Great trail, great views, beautiful weather. All these things add up to a wonderful trip. We hiked Up and up and up the Constance pass trail to Sunnybrook Meadows in the clouds (I thanked them the whole way up). Woke up at 1:00 am with the Moon blasting into my tent, the clouds were gone up here the valley was filled to the brim. In the morning we hiked up to the ridge to see what could be seen. The Puget sound basin was full of fog (Rainier stuck its bulk above it all) Both forks of the Dosewallips were full of fog, it was a good 2000 feet below us. As the day went on the fog began to rise, by sunset we were at eye level with the clouds- an amazing sunset ensued as the cloud level stayed at just below us, it was like looking out the airplane window. By midnight all the fog was gone and the lights of the Puget mega-tropalis could be seen. The hike down down down caused my knees to curse but the trail is in excellent condition and the views from the top of Del Monte ridge are spectacular.

I thought Anderson Pass would make a great early season backpack, so I tentatively drove the somewhat miserable dirt road 10 miles to the Dosewallips Ranger Station. There, much to my dismay i found that the West Fork trail was closed due to the destruction of the high bridge at two miles; apparently there is no way around this obstacle. When i inquired at the station, the helpful rangers suggested Constance Pass, so here's the details: I left the station at about 2ish and made my way to Sunnybrook Meadows at about 6.5 miles. The trail to this point is in good overall shape, but be prepared for a good workout climbing the endless switchbacks! Above Sunnybrook there are only a few minor obstacles; a few small snowfields but nothing tricky. Hoping the day's fog would break before sunset, I headed up to the pass around 6, but the clouds and mist merely thickened, so i trudged back to Sunnybrook to establish camp; there's a couple choice spots there. After sunset the fog completely cleared and i was treated to a great view of the Milky Way! Thanks to the clear skies, the temperature dropped like a rock and made for a frosty morning. Seizing the opportunity, i headed back up the pass at about 5am. There, I got a tremendous view of the whole range basking in the morning glow; Mt. Anderson to the West, Deception to the North, a glimpse of Olympus in between. To the East, Constance was a looming silhouette, and behind her Rainier was an island in a Sea of Cloud. This must be one of the better views in the Olympics! Mid morning i headed back down, through fields of fat marmots in the high country, and a smattering of rhododendrons down below. A terrific alternative to Anderson Pass!

Hiked from the ONP gate on the Dosewallips Road to the ranger station & then along the Dosewallips trail to the Constance Pass trail. Snow patches on the trail to Constance Pass start above 3600 ft & then continuous snow at 4000 ft. Some windfall along the way on both trails but all are negotiable.

The road to the Dosewallips River trailhead gets narrow, steep, and potholed--especially once you get into the National Park. But it is worth the drive to get to one of the most beautiful river walks I've seen in the Olympics. We hiked along the river for 2.5 miles (the West Dosewallips trail,which you reach at 1.4 miles is closed because of the bridge washout). We then turned up the Constance Pass trail for another 2.5 miles to Sunnybrook Meadows. The Constance Pass trail is very steep (2800 feet in 2.5 miles) and I was glad I only was carrying a day pack. We saw a group of backpackers coming down the trail and one of them told us that he was having more trouble descending than going up because of the strain on his knees. The trail switchbacks up steeply through forest with quite a few openings to ever expanding views. When it reaches the lower meadows it passes over (and on) numerous creeks. We ate our lunch at a good viewpoint and then headed down as clouds began to gather. We only saw two groups of backpackers the whole day and no other dayhikers on the Constance Pass trail. It was great having solitude after the mobs at Mount Townsend on our last hike.