Warren Lake Trail and around Castle

Six of us hiked 9.5-10 miles, depending on which numbers you believe. The weather was perfect as we headed steeply up the flowered Warren Lake Trail to the saddle between Frog Lake Overlook and Castle Peak. We decided to cross country towards Castle as we hadn't done that before. We stopped at a few volcanic overlooks but opted to eat lunch in the shade of some trees. 

Yellow trace is one from today. 

After a leisurely lunch in this beautiful woods, we were sucked into the most amazing landscape we had encountered. The grass was green the asters, fritillaries, lilies, and huge trees were were alive with birds chirping and a grouse booming to find a mate. Was Disney filming this?  We knew we were in for some tough hiking ahead but savored the easy level land while we could. 

Then the descent began. Steeply.  Right under Castle peaks, below the lava outcroppings. Down we went. Mostly sideways. For quite a long time. We were heading for the PCT south of Castle Pass. First we hit a jeep road and we knew where that would take us. But instead of waiting for the PCT we turned onto a new trail. Donner Rim Trail. I figured it would take us to the junction of the PCT,Warren,and rest stop trails. But no, it meandered back up in bike trail fashion, following the contours and finally deposited us on the Warren Trail at the Summit Lake trail. Some distance from where we wanted to be. It was a long slog back down and under the freeway to the car parked at Boreal. Phew.