Dylan backpacking to Demaris Lake

Last weekend Dylan and Dougie went backpacking by themselves for the weekend. Dylan and I went to REI about 10 times to get all the things he needed including a new tent (we had one but the Hawaii humidity turns everything to mold and rust in two years or less so it needed to be replaced), sleeping bag (same story), camp stove (ours was 12 years old and exploded a fire ball that burned off half of Dylan’s eyebrows when we went camping with the girls), maps of the area, super powered mosquito spray, and new hiking boots. Our member dividend this year is going to be so big!!

Dylan decided to hike from Pole Creek Trailhead with an original plan to hike to Camp Lake at the base of Middle Sister mountain (really a dormant volcano). But since it’s still so early in the season, we realized there would probably be too much snow to get to Camp Lake and made a back up plan for him to hike to Demaris Lake instead. Plus, winds at Camp Lake were expected to top 25 MPH. 

He set out around noon on a Friday with his 45 pound pack and loyal 5.5 month old pup. He said he was able to follow the trail for about half the 6 mile hike until snow pack hid it. It’s a good thing we also bought a GPS unit (thanks REI) because he started wandering around in what felt like circles trying to find the lake. He eventually found it, probably an extra 45 minutes later than if he had gone straight there. 

He found a beautiful camp spot on the sunny west side of the lake with views of all three sisters mountains (North, Middle, and South - all dormant volcanoes). His only companions were Dougie and the mosquitos (for a couple hours before the wind kicked up) and he had the best night ever exploring and listening to podcasts. He came back on Saturday afternoon and it’s a good thing he did because the temperature dropped and it snowed all night Saturday!! 

On the trail, North Sister in the background

All the mountains around here are volcanic so sometimes you see giant ancient lava boulders like this in the middle of the forest.

He made it to Demaris Lake thanks to the GPS unit. Technology rules!

Demaris Lake and Middle Sister, I believe

His camp with our sweet, strong, and loyal Dougie

He had to cross this stream using the snow pack, which was apparently really scary because the water was rushing below it and he had no idea how stable it was. 

Relaxing by the lake

A giant cliff drop off on the other side of the lake