Tour des Lacs au Desolation

With the 52,000 acre Moonlight Fire raging north of Lake Tahoe, we’ve had hazy skies all week.  While forecasts have optimistically noted that the smoke would soon leave the basin, it has not, leaving us with hazy skies more reminiscent of Los Angeles than Lake Tahoe.

Regardless, the dog and I went hiking today, since the double whammy of Sunday and post-Labor Day meant far fewer people at the Glen Alpine trailhead.  In the interest of Princess Wubber’s need for regular water, I selected a trail that would pass by 5 lakes – Half Moon, Susie, Heather, Aloha and Clyde.  The latter is a favorite of mine, though it’s pretty far in, nearly 2 miles past Aloha over Mosquito Pass.  But its relative distance means that in addition to deep azure waters surrounded by granite cliffs you get a lake to yourself, making the slog totally worth it.

The hazy sky gave all the lakes a steelier sheen than we usually see, and for some reason (global warming?) there were excessive clouds of buzzing gnats at Half Moon and the north end of Susie, something I’ve not seen before. 

However, the water was refreshing, the dog sampled sticks of varying sizes to complement her lake swims, and the few people we did encounter were pretty nice. 

Total mileage – 19.7 miles over a leisurely eight hours.  Both the dog and I are pretty tired right now – she more than me though.