Ptarmigan Lakes via Tonga Ridge and Fisher Lake – ~15.5 mi, ~2000 ft gain
It had been a number of years since my last backpacking trip, and I was itching to go, so I pestered Mike until he went and bought a pack and sleeping bag, and off we went.
It wasn’t without risk. A bunch of our gear was new (including water filter and GPS), and the plan was “I think there’s a trail that goes to this lake, and there should be one campsite at either this one or the other.” Add a forecast of cold weather with possible rain, and there was definitely potential for a miserable weekend. But everything ended up working out beautifully.
Mike had suggested that we do one of the standard lake day hikes as an overnight, which I almost immediately vetoed. I find that sort of elevation gain to be hard enough without a pack, and I find carrying a pack hard enough without the masses of day hikers scooting around me on a trail. And those also tend to be crowded. So I opened up my Wild Sky book and started looking for candidates.
The Tonga Ridge trail emerged as the winner. It’s a pretty easy hike because it starts at a high elevation. 3 miles and 500 feet of elevation gain to Sawyer Pass and the first available campsites, in case things did end up being harder than we expected. But past the official trail, there was Fisher Lake at 5 miles, Upper and Lower Ptarmigan Lakes around 7 miles, and a slew of trips past that if we felt ambitious: Terrace Lakes, climbing Terrace Mountain to Lake Clarice and Marmot Lake, etc. In the end, we didn’t end up going for the side trips, not even the 700 feet up Mount Sawyer near the beginning of the trail (too overcast for good views) because the solitude we found at Lower Ptarmigan Lake had us content to rest there for two nights. 
But first we had to get there. We grumbled up the slight uphill at the beginning of Tonga – Mike was carrying a 40 lb pack and I was carrying 30 – but cheered up a little at the sight of wildflowers (well, I did, anyway). As we got closer to Sawyer Pass, we started to notice berries along the trail. At the pass, there were fields of huckleberry plants with trails going through them. A nice snack along the way. :)
After the official trail ended, the hiking got a little rougher. There was one segment that was pretty steep and slightly muddy, without great foot holds. The trail also split several times, and we ended up taking the route that went over the highest point in the area, a mistake that we definitely avoided on the return trip. A few drops of rain had begun to fall as well. Finally, we made it to Fisher Lake. It didn’t look particularly spectacular with the overcast skies, but there were a number of empty campsites. We encountered a party of two that was occupying one of the better sites there. Mike wanted to drop his pack and camp there, but I passively rejected this suggestion by “looking for more campsites” until we were no longer at the lake. It wouldn’t have been a bad place to spend the night, but I knew there was more.
Okay, so I suck as a trail finder. We followed something of a trail for a short distance, then lost it. And essentially bushwhacked half of a mile or so, using the GPS to affirm that we were indeed heading towards a lake. Mike was getting pretty annoyed at me at this point, and the final straw was the giant boulder field we traversed at the end, which apparently was completely avoidable because there was a trail that went through the woods next to it. Oops.
Well, we made it to Lower Ptarmigan Lake. And found a small, perfectly situated campsite nestled right next to the lake, with lots of sitting rocks in the tent area as well as great flat rocks on the lake for enjoying views while eating a meal. And no one else was there. For the next two days and two nights, we only saw three other people at this lake, and they fished for awhile and went back to Fisher.
Dramatic scenery, unusual solitude. The boulder fields and steep rock walls rising up from behind the lake are beautiful, but the thought of rocks crashing down on the tent in the middle of the night was a little unsettling. And no one around for the bears to eat except us. There was a bit of “What’s that noise?!” the first night because it was so quiet that every sound stood out. We didn’t end up seeing any bears. And the small patches of evergreen trees growing out of the rock walls were pretty cool.
We were feeling a bit sore and lazy on the second day, so instead of wandering far, I flopped down on sunny rocks. Mike did some fishing and caught a few rainbow trout in the morning, but he didn’t feel like cooking them for lunch, so he threw them back in. In the afternoon, we traversed the boulder field down to the southern end of the lake and made our way to Upper Ptarmigan Lake. Another really pretty spot, with a shallow area full of huge tadpoles, small frogs, and a few salamander.
Backpacking involved “roughing" it” more than the typical car camping trip. I’d say food-wise, we ate pretty well. Those freeze-dried pouches end up being pretty tasty, and we did oatmeal and bagels for breakfast and tuna on bagels with olive oil for lunch. I guess it’s been awhile since I’ve slept on a Thermarest, and my back was really sore both mornings, but I did manage to get a decent sleep. The things that go with not having a toilet… well, that I could do without. 
But for certain types of experiences, this is the only way to go. Watching the glow of the surrounding mountains and their reflection in a still lake at sunset… stepping out of bed in the morning and seeing mist roll over a turquoise lake… This is the good life. :)
~N
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