Nellie Lake Trail - Kaiser Wilderness - Huntington Lake

Not sure how popular Nellie Lake Trail is during the busy season, but in the off-season there is nobody... Literally, boarded up cottages, covered up signs and silence... My friend and I decided we needed a challenging hike. Boy, did we get what we wanted. Whether it is from high starting elevation or cooler weather, the hike was very very hard. Alltrails tracked 8.6 miles (+1 mile since I did not start tracking until 1 mile into) with quite a bit of elevation. The hike starts next to Huntington Lake. We parked right by it and hiked to the trail head. Apparently, you could also drive up to the trail (maybe 0.25 miles).

The views were good, but not amazing. The lake was completely empty. We stayed there maybe 15 min to eat lunch and headed back. It was a bit too chilly (close to freezing at that point + the wind). Regardless, if you want a challenge, go for it! If you want solitude, hike the trail during the off-season.