Photos

Well....Autumn colors at the Indian Heaven Wilderness at Rock Lake that is 2 miles from the trailhead. It is another 2 mile hike to Blue Lake which I'll post a photo of later.

The trailhead to this hike starts at the Thomas Lake Trail about an hour drive from my home.

Indian Heaven Wilderness is 20,600 acres of broad, rolling country, straddling the crest of the Cascade Range with subalpine meadows and 175 small lakes. Originally known to the Indians as "Sahalee Tyee," the area has been and is culturally important to Native Americans. "Indian Heaven" offers visitors wildlife and panoramic views, as well as wildflowers and huckleberries, in season.

The red colored leaves seen here are huckleberry bushes. Just 2 weeks earlier I was munching on the yummiest huckleberries ever!!

From the Gifford Pinchot National Forest Website:

"Huckleberry Legend-A Traditional Yakima Indian Legend
Long ago, this world was inhabited only by animals. The animals could talk and understand each other, and they were just like we are today. One day the Creator called everyone together and said, "There are new people coming to live on this earth. You must make room for them by selecting new names and identities. You have the choice of what you want to be in this new world, and I will help you."

The animals all declared what they wanted to be in the new world. The Creator asked each one to perform certain feats in order to qualify for their new identity. If an animal failed to perform the feat he had to choose something else for which he was better qualified.

Coyote, as usual, monopolized all the best choices, but each time he could not perform the feat. First, he wanted to be the eagle, but he was unable to fly high in the sky, and did not have the keen eyesight the eagle must have. Next, he wanted to be the salmon, but he could not swim well enough. At last, the only position he could qualify for was the plain old Coyote, which he is today.

Every time an animal qualified for what he wanted to be, the Creator took part of his body and placed in the new creature. For this reason, the Indian people respect everything that has life, be it plant, animal, or human, because they are all part of the Creator.

When the Creator was finished with his work, he looked and say that he did not have any berries in the mountains. The only part of his body that was left were his eyes. So, he took his eyes and put them into the ground in the mountains. The veins in his eyes bled into the earth and become the roots. The roots became the plant, and the berries sprouted and became the huckleberries."