In Blue: Big Marshy Lake and East Boulder Lake

Shasta-Trinity National Forest

DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3

Blue lines for day 2. Click for interactive map

With morning came potential to see the lake. I toured the camping area on the way to grab some water. I watched the mist flow across the lake from the mushy area of some swamp alders toward the distant cliffs. Eventually, I even managed to get some breakfast.

One of the built camps with a concrete base for an ice can stove, now one side for a rock fire ring.

Mist wafting delicately across Tangle Blue Lake from the swamp alders to the far side.

Western yellow pond-lilies grow in a few spots at the edges.

Then to decide what to do with the day. One wanted to stick around and fish and look after the tiny dog. One initially wanted to go to Little Marshy Lake, but since that is private property was persuaded to set the better Big Marshy Lake as a goal instead. And the rest were out for East Boulder Lake, but as near as I could remember anywhere from Big Marshy Lake to East Boulder Lake would constitue a good turn around point because it's all quite nice. Plus there was a big patch of carnivorous plants in their comical mustache disquises about halfway from the lake to the ridge if I could be trusted to remember. So wherever along there, but the big lake was the goal.

One little puff of cloud hovers over the trail as we start off toward the various lakes.

The old trail down along Tangle Blue Creek had frequent downed trees and a bit of encroaching brush and was looking very unmaintained compared to the new trail we walked the night before. Just before it crosses the creek, the map shows "Messner Cabin" next to the trail and we wondered what we would find there.

All that remains of Messner Cabin. It had a flimsy looking stove and a barrel, now crushed.

The cabin is nothing more than the metal remains of household items and trash now. Across the creek, the trail comes to a meadow and things get a little uncertain. Two trails came around to one and I took the one that got my feet the wettest in the morning dew. There's also seeps in the meadow. Following the lines on the map, we made it to the signed junction, finding ourselves on old road once more.

Even more clouds puffing away over the meadow as we come to it.

A very rocky old road to climb.

The old road, or perhaps just the newer of the old roads, turns back and the trail goes on beside a sign. Both get to the same place although the trail is shorter. The road didn't look very blocked with trees, but I couldn't see much of it. The trail does have a few trees on it. It seems to be getting the same level of lack of maintenance as the one we'd been on so far. Or maybe we should have tried the road after all.

Following the sign to follow the trail.

Noting an energetic cloud and a big Mount Shasta in the distance. Prior to our arrival the previous day, NOAA issued a warning for a current severe thunderstorm about 5 miles away.

The trail got better toward the top, then everything flattened out and we arrived at a small pond that marks the start of private property on another section that might also be part of the railroad checkerboard. There's a few missing (reverted to the government perhaps) if it is. The pond is half in and half out of the private property.

A sign along the trail marks the private property a little early as we approach the pond.

It really is a tiny pond.

Cairns marked our way as we crossed and came once more to the road, now looking a little more used. This road accesses a few pieces of private property within the wilderness and those who can show a traditional motorized access may still drive it from Scott Mountain Summit. It did look to have been driven at least once this season.

The trail here is faint, but signed.

Not much further and I had completed the half of the Tangle Blue Trail I hadn't yet been on. Every mile of this trail could really use some love, or at least a few more feet.

Another sign points left at another very faint trail that is the rest of Tangle Blue Trail.

We walked on roads for a while. The lesser road we were on crosses the Tangle Blue Creek tributary out of the Marshy Lakes to a greater road and we passed by cabins and other structures for a while.

A row of rocks beside the road allowed a dry foot crossing of the wide tributary.

Little Marshy Lake through a break in the trees. The nearby cabins seemed empty.

Then the signs indicated we should turn onto a decaying road that soon became trail with its own route, sometimes on the old road and sometimes not. The crossing was much easier when we came to it again.

A Cascades frog that sat on a rock near the crossing.

Many waxy checkerblooms lined the trail in the dryer areas.

Back on trail and getting into public lands once more.

The trail curves over to Big Marshy Lake without much evidence of continuing. I knew where only because I had been the other way before. The others got there before me as had some parents with numerous small children that had hiked over from East Boulder Lake for the day.

Arriving at Big Marshy Lake. The others have wandered a little way around.

More of Big Marshy Lake.

Daniil had found something interesting and was frantic to show it off. I was a little slow to get there because I was watching the black rivers of tadpoles that was streaming at the edge of the lake with more, smaller channels further "inwater".

The tadpoles darken the edge of the lake as they stream past.

The tadpoles were even more dense at Daniil's feet. They practically boiled out of the water.

Closer look at those tadpoles among the shallow water grasses.

Wandering streams of the black tadpoles.

Since they have legs, perhaps that should be pollywog. These are probably all western toads.

Looking out across the eastern half of Big Marshy Lake.

Our companion with the Big Marshy Lake goal was quite happy with the location and the prospect of finding the way back to camp later so then we were two continuing on. We wandered up along a line of land that probably wasn't a trail and cut over to the actual trail a little higher than where we left, probably spending just as much energy trashing at brush as would have been spent going around following the trail.

Looking out over the trail (not visible yet) and the marshy meadow beyond.

I was wrong about the pitcher plants. A patch of lighter green in the meadow just past the lake turned out to be them and there were frequent patches all the way up. I was right about the rest, though. It's a beautiful stretch of land where going just a little further gets a little something more. And we did, after a few more patches, come to the specific patch of pitcher plants I was thinking of.

A distinctly light green patch in the meadow is the bald heads of California pitcher plants.

The odd impressive tree along the way.

Another meadow south of the trail holds the water that feeds into the Marshy Lakes.

Pacific corralroot with plump seeds pokes out from under a log across the trail.

It's not quite California pitcher plants all the way up, but it's close.

They've gone past flowering to seeds.

The windows in the deadly leaves make me ponder.

California pitcher plants standing in the grass. Yes, they're huge.

The one view of Big Marshy Lake from above.

The patch of California pitcher plants I'd been thinking of. They aren't so thick by the trail, but are thick on the slope beyond.

Finding blooming gentians (pleated?) is also exciting.

The view just keeps on getting better.

Then our good but thin trail met the thoroughfare that is the Pacific Crest Trail. From there, it's a short way to get over the top, and there's more to be seen on the way even before reaching the new view at the top of the ridge.

A huge tree at the junction hosts redundant signs to tell all of the options.

Gaining more views, but Mount Shasta had gone mostly into the clouds.

Of course, over the top has a nice view too as the Upper Boulder Lakes come into sight.

Not just the Upper Boulder Lakes, but a chunk of East Boulder Lake can be seen for a bit and sometimes a little pond high in the trees between.

The trail drops down to a wide spot that is a well used camp, this day used by a group that wasn't much bothered by interfering with the trail with their setup. It's at a sort of junction with use trails and I wanted to try the one down to the upper lakes. Daniil is generally happy with a little extra walking, and so we went and had lunch on a rock in the middle of them all.

Down by the lower of the Upper Boulder Lakes.

Our lunch view of the south uppermost lake and the pass behind it.

The trail that had started out so strongly going to the upper lakes had already split many times by the time we were at our lunch rocks. We didn't spend much more time exploring there. Fishermen were along the south side of the lower lake and campers were on the far side of it, so no wonder there's a plethora of paths. We headed back up to the trail and then down to the main event: the huge East Boulder Lake.

A look at East Boulder Lake from the main source of water filling it.

There's a couple spots where it is a challenge to keep the feet dry while crossing the wide grassy valley above the lake.

Second gentian of the day, a hiker's fringed gentian.

Seep monkeyflowers are among the growth in the meadow, which is not exactly grass.

All the way down, Daniil noted the drastic change in plant life that happened with the crossing of the ridge. The sage that grows around the lakes seems like the most dramatic example. It grows quite high on this side and very little on the other. I know there is a change in the rocks if one goes west, but I don't think that is what is happening here.

Down by East Boulder Lake.

Panorama of the East Boulder Lake with the mountains behind it. Standing among the sagebrush with more visible on the far side climbing the peaks.

Daniil wanted to go up the trail to Middle Boulder Lake for the view. It has one, so I didn't dissuade him from it, just pointed out the trail and how he would need to find his own way to connect the two. I wanted to pop over to the saddle past the outlet where the mystery ditch is visible. There's a view there, too. So I continued around.

The secret to the size of this lake is an old dam. It will fail one day.

There's a show of light coming through the clouds from the view point.

It was while we were taking in our views that the "sunny" day of the weather report stopped being just cloudy with a spattering of rain drops and started thundering and raining as one would expect if simply paying attention to what happened yesterday and the clouds of today. I turned back and found Daniil coming up the trail. I pulled on my poncho and he claimed it wasn't hard enough to worry about, which was good because he didn't have any rain gear along anyway. It really never did get hard enough to worry about for more than a minute or two, so I got warmed in my poncho. We discussed how it was unwise to hike over passes in thunder and headed for the pass listening, making judgements that it was far off anyway.

Back among the Upper Boulder Lakes in the rain.

I noted that, odd as it was, I hadn't actually seen any lightning struck trees around the ridge. It took about thirty seconds to adjust that to, "Except that one."

All is right in the world for there are lightning struck trees on this ridge after all.

They really are beautiful lakes.

The last thunder had been a while before. Well, except one that was very far off. We popped over the top to find it dry on the other side although the rain would soon catch up with us. Shasta was actually showing off a bit better than on the way up.

Mount Shasta is huge from here and was sporting a rainbow.

But after a little more rain, it all cleared up like nothing had happened. So down we went only getting wet from overgrown shrubs.

Back into the private section having found our way on the trail past Big Marshy Lake once more.

And back out of the private section.

Back to the top of the meadow at the day's low point.

We hadn't managed to follow the same trail up from East Boulder Lake as we'd followed down, and the down one was better. We had to stall briefly as the resident cows took to minor stampedes back and forth by the trail worried what we might be trying with them. We found the trail increasingly hard to follow as it passes directly past Big Marshy Lake. I'm not sure how anyone would be able to find it while heading up. Once finished with the long down, the sun set on us as we finished the last climb back to Tangle Blue Lake. Our companion had gotten back just fine and together they'd been rained on all sorts, but the tents were still dry inside.

Continue on to the next day ⇒




*photo album*

©2025 Valerie Norton
Published 5 Nov 2025