We wandered out of camp about 2:00pm, not entirely sure of our plan once we got to wherever it was we didn’t know where we were going. The old USGS topo map shows a trail leading southward from Lake #3’s west ridge up to Lake #5 atop the next higher bench, and we had seen that junction the day before when we passed on our way to Lake #4. So, that was at least a formative idea/plan, i.e. to hike our way south and see what the balance of the afternoon brought. Lake #5 is the last Hilton Lake of any significant size – there are five more lakes further up the drainage, and we thought perhaps the closer ones may also be worth a visit, but all are fairly small and Carter thought them unlikely to hold fish large enough to cook for dinner. Under light day packs, we quickly passed through the meadows below Lake #4 and climbed up the ridge beyond, found the junction again, and turned right to follow it south. The gradient was very mild at first, but the approaching headwall to the south told us a much steeper grade was in store – that, and it also became quickly apparent that the old map marked a trail just as old, one that had received neither maintenance or a lot of use for quite some time. Though the trail was difficult to follow in places, it wasn’t too easy to get lost – one needs merely to scramble higher up the fall line of the slope, eventually finding a lightly worn foot path or a conspicuous duck that indicates the route. The heat of the day was upon us, but there was a continuous breeze blowing from the south that helped cool us down as we climbed higher. Eventually, we finished the 400′ ascent and crossed over a low bump, dropping from there to Lake #5 – with trees only on its western shore and the wind whipping up its surface, the water’s deep blue-green color was stunning. We crossed the lake’s outlet on some rocks, and Carter immediately headed down a narrow use trail running along the west shoreline, muttering something about needing to cast with the wind at his back. We followed him to a sandy alcove about halfway down the lake, and he and Dani sat down to fish for a while. Chris wandered up the ridge to the west and spied a large boulder to the north which he thought might offer clear views of the upper Hilton Creek drainage – he and Jane walked northward, only to realize the views we sought were not to be had from the boulder but from the ridgeline beyond. We emerged from the scrubby whitebark pine forest to an open clearing at the northern end of the ridge and were treated to wide open vistas in all directions. From the west edge of the clearing, we looked down and saw the west end of our own Lake #4 with people fishing the same beach where we’d been that morning – they looked like ants, but we could here their voices carrying up to us, 400′ higher and half a mile away. We also saw a large group setting up camp close to ours, which was probably inevitable on such a nice summer weekend. Carter and Dani came up and found us after striking out in the fishing department, and, after enjoying the views for a while more, we all picked our way back eastward off the ridge and down to Lake #5’s outlet. Rather than take the trail down, Jane was wondering if we could follow the creek down instead, and what started as exploring a little to see if that was feasible turned into a full commitment to take the gully route down. Along the way, we found plenty of evidence to suggest we were not the first hikers to have this idea – the west side of the creek was sandy enough to hold footprints, and we stayed mostly on this side as we wove our way downward through often-loose rocks. About halfway down, we came across a small waterfall – from above, the west side looked sketchy, so we crossed to the east and scrambled over and down some large blocks to a spot below the falls. Here, Carter found some small rapids into which he dunked his head, and Jane and Dani followed his lead but with a twist – they laid down backward and dunked their heads shampoo-station style, and both reported that was quite the refreshing experience. Now on the west side of the creek again, the terrain began to open up, so we left the creek and immediately found a ducked route leading westward – we followed these prompts further down, moving ever closer to Lake #4, and, after crossing through a pair of pretty meadows, we found the access trail just east of Lake #4’s outlet. Only about two miles all told, this was a great side trip – the up, though steep, was short enough to still be pleasant, and the route back down the creek was really enjoyable. Carter never did get any fish big enough for dinner, though he caught plenty of “teenagers”, as we called them, so we feasted on ramen and snacks before bedtime.