Lake Ethel

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Lake Ethel
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Lake Ethel
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Red pog.svg
Lake Ethel
Location Kittitas County, Washington, United States
Coordinates 47°45′02″N120°53′18″W / 47.75048°N 120.888462°W / 47.75048; -120.888462
Primary outflows Gill Creek
Basin  countriesUnited States
Surface area15.3 acres (0.062 km2) [1]
Surface elevation5,502 ft (1,677 m) [2]

Ethel Lake is a small freshwater lake located on the north slope of the Chiwaukum Mountains, in Chelan County, Washington. Self-issued Alpine Lake Wilderness permit required for transit within the Klonaqua Lakes area. [3] The lake is a popular area for hiking, swimming, and fishing Cutthroat trout and Rainbow trout. [1]

Contents

Lake Ethel sits on a highly glaciated and semibarren alpine basin, surrounded by heather and other wildflowers and a coniferous presence primarily larch pines. [4]

History

Lake Ethel is one of the Scottish Lakes, which includes nearby Lake Donald, Loch Eileen and Lake Julius. The lakes were given names by Albert Hale Sylvester, a topographer for the United States Geological Survey working throughout the North Cascades National Park Complex around 1900. Lake Ethel was named by Sylvester after the wife of Forest Service ranger Frank Lenzie. [5] Other lakes in the area have also been named after female family and friends of Sylvester. [6]

Access

Ethel Lake is accessed from Lake Ethel Trail #1585. The trailhead is located 2.5 miles south on Gill Creek Road #6940 off of U.S. Highway 2 in the community of Merritt. [3] The trail crosses several private logging properties and reaches the lake in approximately 5 miles.

See also

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Glacier Lake is a small alpine freshwater lake located on the northern skirt of Chikamin Peak and Lemah Mountain in Kittitas County, Washington. Because of its proximity to surrounding peaks and mountains at the heart of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, the lake is a popular area for hiking, camping, and fishing golden trout. Glacier Lake is a short distance between Chikamin Lake and Spectacle Lake at the base of Chikamin Ridge. The Pacific Crest Trail is a short distance from Glacier Lake as well as other Alpine lakes located in the vicinity. To the North is Avalanche Lake and Iceberg Lake at the base of Lemah Mountain.

Gravel Lake is a small freshwater lake located at the edge of the Pacific Crest Trail on the western skirt of Mount Thomson at the border between King County and Kittitas County, Washington. The lake is a popular area for hiking, swimming, and fishing golden trout and rainbow trout. Other Alpine lakes are in the vicinity, including the Alaska Lake a short distance east, and Joe Lake and Edds Lake northbound on the PCT. To the east is Hibox Mountain.

Josephine Lake is a natural lake and reservoir near Stevens Pass in Chelan County, Washington, United States. At the south skirt of Big Chief Mountain, Josephine Lake is the source of the Icicle Creek. Because Josephine Lake is at the heart of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, the lake is a popular area for hiking, swimming, and fishing golden trout.

Myrtle Lake is a freshwater lake located on the northern slope of Big Snow Mountain between Snoqualmie Lake and Chetwoot Lake, in King County, Washington. Self-issued Alpine Lake Wilderness permit required for transit within the Big Snow Mountain area. Because Myrtle Lake is at the heart of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, the lake is a popular area for hiking, swimming, and fishing rainbow trout and coastal cutthroat trout.

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References

  1. 1 2 "Lake Ethel". Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife . Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Lake Ethel Trail #1585". United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  3. Day Hiking Central Cascades. Mountaineers Books. 2019. p. 156. ISBN   9781594854378.
  4. Barnes, Jeremy and Nathan (2019). Alpine Lakes Wilderness: The Complete Hiking Guide. Mountaineers Books. p. Section 78. ISBN   1680510789.
  5. Bravenboer, Martin. "Lake Ethel". Washington Trails Association . Retrieved 10 March 2021.