of an evening

H and I decided to switch things up a bit and went for an after-work hike on Monday.  I snuck out a little early and met him at the parking lot across from the Porcupine, and then we drove up to the Mill B trailhead in Big Cottonwood Canyon.  Our destination was Lake Blanche, a hike I hadn't done since 2013; H did it more recently by himself in 2016.

Leaves just starting to turn here

Temperatures have been above normal and with lots of sunshine, it was pretty warm as we started up the first switchbacks leading out of the trailhead and into the drainage.  Luckily, much of this trail is shaded, either by aspens and gambel oaks or, because of the time we were hiking, when the sun started to go behind in the mountains.  When we were in the shade, it was very pleasant.

Lake Blanche with the Sundial looming above

What I forget every single time I hike this trail is how steep it is.  Since it follows the creek bed up the drainage to the lakes, the trail doesn't waste a lot of time with too many switchbacks.  We climbed steadily, not really taking any rests until we got to the lakes, and worked up a good sweat.

Lake Florence

When you hike this trail on the weekends, there are hundreds of other hikers; it is an extremely popular and well-known hike ... which is why we won't hike it on the weekends anymore.  At this time of the evening, on a Monday, however, we only saw a handful of people.  Nobody passed us going the same direction and we passed several people.  Even when we got up to the lakes, there weren't more than six or seven other folks up there and we all spread out, giving each other room to appreciate the scenery without the crowds.

H by the lake

We stayed up there for about half an hour, sitting on the warm rocks and enjoying the clear light and fall colors.  When we headed back down, it seemed to go fairly quickly: in between the steep and rock step-downs, there are nice stretches of trail that are soft, firmly-packed sand - easy to get your cruise on.  Until you get to the next rocky step-down.  The sun was starting to set across the valley as we drove out of the canyon.  It wasn't our usual weeknight routine but it was an excellent break from the gym.  A Stairmaster has nothing on the Lake Blanche trail.

Autumn on the hillside

Hike stats: 6.94 miles; 2:42 moving time/2.6 m.p.h and 3:24 total time/2.0 m.p.h.; 2,600 feet of climbing