Kersey Lake

I had my first real day off a while back and it was AMAZING! John M, Brady, Amanda, and I and their two dogs Tango and Arlo all went for a hike in the National Forest just outside the Northeast entrance. We left early in the morning, because Brady had to work later that day, and headed to Kersey Lake in the Gallatin Natl Forest.
We started up along a trail that had a bunch of forks off it and it seems as if we tried every one until we reached the main trail that led into the backcounty. One of the forks led to a waterfall. It was nothing big, maybe about 20 ft tall but boy was it loud! And fast! I would not like to boat down that thing in a boat. John M, who used to be a rafting guide showed me the course I would want to take if I was put in a boat and forced to go over the waterfall. There were two parts: one current that went right over the edge, and one current that was made into a jump by a rock. Now you would think that taking the jump would not be the better idea, but John explained that if you took the jump, the boat/raft would land flat and there would be a better chance of the nose of the boat being up. If the other route was taken, the nose would land at the bottom of the waterfall face down, and the chances for flipping the boat would be much higher.
Another fork of the trail led to an abandoned power plant that used the current produced by the waterfall to make energy. I guessed there was a fire, because it seemed that the building was gone, and only the foundation remained. But apparently whatever remained was protected by some historical artifact act made by the government, so the cement and iron ruining the landscape that was left behind will remain there indefinitely.
We crossed a bridge going over the river and headed up the trail. Arlo, (Amanda and Brady's dog) got to see his first batch of snow. He also loves to play with balls, so when I made a snowball and threw it to him he caught it in his mouth, but to his disappointment it got crushed when he bit down.
We hiked some more, through lots more snow, until we reached a creek crossing. Luckily, there were some fallen trees so none of us had to get wet. No one really had trouble crossing except for myself and Arlo. He seemed a bit scared of both swimming across and crossing on the log. I just seemed to have bad balance, so I sat on the log and scooted myself over the creek.
For a while we climbed a mountain through a lodgepole pine new growth forest. On the other side of the mountain going downhill, the trail was covered in snow and the snowmelt. So it made for a very muddy and we downhill climb. At this point, I was very grateful for my new hiking boots which my mom bought me before I left. Not only did they feel wonderful, but they also kept my feet dry, which is a wonderful thing in this cold mountain climate.
We reached a lake and hung out there for a while. There was a rock cliff that if you yelled at it, a pretty cool echo was produced. Both Amanda and I experimented with our new discovery. There seemed to be a forest ranger outpost across the lake, but due to our lack of time, we decided to check it out on another day.
We headed the same way back, going up the muddy trail and scooting across the creek. For lunch, we stopped at the beartooth cafe in Cooke City just outside of the Northeast gate. If you are ever in this area, this place is a must! Not only does it have amazing food, but it also has 130 types of beer from around the world that you can order. Now since I am underage, I ordered just an ice water. But the Bison burger that I ordered was delicious.
After that, it was back to the park. The second half of my day wasn't as enjoyable as the first half. I spent about 4 and a half hours cleaning my trailer. But since it was a thorough cleaning, hopefully from now on, if I tidy up once a week, a large cleaning isn't going to be necessary again.
Well that's all for now. I still haven't gotten my ranger hat in. Believe me, if I do, there will be pictures right away.
Photos of the Kersey Lake hike are posted at the bottom.