Hoping for the sun we did not get last week (although the weathermen promised) at Mason Lake, we headed for Red Mt Tarn and Red Pass.

We used the shortcut that takes off pretty quickly from the trailhead. It's a narrow path and is cobbly for a bit and then starts gaining elevation as it heads into Commonwealth Basin. The trail meanders on the east side of the creek and then crosses on a two-log bridge with wire mesh. Footing on the bridge was fine. The trail takes a right turn (there is a left trail (not very visible today) that leads to the Cave Ridge route) and follows the creek. It meanders some more and crosses two low spots and then crosses the creek in a maze of logs and rocks. It gains a bit of elevation in about 3 or 4 switchbacks and joins the main Red Mt Trail - a look back at the junction shows a sign "Trail Abandoned" on the way you've just come.

Meanders again west and north, crosses the creek again and then either dives under than over a few large trees or a bypass in a marsh to the left. The trail finally starts its long climb up a narrow ridge and then under the slopes of Red Mt.

It levels after about 1,000 feet and you go left to the tarn or begin a new set of switchbacks up to Red Pass through some boulder fields and some snow sluffs from the slopes of Red.

The ridge provides a view to the north and Mt Thompson, Chickamin and other peaks in that direction. During the climb there's views down to the tarn and out to Mt Rainier.

A quick snack in the sun and the long trudge back down and out.

Saw a few other folks, some taking the main trail and other taking the shortcut.

There were definitely icy rocks at the various creek crossings and slippery wet roots and some mud. Dusting of snow starts at the trailhead and some bare spots and more snow but probably not more than 3-4 inches.

Great day.

With a definite chill in the air and the site of snow on the distant peaks, we decided to try and fit in a final autumn scramble, knowing we'de hit some snow along the way. Red Mountain seemed like a good choice for a surprizingly blue bird day, but we brought microspikes and poles along for potential snow/ice. First day trip car in the parking lot at 8am. Hiked the PCT with light snow on the trail. The snow became a bit more substantial at 4200 ft (3 inches or so). The small streams were frozen solid in the Commonwealth Basin on the way in. Poles were helpful for balance and navigating the ice on the crossings, etc. Decided to put on traction devices when we approached the saddle at the junction of the climbers trail and started up to the summit. The trail was obvious about the first 25% on the way up. Cairns were sometime visible but often buried. The climbers trail then became difficult to find. The snow was about 5-6 inches deep and there was no ice beneath the snow until we hit about 5600 ft. The trail was tough to follow, steep, and the going got a bit more risky because there was ice, talus frozen in place, and snow covered slabs. We carefully navigated our way up to within 200 ft from the summit and decided to turn around. It had taken about an hour to get from the saddle to 5650ft. We descended safely and carefully, avoided body and rock falls. The hike out was beautiful and uneventful. Would suggest going back when the snow has vanished whether it be this year or most likely next summer. The views going up and the tranquility of a popular area with nobody in site today were worth the effort. No need to summit today!

Red Mountain via the abandoned Commonwealth Basin trail is hands down my favorite hike. Trail directions are here http://www.wta.org/[…]/trip_report.2010-09-16.5701038095 . Be aware, this is a scramble on loose crumbly rock.


There were cars parked out to the main road on this holiday weekend, but I saw only ten people today, and no one one the 'abandoned trail' section and no one on Red Mountain. Apparently the Katwalk was busy. I shared the summit with a half million or so flying ants, frantically mating and crashing into me. The bugs were not interested in me as a mate, so they were not really a problem and I spent over and hour on top. Didn't see many berries, nor biting insects. Everything from bottom to top is green and lush and looks more like early July than early September. Commonwealth Creek is low and crossings are easy. No pups today.
.

Summary: 55 mile run / hike, start at Snoqualmie Pass, PCT to Waptus lake, then Lake Ivanhoe to Dutch Miller Gap, Goldmeyer Hot Springs, Old PCT to Red Mtn Pass, Commonwealth Basin back to Snoqualmie Pass. Plan: 11 hours Actual: 16 hours Bringing headlamps was a wise choice....
The entire loop was done in running shoes. No poles or traction devices are needed.
Lots of ripe berries along the way.

The long story, with trail detailed trail conditions for each section:
Adam Lint and I set out at 7:15am on Sunday morning from the PCT trailhead at Snoqualmie Pass. There are several trees across the trail on the climb to Kendall's Catwalk, but easy to get around / over. May be 1/2 mile past the junction with the Commonwealth Basin trail the PCT crosses an open area (avalanche path in the winter). The actual trail just crosses the open area. If you don't pay attention you (like us and many others) might follow a false trail uphill that ends after 50 - 100 yards.
The rest of the way to the Catwalk is in good condition with no snow on the trail.
After the Catwalk there are a few snow patches but the entire PCT section of the trail to Waptus Lake is runable. Got to Park Lakes in about 3 hours, then descended partly through burned-out forest, crossing the outflow of Spectacle Lake (Delate Creek) on a solid bridge. The bridge over Lemah Creek is gone, but there is log across a little downstream. About a mile later you cross another creek (not sure of its name) on a solid bridge. Get some water here as the climb up Escondido Ridge is long and dry (except for a smaller creek near the start of the climb). Eventually the trail flattens out and you pass several small lakes / ponds. The section just above Escondido Lake has seen some recent trail work as the tread is very new. The 3.7 miles (Green trails map) from trail 1329 down to the trail 1362 junction seems to be a little longer than 3.7 miles... got there at 3:00pm.

trail 1362 to Lake Ivanhoe and Dutch Miller Gap. This is where my problems really started. My stomach hadn't been feeling that good before, but after drinking some water it came back out, and then some. Trail is in great shape, but I wasn't, so we ended up walking most of the way to Lake Ivanhoe. It's one of the most scenic lakes I've seen, surrounded by rugged peaks and cascading waterfalls. Just before the Lake the trail splits, and we chose to go around the lake clockwise. You have to cross the outflow of Lake Ivanhoe here on a broken, but still in place bridge. As you begin the final climb to Dutch Miller Gap you cross a creek cascading down on exposed granite, and then down into the lake.

Dutch Miller Gap to Goldmeyer Hot Springs, trail 1030:
First mile is pretty steep down, then flattens out near the junction with Williams Lake. Still couldn't eat / drink much and we jogged most of the downhills, and walked the occasional uphills and the overgrown sections (about a mile total ove overgrown areas, but almost all soft stuff, no salmonberries or other thorny stuff). Trail is easy to follow... Eventually made it to the road and decided to run down the road instead of the trail to the hotsprings. (You have to follow the road for about 1/2 mile anyway, but then you have the option of turning off onto the Middle Fork Trail for the the last 3 miles to the hotsprings.) Go to the hot springs at about 7:10pm. Did not feel good and threw up again. Katie, the caretaker at the hotsprings, was very helpful and made me some ginger tea, and also sent an e-mail to my wife that we'd be later than expected, and not the call S&R. Left the hot springs at 7:30pm.

Goldmeyer Hot Springs to Red Mtn Pass - Old PCT.
At this point we had about 1 hour of daylight left... Immediately after crossing Burnboot Creek on the log bridge (very easy crossing) we turned left on a indistinct looking trail (look for a small sign for "red mtn pass 4 miles") upstream. The trail follows the creek upstream for about 200 meters and then starts climbing unrelenting with many switchbacks towards Red Mtn Pass (1800ft to 5300 ft). Bring plenty of water as there is NO water available until close to the top. There are several trees across the trail, but they pose no problem to the avid hiker. In some sections, especially the upper part of the trail, huckleberry bushes start to overgrow the trail a bit, but even in the dark it was no problem to follow the trail. Eventually you ascent above treeline and the trail switchbacks up next to a snowfield, which as of Aug. 30th was still in part covering the trail. Once you reach the "false summit" you're almost there, at least elevation-gain wise. Now the trail descends slightly and crosses a talus field before the final push up a gully to Red Mtn Pass. There were several snowfields covering the trail leading up the the gully. Fortunately there was about a 2-5 ft gap between the rockwall on the right and the snow fields on the left. At one point the snow was about 10 ft thick, but had a 4 ft high snow cave under it for us to pass through. Would have been super cool if I had felt better. The gully was still partly snow-covered, but even in the dark with just running shoes and a stick we picked up along the way we were able to make it up without too much trouble. We reached Red Mtn Pass at 9:30pm. View of the sky and Milky Way was awesome. Even saw a shooting star.

Commonwealth Basin trail 1033. Trail's in good condition, kind of steep and rocky in the upper part for descenting at night. Commonwealth creek crossing on a log was easy. We chose to descend the PCT rather than the somewhat shorter trail because we didn't know how easy it would be to follow that trail in the dark. Threw up one more time on the way down. Got to the car by 11:30pm.