Munro Lake

Amazing little lost Lake in the woods

#12 is the culvert marker along the roadway used by the municipality road maintenance crews. There is really only a small pullout for parking, though you can find another pullout down the road a bit. The first 5 minutes of the hike takes you up a steep unused gravel road to the trailhead which will be on your right with a well defined trail marker, after that it's pretty obvious where the trail goes. Been hiking this trail throughout the last 45 years and it has nearly a 100 year history. It is an original mule trail from about the 1920s when the Gilley brothers decided to dam up Munro lake and use the water supply for a gravel washing operation down at the base of the mountain somewheres. You will notice a series of switchbacks on the steeper sections of this hike which I guess were easier for these beasts of burden to negotiate as they carried the mortar up to the Munro lake dam site which is now defunct but you can still see it's remains at the East end of the lake. Back until about the 1990s or so the lake was another 6-10 ft higher but since then the dam has been breached and the water table has dropped. There was a building of sorts near the dam where the caretaker stayed and waited for the signal from the operations in the valley via loud horn blasts, at which time he would allow water to flow for business. Anyways, it's a good 3000 ft of elevation gain to the lake that can be done in about an hour and a quarter by the more serious of hikers. Along the way you will go through a grove of 1st growth cedar trees which were just outside of the axe man's reach. There is a viewpoint at about halfway and at the right time of year there are wild blueberry bushes around the lake's edge. There are lots of trout in the lake as well, not familiar enough with fresh water fish to know what it was that I caught, but 2 would make a wonderful meal. All the sounds of the city below disappear once you arrive at the lake. This hike is best done on a dry day and is only wide enough for single file hiking most of the time. There are several places to pitch a tent and do the survivor person thing if that's you.

The trailhead is marked with a tiny #12 sign. Easy to miss, a harder hike uphill. A good hike though with a nice view. The viewpoint is nice once you reach Munroe lake, 25mins hike further to top.

Nice experience, we didn't finish the hike as we got there late, next time it's best to come early morning

It doesn't feel at the top of a mountain... Go further to the view point!