Middle Rock Lake Backpack

Angie, Scott, Cami and Warren backpacked to Middle Rock Lake in the Mt Hood Wilderness in mid July. This was a fairly short backpack for us (~4 miles round trip), but the hot weather (~95 degrees) that weekend convinced us that a short backpack was a good idea. We enjoyed a nice day at the lake with the warm water and sunshine. The mosquitoes were pretty bad on this trip, but with enough deet on they mostly left us alone. Here are a few pictures from the trip.

Middle Rock Lake is currently the central location of a search and rescue operation for a guy who has been missing since early July. He was reported missing the day we arrived at the lake. Other than his tent, we didn't see any sign of him. Hopefully they figure out what happened to him.

Large rock slide on the slopes around Middle Rock Lake.
Some wildflowers at Middle Rock Lake. 2 exposure blend, 1/3 sec and 1/13 sec at f/16, ISO 200.
Rhododendrons in bloom.
Upper Rock Lake. The lake was like a mosquito breeding pool and Scott was bitten about 6 times just trying to get this picture!
Middle Rock Lake looking east.
Warren and Cami both playing with the same stick.
Cami, Scott, Warren
Cami, Angie, Warren
Sunset at Middle Rock Lake. 1.3 sec at f/22, ISO 100
Campfire under the north star.
There was another group of backpackers across the lake who were in perfect position to capture this photo. This is a 5 exposure blend to capture the glow of the fire and the motion of the stars rotating around the north star. Exposure 1 (34 sec at f/4, ISO 100) was taken at twilight to capture some of the glow in the sky. Exposures 2-5 were started ~30 minutes later. Each exposure was ~22 minutes at f/4, ISO 100.
Cami watching the fish rise at sunrise.
Middle Rock Lake Sunrise
Bear grass