Panther Lake

The temperature was only 1*C when I arrived at Mt. Washington parking lot. I can see Mt. Albert Edward covered in fresh snow. There was only 1 car here so someone is camping out somewhere. Last week there were 12 vehicles in the lot.

I wore my down vest under my jacket, mitts, long johns then I was off. Those frosty slippery boardwalks were tricky to get across especially the ones which slant. I took the west side of Lake Helen Mackenzie and wanted to visit Hairtrigger Lake first which, in my opinion, is the most photogenic lake in Forbidden Plateau since it reflects the mountain ridge on its calm surface during the early morning hours. I don’t think the trail will ever dry up as I had to contend with mud and pools of water. In one spot, I thought the mud wasn’t too deep but my right foot sank up to my ankle. What a mess. I’m disappointed that the fall colors are slow to emerge. About 99% of the landscape is still green. I reached Hairtrigger in 2 hours: I think I’m slowing down as I’m not in that great shape. I need to hike every second day to stay in great shape.

There is a dumping of snow on the ridge and Mt. Albert Edward is completely snow covered. The sun was out so I waited until clouds drifted in before taking a shot. 

 Hairtrigger Lake reflection

Hairtrigger is ice free but some of the small tarns have ice on them. After I finished, I headed to Kwai Lake where a couple of guys were tenting. When I reached Murray Meadows, I took the seldom used trail to Panther Lake. This trail doesn’t see much traffic so it is a nice quiet hike past beautiful meadows and alpine tarns. 

 Lush green meadow

The trail is something else; not maintained. Many parts of the narrow path are flooded with water channeling down like a creek bed. Several footbridges have collapsed with water flowing over and small shrubs are encroaching over the trail which isn’t a problem but heavy condensation on them and you’re all wet. 
My first hike here 4 days ago I was wearing rainpants which kept me dry. As the trail heads down to the lake it becomes quite bushy and ends up at a small clear spot on the shore. I wasn’t really sure if this was Panther Lake as the maps put the lake on the right side of the trail and I was on the left side. My second hike here I wasn’t wearing rainpants so I got a soaking from the wet bushes. The water dripped down into my socks and boots. My socks were so wet, I could wring out the excess water.

At one of the collapsed footbridge, I decided to jump the creek a little ways upstream. The wooden surface was frosty and slippery making it tricky to cross. 

 Collapsed footbridge

When I arrived at a creek, I just managed to see a trail on the other side so I took my boots off to wade the shallow but cold water. Since my socks and boots were so wet inside and I didn’t bother drying my feet before putting my socks back on. This trail follows along the opposite side of the lake so I knew that it was Panther Lake. The trail heads into the forest up from the shoreline. I can’t see the lake too well as the bush and trees impede the views. I followed the trail around the lake and up to a bluff. I caught a glimpse of Johnston Lake to the east. 

 Johnston Lake

Despite the tall trees part of Panther Lake is seen below. 

 Part of Panther Lake

I hiked back down and found a very tight spot near the shoreline; just enough room for me to eat lunch and take a photo of the lake and mountain ridge in the background. Due to the sun’s angle, this is the only good spot for a photo. A few mosquitoes were buzzing about still despite the cold weather. 

 Reflection on Panther Lake

I headed back to lake outlet where the creek was more narrow. Where I crossed previously, it was shallow and only 6 feet wide but I decided to not waste time and walk back so I crossed further upstream where it was wider but looked shallow. Looks are deceiving; as I was wading in the water which was initially knee deep the water became deeper up to my crotch when I reached the bank on the other side. Since I was carrying my camera slung around my neck it was only 6 inches from a soaking. Once across, I headed down to the shore of the lake and wrung out my pants and socks again. The sun was out so it wasn’t too cold out and those pesky mosquitoes came around again.

I started back about 1 pm and lingered at the creek where I crossed to get to the other side. There are old signposts tacked to a tree pointing the way to Panther Lake but the sign is pointing in the direction of the trail which leads down to the shore on the left (west) side of the lake. When I looked around I saw a short path leading to the creek where a couple of fallen trees lay in the water. This is where you cross to the other side to pick up the trail. This wasn’t obvious because of the bush around and the sign needs to be angled to point toward the creek. That is the reason I didn’t notice a trail on the other side of the creek and I couldn’t find any detailed description of the hike on the internet.

I hiked back to the signpost which points the way to Mariwood Lake but the trail ends up at a marshy area and I couldn’t see any trail. There is a nice shallow lake where I spent time photographing then I was off to Murray Meadows. 

 A beautiful lake

There was a lot of muddy areas on the trail. I’m not sure if the trail is worse than the west side of Lake Helen Mackenzie but what I do know is that these wet areas will never dry up. They have been like that ever since the snow has melted. The ground is so saturated and there is poor drainage.

I met some teen backpackers near Battleship Lake; looks like some school outing. Other than that, the crowds were minimal on a weekday.