After avoiding getting washed out by a late-season rainstorm, we headed to Wrights Lake and car camped overnight, then spent the next drizzly day hiking along the southern shore of Wrights Lake.
We were a bit sad to leave our two-night Meeks Creek backpacking trek a day early, but not sad to miss the big rain that pounded Lake Tahoe that afternoon. It was much more pleasant to eat dinner in a restaurant while watching it rain outside the window. Then we drove west on Highway 50 to Wrights Lake Road and headed up into the forest. We had no idea what to expect, and were pleasantly surprised to discover a paved forest road and a proper USFS campground at the end of it.
It was Friday afternoon on Labor Day Weekend, and we didn’t expect to find any campsites open. The rain changed all that. We bailed on sleeping in a tent in preference to sleeping in the back of our “camperized” Rav4, but most folks simply bailed on camping at all! The place was deserted when we got there. Sure, there were a few long-term campers (in trailers) that weren’t afraid of a little rain, but most people weren’t about to ruin a holiday weekend getting drenched. They could just as easily barbeque in the backyard. We paid the camp host for two nights, and got ourselves set up properly. Usually we try to avoid the noise of drunken hooligans in public campgrounds, but this situation was perfect for us. We got the sleeping area in the back of the car ready during a break in the rain, and then crawled inside for some shuteye, listening to the rain drumming down on the roof. It was cozy in there.
When we woke up the next morning it was still overcast, but it wasn’t raining much, maybe a drizzle. The stream had risen in the night, thanks to the big rains of yesterday afternoon. We were downstream from Wrights Lake, and it takes a bit of time for all that water to raise the lake’s level enough to increase the flow below it. We sat under the tarp at the picnic table and cooked up some breakfast.
After eating, we looked at the sky and decided to attempt a dayhike along the shore of Wrights Lake. I would carry our raingear, just in case, plus my fly rod. You never know when a fishing opportunity might arise. Then we headed through camp and aimed ourselves directly toward the lake itself.
When we arrived, we realized that it was a much larger lake than we expected. There were a number of private cabins along the shore, all of which were under some sort of long-term lease agreement with the National Forest Service. They were quite rustic and painted a uniform dark brown color, which blended into the forest nicely. They didn’t have ugly docks sticking out into the water, either. It appeared that the lake’s shoreline was owned by the public, which was proper, in my mind, as it gave citizens like us access to our own land.
We hiked north along the shore, and the water level was definitely elevated. When we neared an area with cabins, we saw numerous kayaks pulled up onto the high ground along the edge. Fun for kids and adults. But no one was on the lake today, what with the poor weather.
We reached the inlet stream on the eastern end of the lake and walked out over the arched footbridge. One of the handrails had been damaged this past Winter, but it looked safe enough to me. I got out my Tenkara rod and did a bit of fly fishing, but I never got a bite. And I never saw any fish in the deep, clear water as it flowed slowly past.
On the way back, we followed the shore even more closely. As I walked, I continued trying to catch a trout for Vicki’s dinner. The lake was too shallow near shore, which made me wish I had a kayak of my own, so I could get my fly into deeper water. But I didn’t want to drive with a boat on top of my car. This lake was far too rural for a rental company to exist, but that was also part of its charm.
Eventually, we made it west to the outlet creek. This was the same one that flowed behind our campsite. There was a very low dam/spillway keeping the lake from draining away. I’ve seen these before in the Eldorado National Forest, where the forest service once created mini-dams to contain the waters for fishing and other public purposes. Most of them were small, only a few feet in height, but they kept the lakes higher and the fishing better. Too bad I couldn’t seem to catch any! Although I have to admit that I met one other fisherman who caught a trout with a spinning reel and lure. So I could now blame either my own lack of skill or my fly rod. You already know which one it was! If only I had brought my dad’s old rod/reel from the garage at home…
We continued down the creek, and there was a prime spot for fishing, with a deep pool and a slow eddy. I tried and tried. Vicki got bored and started reading her book. A family of ducks came by to check me out, but even they didn’t look as if they expected any fish that day. Eventually, I got tired and gave up. This late in the Summer season, these wily fish were probably watching me and laughing from under a shady, overhanging bank of moss. It felt that way.
Our dayhike on Wrights Lake was over, but we weren’t finished with our day. We still needed to take a shower! Vicki spoke with our neighbors, who had a small trailer and a screened-in enclosure, about where to find a shower, or a laundromat. They weren’t sure either, but had heard stories about campgrounds at other lakes to the west, in the Crystal Basin Recreation Area. So off we drove, on paved forest roads. Very civilized. It took us more than one attempt, but we found a working shower eventually. We brought quarters with us for just this eventuality. Laundry would have to wait for a visit to an actual town. But a hot shower was good enough for us. We stank!
Clean at last, we decided that this was enough satisfaction for one day. We headed back to Wrights Lake and cooked up some dinner in camp. At a picnic table! This was the true car-camping lifestyle. We were really backpackers at heart, but embracing car camping was OK, too. We were still out in the woods, after all, and that’s what really mattered.
We checked the weather report via my Garmin InReach device, since there was no cell signal here. It was supposed to rain for at least one more day. Then we looked at the map, to decide what we would do tomorrow. Besides laundry, that is. There appeared to be many other lakes in this area. We would spend the day in a dry car, driving around and checking things out, while we waited for a proper weather-window to continue backpacking. Why not? We were retired, and our time was our own.
For a topographic map of the hike see my CalTopo Page
For LOTS more photos of the trek see my Flickr Page
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