Saucer, Frog, and Green Island Lakes

Posted by Interdisciplinary 6 - The Sierra Nevada

March 30, 2007

An essay by Tim Morgan

I have traveled to many places in the Sierra throughout my 48 years as a resident of California. I enjoy every opportunity to leave the valley for another adventure in the Sierra. Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, and Lassen Park, to name a few, are well known places that I have visited, along with many others. My special time and place in the Sierra however, was in a remote area in Plumas County the summer of 1970.

I was 12 when my grade school friend, Dan, moved to the town of Magalia in Butte County .My parents drove me to his house for the start of a two-week visit. The next morning we packed up the VW van with our fully loaded backpacks. Dan's father headed out north on Skyway with Dan, his brother Tim and myself all anxiously awaiting our destination. We traversed the winding road through the towns of Lovelock, Sterling City, and Inskip, the last town where the paved highway turned to dirt and rock. We traveled about 30 miles past the town of Inskip; there Dan's father pulled over to the side of the road and announced, "We're here!" Our destination was what the locals would refer to as "the high lakes." We quickly gathered our gear and strapped on our backpacks. Dan's father turned the van around and said, "I'll meet you here in seven days at 12:00," and then headed back down the road.
 
We hiked down the side of the ridge toward three small lakes, Saucer, Frog, and Green Island. Saucer Lake was by far the most beautiful of the three lakes. It was round in shape with a very shallow bottom. It was our favorite swimming hole, with the most pristine water.

Green Island Lake is about a 30-minute hike from Saucer. It is a long, narrow lake with a huge floating grass island attached to one side of it. It is deeper and darker than Saucer Lake, and this is where we caught most of our trout. Frog Island Lake was another ten-minute hike from Green Island, and is the smallest of the lakes. We spent most of our days fishing, swimming, exploring, and hiking to the top of peaks to enjoy the beauty of the Sierra that spread out far and wide around us. We camped at each of the 3 lakes during the course of our trip. At night we would sit around the campfire and catch up on what had happened to us since the last time we were together. The area was so remote that we never saw a single soul besides the three of us.

This was a tradition that would be repeated over several years, only to come to an end by having to face the reality of growing up.