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Carne Mountain

Oct 24, 2009

by Kirklander last modified Oct 26, 2009 12:49 AM
Type of Outing
Day hike
Read More in our Hiking Guide
Hike: Carne Mountain
Region: Central Cascades -- Stevens Pass - East
Agency: Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest
Trails: Carne Mountain (#1508)
Avg Rating: 4.12
Why You Should Go Now
  • Fall foliage
The larches are peaking now (hiked on 10/24).

We started from Bothell around 7:30 and took us 3.5 hours to get to the trail head. The last 10 or so miles were very bumpy dirt road that you may want to drive through in a high-clearing vehicle.

It was pretty chilly when we started. The parking lot was pretty empty that day. If that were happen to you on your first time there, it means you REALLY have to pay attention to the trail fork that leads to the Carne Mountain. It was pretty close to the trail head and if you have crossed two creeks, you've passed it. It is a Y-shaped split with a sign on the left. Missing that fork cost us almost 45 minutes.

The ascend was not as steep as feared. And for a long stretch of time, we traveled in heavily wooded area. The view was good but not yet striking.

However, things changed really fast once we passed 2.5 mile. After passing the exposed slope mentioned in the trail guide, we soon reached the rim of the Carne basin. A step over the rim, we suddenly entered a different realm. The dense and bright gold larch forest around the basin looked like a flaming golden bowl.

There was some snow on the ground, and the trail hardened underneath because of ice. It was not quite 3:30 but the sun was hovering over the ridges. So we hurried to the top, always taking left-most trail at crossroads.

The view at the summit was more than rewarding. I would save my time and leave some space for imagination and motivation.

However, if you are just poking around here and are curious of what it looked like when we were there, I have attached a few pics here.
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