Climb: Tank Lakes-Necklace Valley

Date of Climb: 8/5/2005

Trip Report:
Yea, I know this isn't really a climb, but I got some nice photos and it was fun.




I had under 24 hours off of work. I finished up Thursday at 1:30 pm and started Friday at 1 pm. I decided to go for a solo trip to Tank Lakes in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness above Necklace Valley.

I left the parking lot just after 3:30 pm. The first 5 miles are relatively flat and fast. Then, the 2,600 ft of elevation gain in the next 2.2 miles to the entrance of Necklace Valley went slower. From here, about another half mile of trail takes you to the cabin and Emerald Lake. A little further from here and just as you get to Opal lake, I headed up meadowy forest that lead to rock slabs higher up. 1,000 vertical feet (1.5 miles) of off trail hiking and a traverse over slabs and rocks put you atop a beautiful plateau in which Tank Lakes are nestled. I arrived at my sleeping bag spot at 7 pm on flat slabs beside the lake. The remainder of the evening was nice with some great post-sunset color on the cirrus behind Chimney Rock.





I woke up in the morning for sunrise, ascended point 6263 above the lake, enjoyoed the views some more, and set out for the return trip at 8 am. I made it back to the car at 10:30 am jogging the last couple miles so I could go home and shower/eat before a long shift that started at 1 pm.

Tank Lakes are a pretty sweet place. Snow is definitely hard to come by in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. All snow melt was finished in the Tank Lakes area and Mount Hinman looked very dry to the east. Chimney Rock looks like a cool climb.

Gear Notes:
jungle juice

Approach Notes:
trail to necklace valley rocky, rooty, and eroded from Foss River to the first lake.

Beautiful shots. Must have been nice...

Nice pictures. I've always wanted to climb Overcoat Peak from this side via that northeast snowfinger. Looks like a great place to hike!

amazing photos.

Ahhhh yes, Necklace Valley...........my first hike ever! Wonder if my name's still chiseled in the cabin?

Necklace valley is awesome! I really like the La Bohn lakes too in that area...

-josh

The cabin's still standing - so I'd guess your name is still there, too.

Get it while you can! The road will be permanently gated as of November 2006 by the USFS - at the behest of the environmental fringe groups, 'ALPS' and 'Mountains to Sound Greenway' and radicals like Harvey Manning. Your short trip will now be only for the super-fit 1%, or those with days to spare. Nice pictures, BTW!

The Foss Road? Where?

Nice pics!

Did you use a tripod?

Your 3rd pic (zoomer in twilight) isn't as sharp as the others.

Correct, they will be gating it at the Dingford Creek TH in an effort to make access to the wilderness more difficult.

How much distance will it add?

I believe Foss River Road (one mile east of Skykomish Ranger Station) is going to remain open and therefore the distance via this approach to Necklace Valley/Tank Lakes area should be the same.

Re photos: thanks, I didn't bring a tripod and the mosquitos were horrendous at dusk making stability difficult. I wish I took more zoomed shots, but I guess that one is good enough for me...

Sometimes when taking low-light shots, I take two or three in a row. Often one of them has less shake than the others. There's also the technique of exhaling when you shoot.