[Hiking] Joffre Lake

Background

If you’ve read my previous posts or know me in person, you know I love to hike.

I’ve wanted to visit Joffre since 2021, but I was either unable to secure a reservation or couldn’t fit it into my schedule.

In October 2023, I was lucky enough to reserve a night at Joffre, so my friend Tao and I went hiking.

Day 1

We arrived late in the afternoon, around 3:30pm. Given that we are pretty experienced hikers, we know our pace and the place. However, always make sure you leave yourself enough daylight for the hike; it's not a good idea to hike in the dark.

Like always, a photo at the gate.

lol

Then we started our four-hour hike to the campsite at the third lake.

I was enjoying the hike so much that I didn't really have time to take photos.

Here’s what the First and Second lakes look like in July.

First Lake, shot on iphone

Second Lake, shot on iphone

We arrived at the third lake on time, took a little break, and had some Clif Bars.

Didn't notice my pack is thicker than myself...

Then we set up our tents at the campsite and followed our usual routine: fetching and filtering water, eating dinner, just like every other hikers.

I woke up at midnight, as I don’t usually get a good night's sleep, but I was lucky enough to capture some beautiful pictures of the unpolluted night sky:

Sony A7III, with 16-35mm F4 OSS

Day 2

We decided to go for a walk after breakfast, just to walk around the campsite to explore.

This is how I usally sleep in the wild

I know these little 'walks' usually escalate into hikes, so I wasn’t surprised when we ended up a couple of hundred feet above our campsite. Yep, we headed for the glacier covering Mt. Matier.

The campsite is just by the lake.

Here I am, taking a breather at the intersection near the peak. The glacier is easily accessible from here.

And here is a close shot of the giant ice cap.

And that’s pretty much it. It was one easy hike with superb scenery.

P.S. Me on the First Lake 3 months later, lol.