This is my 4th time on Cady Ridge, and certainly not my last. I absolutely love this trail. Lots of variety – from forested switchback to meadow traverses to ridgewalking. Great flowers, and Glacier Peak, Poets Ridge, views of the Index complex, Daniel, Hinman, Chickamin, Clark – it’s non-stop.

It's a steep trail, and we didn’t fare well in the heat. Friday night, we chose to camp atop the ridge where we had views galore and a chance at the nice breeze that we had off and on all day. We also had tons of bugs. Mosquitoes are out en force, the black flies just beginning.

The flower show on Cady is mostly just beginning. The nearer the PCT, the more flowers you see. There are as many anemone already blown out as there are beginning to bloom. Glacier lilies and buttercup are still blooming, many hellebore are already in flower stage, and still more are just poking up. Lupine hasn’t yet made the big show, but there are many all the same.

This is going to be an exceptional huckleberry year. Oy vay!

Saturday, we walked over to Lk Sally Ann, still under snow. It looked like most of the campsites are closed for much-needed re-vegetation. The 2 that are open are fairly dismal – one is OK if you must camp there – the other is saucer-like and would be useless on a wet night. Lake Sally Ann needs to rest.

We got back on the PCT and headed up Ward’s Pass and to Dishpan Gap where we visited Cy Stoneburner, whose ashes were scattered under a clump of hemlocks there in about 1997. I don’t know anything about this elderly gentleman, but I like to visit him and think about him when I’m at Dishpan Gap.

We then wandered over toward Kodak Peak, intending on going up and enjoying views, but I never recovered from Fridays heat, so we decided to just head down the Li’l Wenatchee trail and go home.

The Forest Service recently finished re-rerouting the Li’l Wenatchee River Trail, and you no longer descend to Meander Meadows, but stay above it. The trail hits the PCT a few yards from the old junction. This re-route was an excellent decision, and saves the meadows from further damage (if you’ve been on the old trail, you know what I’m talking about). The new Li'l Wenatchee trail parallels below the PCT for awhile – the slope is covered with wildflowers – more than I have ever seen in my life! In addition to the usual suspects – valerian, yellow daisy, lupine, purple aster, bistort, lupine, paintbrush - are tiger lilies and pink spirea. So there is white, yellow, blue, red, purple, orange and pink – a sea of flowers from far below all the way up the slope, to the sky. Absolutely jaw-droppingly stunning.

The new Li'l Wenatchee trail is a delight to walk. Meander Meadows below are very pretty. I’ve never camped there and likely never will – looks buggy, and frankly – the views are above it!

The original, lower portion of the Li'l Wenatchee trail is still in fine tread condition – the Forest Service, WTA and other volunteer groups have spent a lot of time keeping the trail cleared of debris – once the thick vegetation come up each summer, the tread is, in places, completely obscured, so the trail maintenance done to avoid tripping over logs is very much appreciated. Still – keep your eyes out – critters love to dig burrows in trails.

You could wait a couple of weeks to do this loop and still not be disappointed in the flower show – some will be spent, but many, many others are yet to bloom. It seems that the PCT is mostly at blooming height in mid-to-late August, but of course, each year is different.

There are a few snow patches covering the trail below Wards Pass – soon snow caves will be forming under them, so take care.

It was nice to run into 3 other parties on the trail. This place is very much loved, and it makes me proud to live in Washington.

Thanks to Wenatchee-Okanogan National Forest for the Meander Meadows re-reoute.