Backpack - Dumbbell Lake

Meet at 9 AM Saturday at the Dog Lake Campground trailhead parking lot on the north side of SR 12, a mile east of White Pass, reached from Enumclaw by going east on SR 410, right onto SR 123 at Cayuse Pass and left onto SR 12 at the T junction.  From Olympia, drive south on I-5 and left onto SR 12 (past Chehalis).

This backpack trip is a way to avoid the Portland crowds that have a head start on the best campsites at Indian Heaven on Labor Day Weekend.  The area around Dumbbell Lake has multiple alpine lakes, like Indian Heaven, that can be reached via a day hiking loop with little elevation gain.  Camping two nights at Dumbbell Lake allows us a full day to explore those lakes, with time left over to swim in Dumbbell Lake, weather permitting.  The trail from the Dog Lake trailhead to Dumbbell Lake  is well-maintained, except for a short detour at the 1.3 mile point to an easy stream ford, due to the washout of a footbridge.   Trailhead parking space is severely limited, so carpooling is important.  There are two restrooms at the trailhead parking lot, but nowhere else on the hiking route.  A Northwest Forest Pass or the equivalent, must be posted by each car at the trailhead parking lot.  This is what is sometimes called a "lollipop hike".  We will backpack into our campsite on Saturday and out on Monday by the same route.  On Sunday we will have an optional looping day hike through the alpine lakes area.