Lost Lake Trails

Some special folks at Lost Lake have been working hard to restore the trails in the park. Mr. Keith and I, needing to get outside in the sunshine, decided to check them out. We got our canes (old coots) and set out. Both trails are quite steep and we thought our old legs would do better going down than going up!

Over the past couple of winters there had been branches and some small trees that had fallen across the paths. Must have been a job getting those cleared out! In this scene we are looking down on the one-way road leading up from the lake.

Mossy trees and ferns in abundance, along with decaying leaves, grace the trails. Very beautiful! Careful there — the soft dirt is a little slick.

Across the road and down a ways begins the longer trail leading to the lake. In this part of the forest there are some really big trees, not quite old growth, but maybe trees that have grown since the original logging. The biggest are the Douglas Fir and the cedars.

Here is a different view of our over 100 year old cabin, now used as a library. Strangely, there are a couple of big redwood trees right behind the cabin. They must have been brought in by the original settlers here, as they are not native. At this point on the steep trail Mr. Keith is leaning on one of those huge, old Douglas Firs, where he is enjoying the lake and its reflections.

I'm stumped! Wish I'd posed Mr. Keith here to show the size of this one! It's difficult to imagine that a strong wind could topple a tree like this. The rest of the fir is lying covered with moss just to the left.

I asked the manager of the resort if he knew which tree was the largest in the park, and he said this Douglas Fir has more board feet than any other. It's at the end of the trail near where it comes out at the lake, and is the centerpiece for this little picnic area beside the cabin. I would love to show how tall it is but that would have taken a few photos spread out! In my opinion there are other trees as big around, but this one is the tallest of all, hence more board feet. I wonder how they measure that!