Cecret Lake...round two...skunked again

Ok, so last time we attempted to get to Cecret Lake it didn't go as planned.  The road to the trail head hadn't yet been opened so we hiked the road and then lost the actual trail to snow.  

No worries, we are determined and decided to try again.

This time around the area was overrun with people (even on a Tuesday morning) so there was nowhere for us to stash our car (without getting a ticket).

(stupid, full parking lot)

Sigh.

Time for a new plan.

We opted to attempt a different hike -- one we hadn't planned on or prepped for and really didn't know much about.  That's alright, we are always up for an adventure.  Good times.

We parked our Suburban at the top of Alta and plunged into the trail on the north side of the parking lot on our way to Twin Lakes.

First of all, let me say the area is GORGEOUS!!!

There were meadows of flowers blooming EVERYWHERE!

It was pretty incredible.

Also, the views of the canyon were spectacular.

Let it be known that this hike is much more hikey than the last couple hikes we have been on.  The trail was fairly steep from the get go and had some really rocky sections.  We had to kick things up a notch to progress up the path.  Hi-ya!!

The kids (and possibly their adult counterparts) had a harder time on this trail; it was still very do-able, but we had to take more breaks and moved more slowly than usual.

A small cave that my boys were disappointed I said they couldn't explore
(hey, no flashlights, I don't know the area, there could be bats or chasms -- don't judge!).

And that regular stopping and resting became a problem.  I teach piano lessons on Tuesday afternoons and about an hour into our hike we realized we were going to need to eat and head back soon or we would not make it back in time for that (we lost some time driving around looking for a parking spot at Cecret Lake and then adjusting our plans so that hurt us too).

Consequently, not only did we re-miss out on Cecret Lake, but we didn't make it all the way to Twin Lakes either.

Sad day.

Anyway, a little over a mile up the trail (it is 2 miles to Twin Lakes and we were more than half way and very near the crest of the mountain, but I'm not exactly sure how far from the end we really were having not been there before) we found a lovely little spot with a waterfall and some shade and made that our picnic place.

(Don't worry, he isn't actually drinking the water...silly guy.)

We made lunch, played around in the shade, and then started on our way back down.  There is a lot of mining equipment left from "olden" days and our littles had a great time searching old relics (ancient rail cars and tumble-down sheds and the like).  The way down was less demanding for the kidlets (down hurts my knees so I like up much better, but that's just me) and everyone was happy and having fun as we lurched down the trail toward our car.

And some of us even fell asleep on the ride home.  But only the girls. The boys were pretty proud of themselves for staying awake. 

I would like to try this one again and actually make it to the lakes.  I hate that we were bested by two possible hikes in one day, but that's just the way things go sometimes.  

It was still a wonderful day together, and that's what I like best.