Bearpaw Mountain Lake: First hiking trip

by John McKnight

Suddenly I

The campsite on the "island" at Bearpaw Mountain Lake. PHOTO BY JOHN McKNIGHT

Helping to take the tent down the next morning. PHOTO BY JOHN McKNIGHT

had the window I’d not expected and my daughter and I were going on a hike. At four she had to get over the “and mommy too?” bump, but once she understood it was just her and I out in the woods overnight she took hold of the idea with unbridled enthusiasm. Saturday morning was filled with periodic “are we going hiking yet(‘s)?” as I got our gear together. And after a frantic waving session to mommy we pulled away a little past noon. Giggling she exclaimed, “Daddy, is this fun or what!”
She quickly fell asleep and napped for the first hour of the drive to the trailhead. We were going to Bearpaw Mountain Lake so timing was everything. There’s one primo campsite on a little “island” that sticks out into the lake and that was where we wanted to be. We hit the empty parking area ecstatic to have the place to ourselves, knowing that someone could still come in later and pass us on the trail.
Slinging her little backpack over her shoulders she watched in some amazement as I horsed mine up and on. She was carrying her blanket, some snacks, and her water. Not heavy but it had enough heft to it to feel like work. Across the road was the brushy trail heading up into the woods. Teaching her how to push her way through the undergrowth I promised it would be easier once we got farther up the trail. It was slow going but the focus on the brush helped in the long run. She got a little momentum and when we hit clear stretches of trail she motored right along.
Overall the trail isn’t well maintained with all the brush and numerous logs to cross over, and I didn’t remember it being quite so steep.  I had backup plans if we ended up turning around but she was determined to get to our campsite so the idea never came up. She even managed to carry her backpack about three-quarters of the way in.
We made steady progress with little grousing and I think the only rest she took lasted about 10 seconds. I couldn’t tell how far it was walking with her, but it felt like about 1 1/2 miles.
The last bit is a gradual and pretty little drop into the lake. We even saw snow and that got her excited all over again. But the best part was the big “Wahoo!” she let out at the edge of the lake when she realized we were finally there. We rounded the lake to a tippy rock bridge out to the island campsite. I had to carry her, her backpack and my fully loaded pack over all together. Quite the sight I’m sure. Then we broke out the snacks, water and juice and set up camp.
Fish were jumping everywhere but she wanted to play in the snow patch first at the end of the lake. So I carried her back across the bridge and we went exploring. We walked up one snow patch, crossed a creek, and learned about snow bridges on the other side. Or at least I did, she thought it was pretty funny she could walk across where I fell through. But I had the last laugh as she face planted in the first snow patch on the way back to camp. (After I made sure she was OK of course.)
We built a fire, we fished, we ate dinner and we talked. Then goofed around in the tent for a bit before she gave me permission to go back out and sit by the fire. I sat up too late enjoying the stars and waiting for the moon to finally show its face. It never did, and the next face I saw was grinning from ear to ear as it told me to, “Wake up daddy!” somewhere near the crack of dawn.
After breakfast we fished some more and played around on our little island. She helped break down camp and started on the tent by trying to pull out the stakes. I watched a bit before getting out the camera to take a picture, then took over the stake pulling. I showed her how to unhook the poles and she demolished the tent in a matter of seconds. We packed everything up and decided to hit the trail.
She couldn’t wait to get to the “hard part”. Which I learned was the first really brushy part at the trailhead. That would come but for the moment I was focused on controlling any tumbling down the steep sections of the “easy part”. We cruised right along without too much stumbling and stopped to drink a little water once. Then it was off to the races. I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t a seemingly tireless drive to get to the end of the trail, especially on the way in.
Finally reaching her hard part, the hottest nastiest buggiest part of the hike, I relaxed and enjoyed the game she made of getting through it. Warning me to stay away from the big “stickeries” that looked like the ones on the trees – Devil’s Club with Maple treelike leaves – she pushed on excited by the challenge. Then before she knew it she was walking across the road to our car. Arms bent at the elbows she pumped her little fists out in front of her and exclaimed, “Wahoo!” one more time.

GETTING THERE
To get to Bearpaw Mountain Lake trailhead, head east on Mount Baker Highway. After the town of Glacier, take a left on Canyon Creek Road, then a right on Forest Service Road 3170. You must have a day or annual pass to park at the trailhead.

John McKnight has been exploring Whatcom and Skagit counties for over 25 years. He can be e-mailed at john@foothillsgazette.com.