked counter-clockwise around the loop, arriving at Luella Lake first. I dunked my head in the water for some high-quality air-conditioning. June 27, 2020. Photo by P. Jarrett.
Diamond Lake. P. Jarrett.
Diamond Lake was my favorite lake on the Four Lakes Loop. I counted 70 hikers on the trail on Saturday, June 27, 2020. Photo by P. Jarrett.
Deer Lake from the southeast. P. Jarrett.
After we ascended toward Deer Lake (shown here from the southeast) we passed a boulder field to our left, a few hundred yards below the trail. While we had stopped to swim, a large boulder came loose spontaneously and thundered down the side of the basin! Everyone yelled to the people camped on the southeastern side of the lake to run and they sprinted away from the falling boulder. Fortunately, the boulder lodged behind some larger rocks before landing in the camping area. The campsites on the northeast side of the lake look much safer! June 27, 2020. Photo by P. Jarrett.

Granite Lake makes a great long day hike or overnight trip, but the hike up and over the saddle to Four Lakes Loop is strenuous. If you are interested in hiking the Four Lakes Loop, you might consider hiking from the Long Canyon trailhead to Deer Lake. Despite the switchbacks and steep terrain, we saw kids of all ages hiking and fishing with their families. I would definitely recommend this area! -Sarah Jarrett