Stoic apprehension was the mood as we crossed over the Sisikiyou Summit into a smoky landscape on which neither Mt Shasta nor our destination, Mt Eddy, was visible. However, once we got off I-5 and onto Parks Creek Road, all traces of smoke vanished and our spirits lightened. There were lots of vehicles at the PCT crossing, but ours was the only one at the Deadfall Lakes trailhead.

It turned out to be a perfect day for a hike with reasonably cool air in the mid-seventies and delightful breezes whenever we hit a steeper uphill stretch. Started on the trail to Deadfall Lakes at 10am. The trailhead elevation was 6400 feet climbing to 8000 feet at the Mt.Eddy junction above Deadfall (HeWhoSwimsWithElkLake) Lake. Total milage was 6.3 miles.

Flower display was somewhat muted, but clumps of gentians provided intense splashes of color as we approached Upper Deadfall Lake where we ate our lunch. Lynn kept telling us about a new lake that he had discovered two weeks ago above Upper Deadfall, so after lunch we dutifully trekked up to the Callahan-Sissoon trailhead to take a look at his discovery from a nearby rock outcrop. It was indeed there, and an impromptu geographical names commission, consisting of the hike leader, officially named it Lynn's Lake.

As we started homeward, Mt Shasta was smoke- and nearly snowfree and clearly visible. We had been seeing a plume of smoke to the northwest of us on the way up; now we saw a new, much denser plume to our southwest. As we started driving north on I-5 our happy mood was somewhat lessened by the extensive smoke towards the north where we were heading. Refreshments were taken at home.