Looking west over Lily Lake in the Desolation Wilderness
While Hurricane Irene was battering my home and the sailboat I’m waiting to take ownership of (which is soon to become my home; they both survived), I was out on a short day-hike in the Glen Alpine Springs area near South Lake Tahoe on a beautiful day. Waterfalls, lakes, mountains, and old cabins can all be experienced in just a matter of a few miles. John Muir even wrote, “The Glen Alpine Springs Resort seems to me one of the most delightful places in all the famous Tahoe region. From no other valley, as far as I know, may excursions be made in a single day to so many peaks, wild gardens, glacier lakes, glacier meadows, and alpine groves, cascades and the like.” Hike as long as you want; if you have a few hours like I did, go up to the Glen Alpine Springs resort site (ran from 1884-1960). If you have days or weeks, you can spend it all continuing deeper into the Desolation Wilderness and its many trails & lakes. My last trip into the Desolation Wilderness was in the neighborhood of fifteen years ago while I was living in Tahoe, and it was great to be back. Continue reading
