Last fall, inspired by all the stunning photos being shared by other hikers, I dragged my husband up to Lake Ingalls. This turned out to be my absolute favorite hike of 2014. Not only because of the sapphire blue lake, or the constant, breathtaking views of mountains freshly dusted with snow, but mostly because of the magical golden larches.
We got an early start and it was just below freezing most of the day, but we quickly warmed up and started enjoying the rocky views from the trail below Ingalls Pass.
Just as I was starting to get tired and cranky from the seemingly endless climb to the pass, we caught sight of our first larch. All my tiredness was immediately forgotten as I practically skipped along the remaining trail to headlight basin, where we found a valley filled with golden larches and Mount Stewart for a backdrop!
To make the day even better, we also saw several mountain goats! I was definitely wishing I had a wooly winter coat like they did.
Adorable mountain goat with a fresh warm coat for winter
It was a cold day to start, and by the time we made it through Headlight Basin and up to the lake, there was a strong wind off the water making us even colder. We ate our lunch as fast as we could and headed back for the car without really exploring the lake at all. I would definitely like to return to this trail to spend more time at the lake on a warmer day. I will also certainly be wanting to go for another larch trek this fall- perhaps this trail.
