Spider Meadows #1511,Phelps Creek #1511

Dragon Feet heads to Spider Meadows on what proves to be a solid forecast for glorious weather. We opt for an ""early"" departure from the Seattle area in a futile effort to snag the best camping spot in the meadows. We leave home at 6:45 AM and are at the trailhead at 10 AM. There are already lot's of rigs at the trailhead, however some folks are headed up the Carne Mntn trail and some are climbing Mt Maude. There is also a search and rescue under way for any trace of a solo hiker lost since September 2005. We are asked to keep our eyes open for camps, gear etc. now that the snow is melting.

The trail to the meadows follows Phelps Creek on an easy grade through stands of trees and small meadows. We encountered patchy snow at about 4500', but it will surely be gone in a week or two with this hot weather.

Alas, our desired campsite is occupied, so we continued on through Spider meadows. The flowers are just starting to bloom and will be in their full glory by the end of the month. We crossed the creek at the north end and begin a fairly steep ascent up to the intersection of the Spider Gap and Phelps Basin trails. We head to spetacular Phelp's Basin and in 0.5 miles find the only ""established"" campsite unoccupied. It is a grassy knoll just next to the creek. It is just large enough for two cozy tents and the creek's furious roar muffles the sounds of snoring companions.

This campsite is perfect if you don't mind a steady cool breeze blowing down from the snowfields. Great views, no people, no bugs.

The next morning we had a warm sunshine on our tents by 8:30 AM. After a leisurly breakfast we hiked up the steep trail towards Spider Gap. When you reach the top of the cliffs above the meadows, there is a 2 or 3 tent campsite. The only problem with this site is that it's a steep haul with a full pack and there's no other place to camp if it's already occupied. But what a view!!

We hiked up the snowfield to the Gap for a panoramic view of Lyman Lake. Two of us continued a bit further and were rewarded with a view of Lyman glacier as it flowed into the valley below.

The snowfield was just steep enough in places for some fun glisading and we were back at camp after about a 6 hour RT.

The next morning, we packed up for our trip out and were surprised at the number of people packing in on a Monday. The combination of scenery and ease of access makes this a popular spot, but it never felt particularly crowded to us.

P.S. We kept our eyes open for any traces of the lost hiker, without success. A reminder to let others know your intended route, especially if you hike alone.