Sand Ridge Lake

Six of us hiked over Andesite Peak down the Hole in the Ground Trail to Sand Ridge Lake. A random hiker with a dog joined us as we overtook her at the beginning of Castle Valley. Although the weather was hot, the lake was cold with a cool breeze blowing over it. Attempting to enter the lake, one of us found that the bottom was like quicksand and he immediately lost one water shoe. The rest of the time we attempted and failed to retrieve it.  After lunch we walked back to the PCT and Peter Grubb Hut. There we found a lone thru hiker going north to south. He felt like he had to race the possible weather that MIGHT come to the very high passes along the John Muir Trail. Between the heat and the mileage (11 miles, 1400 ft elevation gain) we were quite tired by the end of the hike.