On a recent Friday, my husband and I pulled into a nearly full parking lot at Devils Lake. This time of year, this spot is often packed with people heading up the South SisterClimber Trail — an arduous hike with a great payoff.

Or so I hear. Despite living here for seven-plus years, I have yet to make the climb. Whenever I have free time to hike, some other option always ends up trumping the South Sister trek. Or it could be that stumbling across scree just doesn’t appeal to me.

Last week was no different. Though those around us were all headed up, up, up, my husband, Robin, and I had a different plan in mind.

Our destination was less grand and easier to get to, but I would argue no less lovely. Instead of hiking to South Sister, we headed out to Sisters Mirror Lake.

It’s a tiny alpine lake nestled along the Pacific Crest Trail, about four miles west of Devils Lake.

The hike

From the parking lot, we found the trail marked Elk-Devils trail. A few yards in, the trail goes into a tunnel that took us underneath Cascade Lakes Highway.

On the other side, we began a slow, steady climb. The trail was wide and fairly easy, although the ground was quite sandy, making steps a little more difficult. We made good time hoofing slowly uphill and soon came to an intersection with a trail headed to the more popular Moraine Lake. We followed the signs to Sisters Mirror Lake.

Our trail skirted around the edge of Wickiup Plain, which is a large field of pumice. We stayed on the path and got some peekaboo views of South Sister. We could have walked across the open fields and past a few small trees for better views, but we weren’t focused on big mountain views on this trek.

The trail continued on through a forest of tall mountain hemlock. Looking up, we could see a line where the moss stopped on all of the trees, likely marking the level of the snowpack. I liked imagining the area, now hot and filled with wildflowers, socked in with snow and stillness.

The trail began to descend in elevation and weaved around a large rock pile. Not far after that, the trail intersects with the Pacific Crest Trail; stay left, stick to the PCT and follow signs to Sisters Mirror Lake. Less than a mile later, we encountered another trail intersection, but this one more confusing. Keep on the PCT and do not follow the signs for Mirror Lake Trail, which heads to the south.

Soon after that intersection you will spot Sisters Mirror Lake on the right side of the trail.

The lake

The best word for Sisters Mirror Lake is lovely. When we made the trek, it was early August and the lake was surrounded by all manner of wildflower. After our trip, I felt inspired to look up the names of some of the flowers we encountered in a guidebook. My best guess is that we saw red mountain heather, purple alpine aster (that looks like happy lavender daisies), white dwarf bramble and what I believe was red cobwebby paintbrush. But the point is, these flowers were phenomenal. Reds, purples, whites and yellows dotted the green foliage surrounding the lake.

We followed the path around the perimeter of the lake, looking for the right spot for a picnic. We had ample choices, as there were numerous large, flat rocks just begging for picnickers. We settled on the southern tip of the lake, from which vantage point you could make out the top of South Sister. Its reflection was mirrored in the still lake below, hence the name.

Hail no

While we were eating, we heard some rolling thunder in the distance. We felt a few drops of rain, but the sky above us remained fairly bright. More than 4 miles from the car, we didn’t have much choice other than to hope for the best. We finished eating and headed back. (Apparently there are many other small lakes just beyond Sisters Mirror Lake, but the thunder urged us to stop dawdling and return.)

In my mind, the trip back is always quicker because I spend less time gawking and taking everything in and more time just putting one foot in front of the other. This was particularly true for this hike.

Robin and I were hoofing it as quickly as we could. We made it within 2 miles of the car before it really started to rain. We laughed and kept on. But soon the rain began to sting. Instead of splashing us, it began to pelt us. It was hailing. Hard.

Already soaked and surrounded by small trees that wouldn’t provide much cover, we opted to pick up the pace. I ended up half-running and jumping down the trail. The pelting hail stung, but it also made me laugh. I felt a kind of manic glee. Racing downhill in the pouring rain and hail, I felt an odd joy, kind of like a kid stomping in puddles.

Back at the car, the cold set in. I couldn’t believe we had to turn on our heater in August. We both laughed at our adventure and, soaking wet, headed back home.

If you go

Where: Sisters Mirror Lake

Difficulty: Moderate, 8.5 miles roundtrip

Cost: $5 parking fee or wilderness permit required

Contact: 541-383-4000 or www.fs.usda.gov/main/centraloregon

Where: Sisters Mirror Lake

Difficulty: Moderate, 8.5 miles round-trip

Cost: $5 parking fee or wilderness permit required

Contact: 541-383-4000 or www.fs.usda.gov/main/centraloregon