JULY 2018 & JUNE 2020
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| UPPER HELL ROARING LAKE |
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| LUCILLE LAKE |
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| WATERFALL BELOW LUCILLE LAKE |
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| BELOW LUCILLE LAKE |
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| LUCILLE LAKE |
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| LUCILLE LAKE |
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| POND BELOW LUCILLE LAKE |
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| POND BELOW LUCILLE LAKE |
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| OUTLET TO LUCILLE LAKE |
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| HELL ROARING LAKE |
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| IMOGENE LAKE |
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| POND ABOVE IMOGENE |
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| WATERFALL ABOVE IMOGENE |
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| OUTLET TO A LAKE ABOVE IMOGENE |
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| LAKE ABOVE IMOGENE |
Hell Roaring Lake is a relatively flat eleven-mile round-trip hike in the Sawtooth Mountains. The trailhead is located just ten minutes south of the turn-off for Redfish Lake just off State Highway 75. If you have a high-clearance vehicle, you can actually shorten the hike to five-and-a-half mile round-trip hike by driving a couple miles further up the road to a second trailhead. I decided to play it safe and park at the lower trailhead.
I was surprised how flat the walk to Hell Roaring Lake was. I was also surprised at how warm it was as the lake is located at a relatively low elevation, and there were no clouds or wind to cool things off the day I was hiking. Due to its low elevation, this one of the first hikes to become clear of snow in the Sawtooth each year. As I was there in July, there were also mosquitoes. There weren't a whole lot, and they didn't bother me too much as I was only day-hiking. However, because I forgot to bring repellent, I ended up with about twenty bites by the time I was done.
Hell Roaring Lake is a beautiful lake with the famous Finger of Fate rock spire above it. From Hell Roaring Lake, I continued another three miles to Imogene Lake. About a half-mile before Imogene you will pass by a pond covered with lily pads on your left, and then an unusually-shaped lake on your right that is worth getting a closer look at as the majority of the lake is hidden from the trail. You will then pass by a waterfall just before reaching Imogene. The view as you arrive at Imogene is amazing. Imogene is a very large lake containing several islands and an impressive backdrop.
Still having some energy, I decided to walk around to the back of Imogene and follow its inlet another mile or so to three more lakes. There is no trail, so just follow the inlet. You will pass two nice waterfalls along the way. These lakes are located one after another in a peaceful basin. By the time I reached the third one, I had hiked roughly nine miles and was ready to head back.
I hiked Hell Roaring Lake again in late June 2020, as I was interested in visiting the lakes and ponds located off the main trail that I had missed the first time. Once arriving at Hell Roaring, I hiked around the lake and followed an inlet to Upper Hell Roaring Lake. It took a lot of effort, and a difficult stream crossing to get there, but was definitely worth it. From Upper Hell Roaring, I decided to just cut cross-country to the Lucille Lake area. This took some effort as well, and quite a bit of elevation change, but eventually I came to the main creek draining the Lucille Lake basin and just followed it to the top.
The hiking became much easier once I reached the creek. It was really pleasant just walking along side it and seeing all of the various waterfalls and ponds. I eventually made it up to Lucille Lake, which was still half-way covered in ice, before returning back to the trail. While there were a lot of people camped at Hell Roaring, I didn't see anyone on my off-trail journey to Upper Hell Roaring and Lucille. Even when you're hiking during a summer weekend in the Sawtooth, it's possible to get some solitude by getting an early start and heading off-trail.
