Help!? What Can I do with this Itinerary?

[Spartan05]

Folks,

I was new to the permit application process this year and as a result did not get my desired itinerary. Here's what I got:

1. Enter trailhead CHIEF MOUNTAIN
2. 8/20/2015 - GLF (Glenns Lake)
3. 8/21/2015 - GLH (Glenns Lake)
4. 8/22/2015 - GLF (Glenns Lake)

That's all I was able to scrounge up. My dad and I will be coming form Ohio. Question: is this itinerary a lost cause? Is there anything I could/should do to spice up this limited itinerary? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. If this is not a worthwhile itinerary I may cancel.

[Spartan05]

Also, a follow up question. Any recommendations for day trips from Glenns Lake? If anything, maybe we could use Glenns Lake as a base camp. Also, Is there good fishing in Glenns Lake? Is it allowed? If not, are there lakes nearby that allow fishing?

[wnysteve]

I think you can easily fill up your days with worthwhile day hikes from the Glenns Lake sites.
I can recommend first hand the Stony Indian Pass hike. Also, there are the hikes to Margaret Lake and Bear Mountain lookout, posts of which you will find on this forum.

[paul]

When you pick up your permit try to change your third night to COS (Cosley Lake). Having Cosley as the third night would nice and adds a little variation. Cosley is also nearby to the Bear Mountain lookout trail.

As suggested, day hikes to Stoney Indian Pass, Margarette Lake and Bear Mountain lookout are very nice options. One possible itinerary would be:

Day 1) Hike in to GLF
Day 2) Hike over to GLH and setup camp, then day hike to either Margarete lake or Stoney Indian Pass
Day 3) Hike over to next camp (GLF or COS) and setup camp, then day hike to Bear Mountain Lookout.

If you have extra days you can extend your trip by adding ELF, HEL or other campsites.

[smahurin]

I would think you'd stand a decent shot at swapping out one of those nights. You could try and swap out the first or last night with cosley or elizabeth foot. And you could try and swap out the middle night with mokowannis lake or stoney indian lake.

If you aren't able to do that, then day hiking stoney indian, bear mountain lookout, mokowannis lake (or going further up this drainage to 1 or more of the off trail lakes) would be very good options. Base camping in the belly river is about as awesome a place to base camp in the park as you can find.

I'd take the permit, see if you can tweak it, but if not know that theres some awesome opportunities still.

[Spartan05]

Folks,

Thanks a ton for all the input. I will definitely attempt to swap out one night for Cosley Lake. And the day hikes you mentioned sound perfect. I also found out - I believe - that you can fish in any of the lakes (no license required), so we'll probably try our hand at that. Was originally bummed that I didn't get my desired itinerary (Highline Trail) but I am excited about Plan B, thanks to your feedback. I am more than happy to hear more...

[Heff936]

You stand a good chance of getting a better itinerary. You can also add days if you have the time. Here's what I would try to get.

Assuming you can't get COS on your first night and you need to stick with GLF, then I'd try to get:

1) GLF
2)MOL
3)COS

if you can add a day or two, I'd suggest ELF or HEL. The camp itself at Mokawanis Lake isn't great but it gives you good access to Margaret Lake which is spectacular. It also has a wonderful spot on a a promontory that provide a great view of the lake and huge waterfall draining from Margaret Lake. As camps go, COS is the best and I like GLH better than GLF.

Good luck,

Heff

[joybird]

While I agree that MOL has nice views when you are at the lakeshore (including, if I recall correctly, the food prep area), I actually really liked spending two nights at GLH and when I did my Mokowanis/Belly backpack last summer -- mainly because my GLH campsite had it's own access to the lakeshore. I dayhiked to Margaret Lake one day and Stoney Indian Pass the next and found the extra distance wasn't significant, whereas the easy access to sunrise and sunset views on Glenns Lake was a real plus.

Spartan, you're going to find a lot to enjoy on your trip into Mokowanis.

One thing: I have no idea how experienced you and your dad are (you mentioned in another post that he was 66 and in good shape but "not a mountain goat"), but you if you didn't already know it, the hike up to Margaret is not on a maintained trail (although there were some cairns to follow when I was there) and involves a little scrambling up the cliffs. Also, depending on when you go, the vegetation can get quite tall and the creek is very noisy, so if you go, please be particularly bear aware.

If you do decide to switch out the GLH site, I would make sure you are clear that you want MOL not MOJ.

Have a great trip! And be sure to post a trip report for us when you get back!