Crystal Lakes Mt Rainier National Park

 After hiking up to Crystal Peak in Mt Rainier NP one week ago, where we looked down on a frozen Crystal Lake, I was curious to see how much snow had melted around Crystal Lake. I ended up hiking about 1/2 mile beyond reaching Crystal Lake for a 7 mile rt hike with 2,850 ft of elevation gain.
Crystal Peak and Crystal Lakes share the same trailhead, crossing Crystal Creek over this log bridge.

 About 1/2 mile up the trail, there is a short side trail (only a few steps) where you can see Mt Rainier.

 The trail is mostly in the forest and has a fairly steady gain.

 At 1.3 miles from the trailhead, the two trails diverged. I headed up to the left to Crystal Lakes

 There is a nice easier ascent section of the trail in the middle of this hike. Here there were lots of vanilla leaf in bloom.

 Along this portion of the trail, there is another opportunity to see Mt Rainier through the trees.

 A short portion of the trail before the turnoff to Lower Crystal Lake was covered in snow.

 I decided to view Lower Crystal Lake before continuing up the trail.

 Crystal Peak on the other side of  Lower Crystal Lake.

 more of  Lower Crystal Lake

From  Lower Crystal Lake it is 0.5 mile to Crystal Lake. Part of the trail here was covered in snow. It was not deep.

 First view of Crystal Lake

Wide angle photo from the north shore of Crystal Lake

 From Crystal Lake, the trail continues along the north shore and heads up to join the PCT north of Sourdough Gap. I decided to hike a ways up this trail. Along the lake, the trail is very wet and muddy.

 Lots of marsh-marigolds in bloom near the lakeshore.

 Heading up the trail there were lots of Pasque flowers and glacier lilies in bloom.

 Looking back towards the lake, Mt Rainier began to peek behind Crystal Peak.

 The trail was snow free for a short distance.

 By the time I reached 6,200' the snow covered the trail consistently. I decided to cross this snow field to get a look down on the lake.
More of Mt Rainier from behind Crystal Peak

View of Crystal Lake after crossing the snow field.

Three Way Peak, it's hard to tell in this photo, but there is a hole in the rock that is on the right side of the peak

 Enjoying the views as I head back down to Crystal Lake













Before leaving Crystal Lake, I crossed the outlet of Crystal Creek towards the camping area on the south shore.

Wide angle shot of Crystal Lake from the southwest shore. Three Way Peak is on the far left. I didn't see any other hikers this morning until I was more than halfway down the trail.

 Some of the other wildflowers and flora seen along the trail today:

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