Dinkey Lakes 2024
Day 1
This year’s trip begins at the Dinkey Lakes trailhead, which can be reached by driving to the end of the long and bumpy Rock Creek Road. The goal for the day is to reach Rainbow Lake, passing Mystery Lake and Swede Lake along the way. The distance from the trailhead to Rainbow Lake is approximately 2.57 miles, with an elevation gain of about 869 feet. Since there was no moon during the trip, the stargazing was spectacular. Despite encountering several people on the trail, we were the only ones camping at Rainbow Lake. Unfortunately, Jason wasn’t able to catch any fish there.
Day 2
After a mostly comfortable night, we took our time and enjoyed the morning. Our goal for the day is Island Lake, approximately 2.9 miles away with an elevation gain of about 817 feet. Along the way, we will pass South Lake, catch a glimpse of First Dinkey Lake, and stop for lunch at Second Dinkey Lake. I also ran into an old friend who used to work with me on the trail crew, and we were able to spend 30 minutes catching up on where life had taken us. It was a real treat. Jason fished at all the lakes but, unfortunately, didn’t catch a single fish.
Day 3
Today will be our shortest hike, leading us to our next destination, Little Lake. The trail descends into a bowl, making it the first time we’ve hiked downhill to reach our campsite. We decided not to climb Dogtooth Peak, opting instead for a day with some extra downtime. As the day wound down, we timed the wind and sun just right, allowing us to wash off in the freezing lake and get clean. We were the only people staying at the lake. Unfortunately, Jason wasn’t able to catch any fish here either.
Day 4
Today is peak day, and our destination is Dogtooth Peak, which stands at 10,256 feet, towering above Courtright Lake and the valley beyond. We had initially discussed climbing the mountain directly from camp but decided against it due to the many rocky areas we’d have to traverse, which would be challenging with our large packs. Instead, we hiked back up the trail and made our way toward Cliff Lake. About a mile from Cliff Lake, we found an unmaintained trail leading to Dogtooth Peak, which we followed until reaching our destination. There was a cold breeze on the cliff that day, so we didn’t stay long to enjoy the view. However, the time we did spend up there was magical. After our visit to Dogtooth, we hiked down to Cliff Lake, our final destination before the trip ended. It was at Cliff Lake that Jason finally caught his first fish. YAY!
Day 5
Not much to say about the fifth day. We’re traveling about 5 miles to reach the trailhead on the Courtright side, where my brother will meet us for pickup. I’ll leave you with a few things that stood out during the trip:
- Almost every trip this time of year is warm enough for a three-season sleeping bag. However, this year was much colder than expected, which caused some sleeping issues for me.
- There didn’t seem to be any fish in the lakes. I think this might be due to overfishing. The Dinkey Lakes and surrounding areas are highly popular since you can visit many lakes in a relatively small area with minimal hiking.
- There is no easy way to get to Dogtooth Peak. The “trail,” which barely exists, only gets you close. You have to do a lot of rock scrambling to reach the summit.
- The area around Dogtooth is filled with quartz and quartz crystals. We had fun seeing who could find the best crystal or a completely see-through stone.
