Going to the Preacher Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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Going to the
Preacher
Preacher Mountain is one of the
waypoint boundaries of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, but fortunately
for us cachers its western slope is outside of the wilderness
boundary. Even though it is located outside, the entire hike has
the feel of the wilderness and probably would be in the wilderness,
but the boundary had to be drawn somewhere. The views from the top
make you feel like you are in the heart of the ALW and provide
great views of the other peaks that make up the boundary protecting
those gorgeous alpine lakes.
Lake Caroline surrounded by Kaleetan, Chair, Roosevelt and
more
The hike is definitely not for the faint of heart and makes for a
long adventure. The track log for the entire trip showed about 12.5
miles with 5500 feet of elevation gain. The first half of the hike
consists of a 3.75 miles of decent trail up to Rainy Lake where
there are several caches to provide a nice break before continuing
on up. The second half of the trek requires off trail travel for
another 2 miles and roughly 2100 feet. The off trail will require a
bit of brush bashing just above lower Rainy Lake to open alpine
country near Upper Rainy Lake with lots of granite cliffs. The best
approach, not the one we took, is to follow the ridge up south of
Upper Rainy Lake and cross some heather fields to the Preacher
summit at 5924 feet.
Alpine Lakes a plenty
Again, this is a difficult hike/climb with lots of potential for
danger. Make sure you let someone know your destination and
preferably hike with a partner. Make sure to carry the 10
essentials as well and possibly an ice axe. There is plenty of
water up there, so bring a filter for some of the tastiest
around.
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Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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