Trip Reports

The parking lot was almost full at 9am.

Followed the trail counter-clockwise along the lake to the ranger cabin and past an "unmaintained trail" sign. The trail up to Knapsack Pass was easy to follow, though there were a few rough sections.

Descending from the pass, a lot of scree had to be crossed, and there was (as far as we could tell) no clear trail and few cairns until we reached the bottom. The trail disappeared again at a large snowfield below Mt Pleasant, found it again going around the east ridge.

The trail eventually joined the (crowded) Spray Park trail. Continued down that trail via Spray Falls (amazing) and Eagle Point (fogged in) back to the starting point.

Plenty of wildflowers along all trails, though many were gone or close to being gone. Saw some marmots and pikas. Few bugs.

When we left around 4pm, cars were parked more than 0.5 miles along the road...

Arrived at the end of Olympic Hot Springs Rd (Appleton Pass trailhead) at 8pm. Was surprised to find more than a dozen cars there this late on a Tuesday, but there was still plenty of space to park.

The short hike to the Boulder Creek campground followed an old road. There were several washouts, all of which could either be hopped over or had some kind of bridge. The campground isn't located down by the river, but in a beautiful bit of forest above the river. Even though there appeared to be quite a few people camping there, the campground was large enough to not feel crowded. There was a small stream a bit further along the trail, which seemed like a good option for getting water.

Checked out the hot springs the following morning (down and across the river from the campground). Resisted the urge to jump into any of the sulfur-scented, shallow pools along the trail, even though we had the place to ourselves.

The trail up to Boulder Lake was in good condition, with few blowdowns. Passed a sign with a helpful map of the campground upon arriving at the lake. Being the first party to arrive at Boulder Lake, we chose one of the two campsites on the small peninsula. Two or three other parties arrived later.

Tried to follow the east ridge up to Boulder Peak that afternoon. Started out on a well-defined trail towards Three Horse Lake. There appeared to be an intermittent climber's trail that was following the ridge (mainly on the north side). But we gave up upon reaching a steep and slippery section. Descended via a gully, which turned out to be another (more direct) climber's trail. No issues with that approach, other than a trickle of water in the middle section of the gully. Back at camp, the mosquitoes were eagerly awaiting our return.

Tried again the following day, this time from the north ridge. The trail sign that marks the Happy Lake Ridge trail appeared to be missing, but the junction was obvious (to someone with a map). Followed that trail up to the last switchback, and bushwacked along the ridge from there (on the way back we found a faint climber's trail that joins the main trail a bit further up). Encountered just one short section that was problematic (traversing loose gravel on a steep slope with some exposure).

Continued along the Happy Lake Ridge and down to Happy Lake. Other than a few blowdowns, no issues with this trail. Surprised to find only three proper (though large) campsites around Happy Lake, but no other parties joined us. The lake was pretty enough, but the water didn't look inviting, and instead of fish there were a lot of frogs, as became evident the moment the sun set.

Climbed up to the ridge east of the lake the following morning, and attempted to follow it, but gave up soon as not all members of our party felt comfortable scrambling on sharp, crumbling rock.

Packed up camp and headed back up to the Happy Lake Ridge trail, which we followed down some long switchbacks to the (small) Happy Lake Ridge trailhead. One of the members of our party had left her car there, thus saving us a 1+ mile road walk.

Wildlife: We had been looking out for marmots, but didn't see (or even find signs of) a single one. Some squirrels up close, and a bear from far away.

Wildflowers: Pink Heather and White Rhododendron were most ubiquitous, but many others were blooming as well. But only few early flowers such as Avalanche Lilies were left.

Had to park along the road as the parking lot was already full at 10am. The road (some gravel, but mostly paved) was in good condition, the few potholes were marked and flagged for repair.

The trail was in good condition, too, just a few small stream crossings, some muddy patches around Camp Mystery, and a few small, well-consolidated patches of snow on the trail between Camp Mystery and Marmot Pass.

Encountered more people than I cared to count, and all the camping spots from Camp Mystery to Marmot Pass looked crowded. Continued up to Pt 6294, which, counter to appearances from below, was free of snow and had several great sites, all unoccupied (two other parties showed up later, but camped out of sight).

The trail from Marmot Pass up to the west summit of Buckhorn Mountain was easy to follow and completely clear of snow. Some class 2 scrambling just below the summit.

Lots of wildflowers on the slopes below Camp Mystery, especially Red Columbine and some kind of Stonecrop on slopes with less soil. Heard and saw several marmots in the basin below Marmot Pass. Few bugs.

Had no trouble driving my low-clearance vehicle all the way to the end of FR-9031 (Garmin City Navigator 2011.10 still thinks that road is closed several miles before the end). The parking lot was near full at 8am (with cars lining the side of the road for a long way down when I returned sometime before 1pm).

Followed the official trail (not marked on USGS maps) up to Mason Lake and continued on the trail along the lake to a signed junction for Mt Defiance. The trail got a bit steeper there but was (other than one blowdown) in the same good condition as the lower trail. Somewhat dusty outside of forested sections. The turnoff for the short (and straight-up) trail to the summit was not signed, but marked with a cairn.

Encountered perhaps a dozen parties on the way up, spent close to half an hour alone (with a zillion bugs) on the summit, and met more people than I cared to count (including a ranger) on the way down.

Wildflowers were amazing, especially on the south-facing slope below Mt Defiance: Tiger Lilies, Columbines, Beargrass, Lupine and a lot more.

Left the car just after crossing the bridge, where there was space for a few cars. High-clearance vehicles could drive a few hundred feet further across several small washouts to where the road is blocked off.

Followed the overgrown road to the end, where a steep (and in parts even more overgrown) trail climbed up through the forest. There was sporadic flagging (and cairns further up), but a map was essential.

Crossed several bumps to reach Cyclone Lake, where we found a nice, snow-free campsite after a bit of searching.

By the time we started up Kindy Ridge the following morning, the snow had become soft enough to make crampons unnecessary. Part of the trail along the ridge had even started to melt out.

Crossed a snow field at the top of the ridge and climbed a steep but short and un-exposed snow wall to the left of the summit. The final scramble was on somewhat loose and sharp rock, good to have a helmet.

Glissaded and plunge-stepped back down to Cyclone lake. Gathered our gear and hiked out.

Encountered just one other party during the entire trip.

Started out around 9am. There were just a few cars in the parking lot, but quite a few groups with horses camping in the area. But we encountered only three parties on horseback on the way up, and only one of them went all the way up to the lake. Saw three other parties (all hikers) camped at the lake, and one camped a bit further up.

The trail was in good condition, no blowdowns, but often quite dusty, and muddy in a few places. There were several stream crossings, all of which either had a bridge or were shallow enough to be waded through easily, or hopped and balanced over with some care. No snow on the way up to the lake (clockwise on the loop trail), but patches of snow were lingering around the lake, especially on the south and west shores.

Got swarmed by mosquitoes in a few spots at lower elevation (met one party that turned around because of that). The mosquitoes weren't quite as bad at the lake, mostly.

The following morning we attempted to complete the loop clockwise, but turned around after hitting sketchy snow that was undermined by a series of streams at 5,400ft. Couldn't find any tracks that continued beyond that area, either.

The trail shown on the USGS map wasn't quite accurate, should have checked with the Northwest Trails map (http://www.switchbacks.com/nwtrails/) which (at least in this case) appears to be up to date. I couldn't quite reconcile the trail with the description from the Day Hiking book, either: There was nothing "gradual" about the switchbacks up to the lake, nor were there "alpine clearings" upon approaching the lake. Perhaps the description holds better when hiking the Surprise Lake loop counter-clockwise, but that isn't clear from the text.

Lots of wildflowers were blooming at the lower elevations, especially Lupine, Larkspur, and False Hellebore.

Caught the 9:45am boat from Fields Point. Surprised that no one else got off at Prince Creek. The trail was in good condition, other than a few slightly overgrown sections, a few blowdowns, and one stream crossing that required either getting wet feet or balancing over a high log (chose latter). Didn't encounter anyone until near Moore Point, where we camped. Completed the hike to Stehekin the next morning. Not a lot of people on that part of the trail, either.

Most wildflowers were past their prime, but there were still a lot including Yellow Salsify, Lupine, and of course Fireweed.

No major wildlife sightings, though there were a lot of bear "signs" on the trail.

Parked the car where FR 9738 intersects with the Teanaway Ridge trail (#1364). There was no proper trailhead, but enough space for a few cars to pull over.

Followed #1364 south along an old road, and then up to the ridge and on to the Red Top Lookout. The trail was in good condition and (other than one unsigned junction just below the lookout) easy to follow.

First visitors in the lookout at 10:30. Spent half an hour admiring the views and chatting with the nice volunteer couple who was staffing the lookout. Left as a queue started forming below the lookout (only six people allowed at a time)...

Didn't encounter a lot of people on the trail itself (one party on the way out, and two groups prospecting for precious stones along the ridge).

Wildflowers: Trillium and Glacier Lilies past prime. Lots of Rockcress and Spring Beauties. Lupine just starting on the ridge. Huge amounts of Silvercrown, but didn't see any blooming yet.

The last ten or so miles of the road were unpaved and had enough potholes that a car like a Civic couldn't ignore to slow us down to a 20mph average along that part of the road.

There were just a few cars at the spacious trailhead parking lot around noon (unlike at the overflowing Mailbox Peak parking lot which we passed on the way).

The trail started out in good condition, with a nice path cleared through several large rock slides, and with bridges across streams.

But near the halfway point we encountered a stream that required some rock hopping, and past that point the trail started getting more overgrown and muddier. Stopped at the halfway point, which had a nice area down by the river.

Wildflowers: Bleedingheart, Thimbleberries and Bunchberries. Few Salmonberries -- some already had fruits that looked almost ripe.

Slept at the campground at the trailhead on Friday evening. The campground was less than half full, despite the nice weather. Started hiking Saturday morning around 9am.

The trail appeared to differ a bit from what was indicated on the USGS map, though the trail numbers and junctions matched up.

Crossed several streams, all of which either had a bridge or could be stepped over, except for one at ~4,000ft that required balancing across a short (but slanted) log.

Other than a few glimpses of the surrounding mountains through the trees and one open area just above 4,200ft, there were no views along the trail.

The trail was in good condition and cleared of blowdowns, at least until we reached patches of snow around 4,500ft. Turned around after losing the trail under the snow just short of the junction with the PCT at Tieton Pass.

Encountered no one except two low-flying F/A-18 jets on the way up, and only three parties (one of which on horseback) on the way down

The forest has a lot of nice old-growth trees, and there were a lot of Calypso Orchids and Vanilla Leaf, and the occasional morel. There were deer and cougar tracks on the trail, but we didn't encounter any wildlife. Some bugs were out, but left us alone, for the most part.