Glacier View Campground, Lake Wenatchee, Wenatchee National Forest

usbackroads destination-Glacier View Campground, Lake Wenatchee, Wenatchee National Forest

This campground is named for the view of Glacier Peak.  Glacier Peak is Washington's states unknown volcano.  It is one of the five major volcanoes in Washington state.   It is smack dab in the middle of the Glacier Peak Wilderness and is seldom seen outside of the Wilderness Area.  But here at the boat launch you can see it off in the distance.  Oh, that handy snag laying in the lake next to the boat launch is actually a Forest Service breakwater.  Looks nice, in keeping with the boat launch and campground.  Most people do not realize that it was not there naturally!!   Well, the breakwater is my favorite part of this campground...maybe the only part.

When I was working for the Forest Service I walked through this campground several times trying to figure out a way to "fix' it given the topography.  I finally gave up and suggested to the Ranger District that they remove the campground.   Well, I was told that this is a very popular campground and the public would not accept it being closed.

Well, take a look at this picture.  This is the campground road.   No, that is not overflow parking.  That is the parking for the campsites!!   Oh, and a trailer turnaround?  Well, forget that.

These are the campsites from the "parking area".  That is a pretty steep slope down to the tent.  Accessibility?  Well maybe for a mountain goat family.

And for all this here is the fee board.  No that is not a misprint.  It is fourteen dollars a day.

But the people keep coming all summer long for that view shown at the top of the blog.  If you camp here bring your tent and kayak or canoe.  Oh, don't forget the life jackets.  The lake does get very windy and the water is very cold.  Drownings are common on the lake.  Still want to come??  Fishing is poor, except during the sockeye run which happens every two years.  Then the lake is covered with boats.  In fact, there is a rather poor boat launch at the campground.  Good luck during sockeye season.

There are a couple of larger campsites next to the boat launch.  You will have plenty of company all day long as people come and go, but a small trailer can fit in one of the sites.

 

One other reason to visit Glacier View is the trail to Hidden Lake.  The original trailhead is just west of the boat launch.  However, about 10 years ago the Forest Service put in another trailhead above the campground.  Take a look at that trailhead.  Now that is good design.   I probably should have argued for moving the entire campground up to the trailhead!!   Here is the link to the trail description:  Hidden Lake Trail.

This is a great trail for kids or folks that do not hike.  A great place to walk and have a picnic.  The lake has very small trout in it.  A great "stroll" through the woods.

Next posting more information on Lake Wenatchee area. 

Snowpatch Spire, Bugaboo Mountains, British Columbia

High in the Canadian Rockies in the Bugaboo Range are some of the most famous rock spires in the world.  We have, with one exception, named our dogs after places in the Canadian Rockies.  So Jasper, Takawa, Yoho, and now Bugaboo have all been fine hunting dogs and part of the family.  Well, Takawa was a fine yellow lab family dog.   The one exception was Wyatt, a little black lab, that was to be our daughters dog and named by her.  She was too cool, for a Canadian Rockies name.

Susie has decided she has had enough of bird hunting dogs.  They are large, rambunctious, and during hunting season absolutely pay her no mind.  She has evidently also decided that since she has just turned sixty that a little, lap dog is in order.  Born on April 30th and moved into our household on July 5th was a very little white dog.  All 4.25 lbs of him.

What to name him??  My preference was for either Sicamous and we could call him moose for short or Assissibone and we could call him, well never mind.  However, doing some google searches I found a link to Bugaboo Spire.   Looking at Bugaboo and the new dog together there is a definitely similarity so I focused my search in the Bugaboo Mountains for a name that would fit him.

This is a photo of Snowpatch Spire.  Click on the link and you will see why it is the perfect name for him.  No, not the spire, but that little patch of snow that hangs on to the spire throughout the summer season!

Snowpatch is doing his best to fit in.  On our front lawn, he immediately started chasing a robin.  The robin gave him a look of disdain and hopped slowly away.  Bugaboo was soon rolling on the grass because he was laughing so hard.

So here is a picture of Snowpatch working hard on the job.  This is a working dog??

.