On a sunny weekday morning I headed out early to paddle Lodgepole Lake and then hike around the Lake Trail.    From the Lac le Jeune Road, I followed the Chuwhels Mountain Road up to the Lodgepole Lake Rec Site.    The campground was mostly full but I arrived early and so there was no one on the lake and it was quiet in the camping area.    Lodgepole Lake is a smaller lake so it has limited paddling, but there are lots of trails in the area so I did loops to expand the work out and make it a paddle-and-hike day.

I launched my kayak from the boat launch at the Rec Site.

I paddled around the lake twice, once in each direction.    I have paddled around the lake 3 times in past years, but I now break up the activity to include a hike.

There are a number of trails to choose from, but I was pressed for time so I chose the Lower Lake Trail which stays close to the shoreline and goes right around the lake.

This single track trail through the forest has views of the lake, lots of wildflowers, and is usually a quiet route.

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