| 822 | Finch Lake and Pear Lake |
2013-06-13 |
Pear Lake
On Wednesday, day 3, we decided to up our difficulty level and hike to Finch Lake and then on to Pear Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park. The hike would be about 16 miles roundtrip.
Starting at the not so early hour of 8am, we left the Wild Basin Trailhead and headed up along the St Vrain Creek. This section of the trail is usually very crowded with hikers but, due to it being early season, we walked alone. It was a great experience.
Turning at Calypso Cascades (the bridge was out) we climbed steadily to join the Finch Lake Trail. It was getting hot as we continued across the old burns and down to Finch Lake at about 6 miles from the trailhead. We saw one hiker along the far shore of the lake as we made a hasty break. It was still two more miles to Pear Lake.
Finch Lake
After we crossed Pear Creek, the rest of the trail was almost continuous snow. It was a fun excursion as we tried to find where we thought the trail should go! Soon we were at the lake and then after filtering water, we began the return hike to the trailhead. It was a great day.
A few Finch-Pear notes ...
We saw a very friendly Clarks Nutcracker (a large gray bird) at Finch Lake.
Also at Finch Lake was a large fox. He was too quick and would not pose for a picture!
Two trail runners zipped by us on a very steep section of trail.
At Pear Lake we found a boulder to sit behind out of the wind. Someone had been there before us and had built a nice seat platform. The seat faced the sun and was exceptionally warm and comfortable.
Back at Finch Lake we had to climb a good sized hill. We wanted to break at a creek near the top of the hill, but there was a large group there already.
We decided to return via the Finch Lake Trail to the Finch Lake Trailhead (instead of the Wild Basin Trailhead). It was very hot and there was a long section of taller-than-should-ever-be-normal steps. Going down the hill was tough. We met a group of backpackers who had just climbed the steps, we would say they were relieved to have those steps completed.
Passing through an aspen park (as in open space)
Below the steps, the rest of the trail was outstanding.
It was a long day and if we wanted to be tested, we found a good exam for us.
Wish you were here.
Happy Finch and Pear Lakes trails