My Indian Summer Swim in Heart Lake — with a Short Poem

September 29, 2010 By John Soares 9 Comments

Stephanie and I took the afternoon off yesterday and explored Heart Lake. It’s one of our favorite destinations — and it’s where we had our first date four summers ago.

The day was unseasonably warm, probably mid-70s at 6,000 feet with no wind. We got to the lake; I stripped and dove in.

Indian Summer at Heart Lake–
Lying on a warm rock
Bright sun on my wet skin
A flock of snow geese
Flying south

John Soares and Molly at Heart Lake with snowy Mount Shasta in 2006. — John Soares and Molly at Heart Lake

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Roy Scribner says
September 30, 2010 at 5:28 am
This is why I hate working for the man, John 🙂
Reply
- John Soares says
  September 30, 2010 at 6:10 am
  Roy, you gotta do what you gotta do. I know you have a family, and I also know you take them camping and hiking as much as you can.
  Reply
Gambolin' Man says
September 30, 2010 at 3:32 pm
Good one, John and Steph! Nice lyric, there, too, John! (From one “dawg”-erel to another!). . . and damnLord am I envious! What a fabulously beautiful place! Nothing better than to while away an afternoon on a beautiful Indian Summer day in a pristine location. Suddenly, all that matters. . .is what matters!
Reply
- John Soares says
  September 30, 2010 at 8:46 pm
  Glad you liked the poem. I’ve written some haiku and this is actually similar to that in essence, but not in exact form.
  There was such a juxtaposition between the unseasonal warmth at that elevation, and actually swimming, and seeing the snow geese flying south.
  Reply
Karen Mangan says
October 16, 2010 at 10:12 am
We were just at Heart Lake on Tuesday, Oct 12th, and it was sunny and warm. Quite a spot! Thinking about getting an inflatable kayak (2 person) to enjoy all the lakes in the Shasta area. Any suggestions on brand, etc?
Reply
- John Soares says
  October 16, 2010 at 11:47 am
  Karen, I’m glad you had a warm day at Heart Lake. Did you go swimming? If you did, it’d be the latest I know of.
  I can’t help you out with inflatable kayaks; I don’t know much about them. I have thought about getting one, so let me know what you ultimately decide on.
  Reply
  - Karen Mangan says
    October 17, 2010 at 8:03 am
    No, we didn’t go swimming, as we arrived in the morning and it was just too nippy out. Had we been there in late afternoon, I’m sure I would have gone in. Back at Castle Lake at 3pm, one of the researchers on the platform dove in….
    Reply
Richard Blazer says
July 18, 2014 at 5:23 pm
Hi…
I’m an old (but pretty strong hiker!) from Ashland, OR. I own both your ‘100 Hikes’ & ’75 Hikes’ books — great work!
I’d like to go from Heart Lake to the PCT, but I can’t seem to find anything online describing the best way to do this. I think I saw something about your leading a hike in this area a couple of years ago, but can’t locate that now either!
Any words of wisdom as to how to hike Heart Lake –> PCT would be greatly appreciated!
Richard
Reply
- John Soares says
  July 19, 2014 at 6:57 am
  Richard, it’s cross-country, but not too difficult. Make sure you have a topo map or the Forest Service’s Castle Crags wilderness map.
  About a quarter mile before Heart Lake, head to the left toward a low area on the ridge. From the ridge, make your way down to the gap, where you’ll find the PCT.
  Have fun!
  Reply

My Indian Summer Swim in Heart Lake — with a Short Poem

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