We are so lucky that these are two of the closest hikes to us. They are both about a 20 minute drive from our cabin and they are fairly easy hikes with some of the most stunning peaks. The climate is so intense here that what I am used to seeing at 8-10K feet in the Sierras seems to be here at 3-5K.

One of the greatest things about the Lake 22 hike is the journey. The forest on this hike may be our favorite thus far. It is very rich and gentle and like everything up here, very wet.

The lake was named because it was the 22nd lake that the railway passed on its journey to Barlowe Pass. The hike follows 22 Creek for the most part, which flows between Lake 22 and the Stilliguamish

There are several really nice waterfalls along the way, as well.

It is so difficult to capture the beauty of moving water...

Token dog shot.

Yet another great thing about this hike is the view of the opposite ridge as you switchback up a talus avalanche zone. We sometimes find it ironic that no trees means a good view, especially when we are in a clear cut.

Once we are at the lake (at least in Spring) it is too hard to get around to get a good shot of the whole lake, but you can see from this photo that most of the lake is frozen and there are major avalanches happening from the slope on the opposite side.

This is a shot of the lake in late May after it had melted out a bit. The last time I was there, there was no snow left on the trail around the lake.

While Heather Lake itself is equally spectacular to Lake 22, the hike itself isn't quite as stunning. Most of it is through second growth forest, in which you can see remnants of the historical logging. Luckily, it is shorter and starts at a higher elevation, so it is a shorter hike overall.

One cool discovery that we made is Heather Creek Falls which aren't on the Heather Lake Trail, but can be viewed from a washed out Forest Service road nearby.