Bald Mountain
Jul 11, 2004
- Type of Outing
- Day hike
- Read More in our Hiking Guide
- Hike: Bald Mountain
- Region: North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
- Trails: Bald Mountain (#572)
- Avg Rating: 2.25
- Be Aware Of
- Mudholes
- Water on trail
Today I just needed to get out! So, I decided for once that I would hike on a trail that was somewhat close to where I live, Bald Mtn/Cutthroat Lakes. On to the trail...
For starters, the access road to the trailhead is one of the nicest I've ever driven on. Even that blasted washboard was non-existant. The trail is in great shape. From a carving on a stair case, it looks as though the SCA did a little trail renovation work, and it paid off. However, once I hiked over the last saddle and reached the tarns, the trail gets quite muddy and continues that way until Cutthroat Lakes.
Snow patches were here and there, but none on the trail. The tarns are beautiful and I can imagine on a blue-sky-day, the views would be amazing. There were tons of little frogs in and around them that kept me entertained for awhile. Be careful to keep your eye on the trail between Cutthroat and the tarns. I missed the junction and got a little lost among the tarns (Hence the frogs). The lakes are beautiful with great photo opps. Wait until you hike above upper Cutthroat Lake before snapping pictures. I continued up to the saddle that doubles as the backbone for Bald Mountain and ate my lunch. I heard the views from there are phenomenal, but unfortunately I had to settle for the north-view only because the south side was nothing but clouds.
The bugs were not much of a problem except for nats (which were numerous around Bald Mtn). Tons of people on the trail, to my surprise. And on this exciting day, a woman had backed over the edge of the road (at the trailhead) and everyone that I passed on the way down asked if I was the owner of one of the two trucks at the trailhead (to pull her car out). Fortunately they were able to get a tow truck up there and the car was gone by the time I reached my vehicle. 8 miles, 4.5 hours and tired feet!
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