I've often wondered at turning Spray Park into a loop by going over what I now know is Knapsack Pass. Finally, I got the chance to check it out. 

With a partner, we arrived at Mowich at 8:00am. The road was in better condition than I remember it. We started right away. When you get to the ranger cabin, continue along the lake a bit longer and the trail is obvious as it turns toward the pass. The trail to the pass is not nearly as rough as I expected. It was easy to follow, not overgrown, and winds it's way up through a beautiful valley with great views all around. Highly recommended. It gets a little steep right before the pass, but doesn't require any scrambling. The views from the pass are stunning in every direction.

I was glad we waited an extra week after reading reports of moderate snow in Spray Park. There was no snow while immediately descending, which was good. The trail is steep and involved a small amount of scrambling. Once the immediate descent was over, we had a very large snow field to cross, only interrupted by a boulder outcropping. It's very flat with no exposure, so snow was no problem. 

When we reached the nose of Mt. Pleasant, there was snow and some exposure, so we decided to take the opportunity to go up Pleasant. Part way up, we saw a hiker who came behind us and entered Spray Park directly, presumably without a problem. The climb up Pleasant was snow free and was more exposed than Knapsack Pass but was clear and wide enough to not pose any real danger. We enjoyed the challenge and were glad to be going down the steep trail from the saddle instead of up it. 

The rest of the trip was uneventful. We explored the Park and completed the loop back to Mowich. 

The mosquitoes were non-existent going up Knapsack, moderate on the snow fields, bad enough to stop and lotion up on Pleasant, and mild in Spray Park.

If you're looking for a new way to enjoy Spray Park or an entry-level adventure, I highly recommend Knapsack Pass - as long as the weather is good and the snow is clear. 

Ran Knapsack Pass to the saddle of Observation and Echo Rock, then back down the Spray Park trail. Great day! The best part was minimal bugs!

ANYWAY.  Knapsack pass is very steep, but for an unmaintained trail, very manageable. Cute waterfalls sprinkle the trail all the way up to the pass. Mother Mountain(s) looks fun to scramble, but we passed this time as we didn’t bring helmets, and we are conservative like that.  

Wildflowers are beautiful- catch it while you can.  They will get even better over the next few days as the last of the snow melts away.

We traveled the Russel Glacier to the saddle of Observation and Echo Rock.  Again, no helmets so no scrambling. But the views from that saddle are incredible- what an awesome, one-of-a-kind view of the Carbon Glacier, Old Desolate, and Boroughs!  Lots of ski tracks on the Flett and Russel- looking forward to a ski tour earlier in the season next year.  

We used spikes and poles for snow travel to minimize annoying slipping.  The surrounding glaciers are active with openings, so make sure you are familiar with the route to the saddle!

We didn’t see any parties on Knapsack or near Observation Rock.  On our way back to Mowich via the spray park trail, we saw maybe 8 parties.  About half of them put on face coverings while passing.  Please wear masks- it is the considerate thing to do!  

We were heading to Tolmie Peak with 100 other car loads of people and decided on the plan B which was to go to Spray Park.

We left Puyallup at 7 am arrived at 8:30 to multiple cars and groups of people. Most were respectful with face covering but as the day progressed it became less of the norm.

Still a beautiful day, we saw one bear and it was report another 200 ft away across Spray Park.

VIDEO HERE

It goes without saying do not feed the animals. Pack out everything you brought, every crumb and piece of toilet paper.

Thank you for wearing a face covering.

9.5 miles

Trip report is for Spray Falls specifically. Mowich lake campground to Spray Falls is about 4.5 miles RT and about 600 feet of elevation gain.

Road is in great condition and is passable for all cars. We arrived at 10:30am on a Saturday and had to park a mile down the road. Make sure that you either have a NW forest pass (or America the beautiful pass).. if you have neither pass, you must stop at the pay station which is a few miles before you reach the campground. The rangers were out and ticketing all cars that had not paid. Make sure to display your pass or pay stub in the windshield.

Despite all of the cars lining the road, most groups appeared to be hiking to Tolmie Peak, as the Spray Park trail was not crowded. About 2/3rds of the people we passed had masks and were respectful. No trash along the trail and the trail is in perfect condition. There was a small amount of snow by the lake and campground, but none on the trail.

Make sure to stop at the Eagle Cliff viewpoint, which is marked. Good signage along the entire trail. One spur will direct you to either the eagle roost campground to the right, or straight to “water” - go straight for the falls.

The river is raging right now, making it precarious to cross when you reach the falls. Several groups were crossing the river, however it is rather precarious. We were able to get a great view without crossing, but missed out on the full experience of approaching the falls.