{"id":6830,"date":"2024-09-23T16:34:39","date_gmt":"2024-09-23T22:34:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/grunschev.com\/wordpress\/?p=6830"},"modified":"2024-09-23T16:34:41","modified_gmt":"2024-09-23T22:34:41","slug":"silver-dollar-lake-and-murray-reservoir","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/grunschev.com\/wordpress\/2024\/09\/silver-dollar-lake-and-murray-reservoir\/","title":{"rendered":"Silver Dollar Lake and Murray Reservoir"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The valley between Mount Wilcox on the north and Square Top Mountain on the south contains three named lakes. The head of the valley abuts Argentine Peak which sits on the Continental Divide. The lakes, Naylor Lake, Silver Dollar Lake, and Murray Lake, are reached from the Silver Dollar Lake trailhead at the end of Naylor Lake Road, just below the summit of Guanella Pass. The dirt road is three-quarters of a mile long, steep and narrow. I would recommend a high-clearance vehicle, but a Toyota Camry pulled into the parking lot a few minutes after I got there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trail visits Silver Dollar Lake and Murray Lake. Naylor is bypassed but is visible from much of the trail. The surrounding mountains are all above 13,500′. All but the first half mile of trail is above treeline, with Murray Lake sitting at 12,144′. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m curious about Murray Lake. CalTopo maps shows it as Murry Reservoir. Judging from the satellite image, the lake has a dam. There is no bathtub ring, so it must have been full at the time the image was taken. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monday, September 16<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I arrived at the trailhead parking lot a few minutes before 9. I was the fourth vehicle. It took me an hour to get to Silver Dollar Lake and another fifteen minutes to Murray. It’s a high-altitude hike, but the trail isn’t very steep. I spent quite a while at Murray. I sat on the western bank, farthest from the trail. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lake is snow-fed. The snow was all gone weeks ago, but a few small trickles still come from willow patches hanging on rock outcroppings above my picnic spot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was surprised by how much willow filled the valley. Willow likes to have a lot of water. The trail cuts through long sections of it. In a few places, the trail is braided and wide and exposes little areas of the ground the willow is growing in. It’s a little like walking on a mattress – spongy. It’s about as dry as it gets right now, and the willow is brownish-yellow with just a tinge of dark green. The valley is wide and gently sloped and contains an abundance of willow. Hundreds of acres of it. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much willow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I arrived at Murray, a pair of hikers had nearly caught up to me. They kept following me around the lake and I was beginning to wonder if they were going to sit right next to me. No, they were circumnavigating the lake. I sat at the base of a large outcropping. To hike around the lake, you have to go to the top of this outcropping, a fairly steep climb of about a hundred and fifty feet. If I ever return here, I think I’ll do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This late in the season, wildflowers are, for the most part, memories. One of my favorites, though, queen’s crown, is still shining. Most of the other flowers have lost their petals and the leaves are turning brown. Queen’s crown, though, is a deep red. The pink petals have gone deep red. The green leaves and stalk the same. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After my early lunch, I spent a few minutes inspecting the dam. Water is flowing out of a pipe hidden in the rip-rap on the earthen berm. I could hear the source, but not see it. There are no visible controls, no valve to adjust the flow. The lake looks to be at its maximum level, which I’m guessing is about eight feet above its natural level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s not a functional reservoir and it hasn’t been remediated. It is a small earthen dam with a face of rip-rap. The berm has vertical steel plates in it, which stick up a few inches above the earth, heavily rusted. There is other rusted debris atop the dam as well. Standing on the north and looking south, it’s obvious where they got the materials to build the dam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n