Today I decided to explore the Little Pend Oreille Lakes area. As usual, I started out a little later than I intended and made quite a few stops along the way. I bought some more books even though I swore I wouldn't (I can't help myself!). I also saw a crosscut saw that I didn't buy, but I'm considering going back and getting it...on the one hand, I don't need another one, but on the other hand, it's hard to find one that isn't all rusty or has broken teeth. This one looked good...so.
For the run I went to Mill Butte. I think this trail was built by the WTA, and I wanted to check it out. It's a very nice loop run and the trail is in great shape, although it obviously doesn't get a lot of use. Most trails in this area are motorized, and most people in this area don't seem too inclined to go on foot on the few trails that aren't open to motorized use. There were a few places where I could see footprints, but there are also a lot of plants coming up on the trail tread. I ran the trail counter-clockwise and towards the end I discovered the Little Pend Oreille Wildlife Refuge Rubbish Heap. It looked like it was mostly old trash, and a lot of it would be recyclable--there were a lot of glass bottles and old metal. I can't believe that they have never cleaned it up!
After that I continued east and tried to find more trails that were closed to motorized traffic. They proved hard to come by. I did the short stop at Crystal Falls State Park (on the Little Pend Oreille River), and then I finally ended up on the Nordic trails by Frater Lake and did a loop around the lake. Afterwards I went fishing! I purchased a fishing license in late June or early July, and today was the first time I actually used it! Not that I caught anything, of course. The fish were jumping, too, but I forgot to make sure I had bait in my tackle box and there weren't any grasshoppers near where I was casting.
Mileage = 4.5 for the run & the short hike to the falls; 3 for the hike--grand total of 7.6 miles
River visited: Little Pend Oreille River
Lake visited: Frater Lake
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