Alpine Lakes Wilderness = BUGGY

Just finished a week hiking and biking out of Leavenworth, Washington. (Trip reports to come.)

… Alpine Lakes Wilderness … is one of the most popular outdoor recreational areas in the State of Washington.

Although this area has the wilderness designation and no motorized vehicles such as cars, motorcycles, or even bicycles can operate … there is heavy foot traffic and camping throughout. … managing the Alpine Lakes Wilderness area to preserve its integrity is very challenging. …

This being my first visit, there are a couple of lessons learned:

• Mosquitoes and no-see-ums are terrible anywhere near alpine lakes. Doh!

I’d hoped it was just this summer, buggy in August due to the long, late Spring. But one regular hiker in the area told me it’s always this bad.

• The Enchantments truly are the most popular destination, with fierce competition for camping permits.

The (grumpy) Rangers in Leavenworth leave pre-booked permits outside in a rustic wooden box. At least one was stolen this past weekend, the actual group that had booked and paid for it required to wait around a few hours before getting a replacement. (Parks needs to find a way to prevent this problem.)

One solution, I feel, is simply to open up more camping permits for the Enchantments. Is that high region really much more vulnerable to human damage than anywhere else in the Cascade Range? … Or have they created an artificial shortage.

I saw plenty of campsites, plenty of toilets up there.

related – Washington Trails Association – Enchantment Lakes