Ingalls Lake

In October, I visited Ingalls Lake. The weather was spectacular, and I assumed that it would probably be the last chance in 2007 to visit the high country before it became snowbound. No camping around the lake, so we set up our spot and then visited the lake. Ingalls lake is an amazing spot. It is set just below craggy Mt. Stuart in a basin of larches. We just missed the larches, which are conifers that turn bright yellow and lose their needles in the fall.

The lake was partially frozen over and it was quite an expedition to scramble over rocks and snow to get to the far end of the lake. On the way back, the sky clouded over and it got a bit colder. Just before sunset, the clouds lifted and Stuart began to glow. All around us, the mountains reflected the last rays of sun. When the alpenglow receeded, the clouds lit up. Later that night, the almost full moon on the surrounding snow and peaks rendered headlamps totally unnecessary. Sunrise was an unearthly orange glow.