We backpacked up to Hannegan Campground in the rain from the trailhead. The campground was clean and empty (weekday). There is a cooking area with bear pole in the campground and a camp toilet with a fabulous view on a trail away from the cooking area. Although we didn't see any bears, it's apparently important to keep food away from the campsites. The next morning, we climbed up to Hannegan Pass, then down to Boundary Camp - being passed by ambitious backpackers on the way to Copper Ridge (Egg Lake) in one day. From Boundary Camp, we climbed to Hannegan Mountain for fabulous views of North Cascades, wildflowers and butterflies. Boundary Camp sites are kind of sloping, but its in a lovely meadow. Deer grazed outside our campsite in the night. We day hiked to Copper Ridge for even more great views, but we were glad we hadn't hauled all our gear up there. Water only at one place on the way up so get it when you see it. The next water is Egg Lake. Trail in excellent condition. The first night - there was a little freeze so the black flies were down.

A clear sunny day. Regarding the condition of the road to the trail head, regular passenger cars can make it if they are careful to dodge big potholes and anything with good clearance needn't be concerned. From the pass, we took the described route up around the large knoll across the steep slopes with short runout. All the snow is gone here so there is nothing to worry about. Once at the glacier, we used crampons and axes but did not rope up. There are a few obvious crevasses as you near ""rest rock"". We were on snow until the last 20 feet of rock to the summit. We were on snow the entire route; no exposed ice at this time. Promised views in all directions were outstanding. We often heard the sound of ice/rockfall off Shuksan, but we never could spot the location(s). The most unpleasant part of the climb was the ""mud gulley"" from behind the knoll at the pass up to the steep slope traverse. Very un-fun on the descent. A total of 8 people in three parties ascended on this day. No bugs up on the top nor on the arm, but out in force at the pass and downward. Motivated a hike out without stopping from the pass.

My nephew Peter (the mid-western mountain goat) and I did a 3-day hike up to Whatcom Pass and back. 8/24/07 After picking up our backcountry camping permit at the Glacier station, we left the Hannegan camp trailhead at 10:40 a.m. The hike up to Hannegan pass was straightforward, though the last part is pretty steep. We arrived in time for a nice, long lunch in the shade at 1 p.m. We took our time on the descent to Boundary Camp, Copper, and arrived at U.S. Camp around 5 p.m. The afternoon sun was wonderful filtering through the trees. The camp was empty when we arrived, and we had the best tent site we've had in all our years of backpacking - flat, solid, sandy soil, slightly elevated above the surrounding ground, with a nice protective covering of branches of old growth trees above us. The next morning we slept in. After breakfast when we hit the trail with a single light pack, it was already 9:40. Crossing the Chilliwack via cable car (what fun!) left the Chilliwack River trail and began to ascend the Brush Creek trail, hiking past Graybeal camp and up towards Whatcom Pass. Although the Green Trails map lists a camp at Tapto Creek, we never found it, but instead ate lunch along the banks of the Tapto, and watched the clouds move rapidly from west to east along the ridge on the other side of Brush Creek. Although there were occasional showers, the hiking was very pleasant. Arriving at Whatcom Pass just before 3pm (the trail turned steep after Graybeal camp), we spent a pleasant hour on the knoll just south of the pass. We contemplated a jaunt up to the Tapto Lakes, but the way (and presumably the lakes) were completely socked in by clouds. We had an occasional glimpse of the Challenger Glacier, but the peak itself, and Whatcom peak were obscured by clouds. The way east towards Camp Stillwell and Beaver pass were clear and glorious though, and we could easily make out peaks on the far side of Ross Lake. Returning down to U.S. Camp, the rain picked up in intensity, particularly after Graybeal, and was pretty much steady through the night. Our tent held up well - soaked on the outside and bone-dry inside! When we broke camp on 8/26, it was clear that our tent site was perfect. No water had seeped under our tent. Hiking out, we had rain on and off on the way to Hannegan Pass and then hard rain non-stop from the pass to the trailhead. Let me briefly praise the folks who maintain these trails - we met a Job Corps crew actively maintaining the Brush Creek trail. They have done a super job. The trails are in splendid shape, and with one very brief exception, clear of brush all the way to the pass. Even in the rain, the trails held up extremely well. This is a wonderful route, with a fair amount of vertical. If I were to do it again, I'd ask for one more day, so we could camp at the Tapto Lakes, and for better weather, so we could see all of the peaks.

the trail up to hannegan pass is in great condition. the climb up to the ruth arm has some loose rock & mud but it wasn't too bad. it was a very nice climb up Ruth Mtn last weekend that did not require all the technical gear we climbed up with. we roped up and had our ice-axes out for the climb, but realized that it was over-kill so we descended with just crampons and poles. beautiful views....even with all the clouds.

With its somewhat gentle slopes and comparatively inviting appearance, I would classify Ruth as the symbol of towering elegance within the baker area. Not elegant in the sense of a daisy or a swan seemingly floating on a placid lake, rather that contrasting elegance we give to things that also hold much power. With this is in mind, I had a mission to get closer to this thing. This trail is nice in the sense that--for the most part--you know where your destination is. In an unkempt forest you can duck and rise, dodge and weave, and begin to question just where in God’s name you are heading; not so here; here you instantly have a connection with your destination. Right from the outset-- when you are stumbling on the somewhat loose collection of rocks the trail seems to continuously hold-- Ruth is visible, and asking sincerely for your motivation and energy. Your available room for your steps is limited, as at some point long ago some brave souls entered bushwhacking hell to make a trail through towering brush on the side of a hill. I wonder if it became a question of someone’s sanity in pondering to design trails through certain sections of the North Cascades. A cloud would intermittently move in and diffuse the light over the backlit-rugged Mt. Sefrit. This was a nice break, as it was getting uncomfortably hot; uncomfortably hot in the sense of how a ham feels while it is in an oven. A lady passes by lamenting at how she didn’t bring bug spray and is a main course for rather unselective creatures. I smile kindly and say hi as six flies bite into my arm. At many points your boots are enjoying the hydration they so deserve, as one passes various cascades along the trail. I packed my water filter and enjoyed the refreshment that fresh-snow melt offers several times. At one of the cascade crossings, a man sits and enjoys the puffs from a cigarette. He resembled something that would hail from a Harley Davidson convention more than he did a hiker, as there was a rather sporadic gathering of tattoos on his arms and a mustache someone could hold on to. I wouldn’t deem the pass a disappointment in the sense of how I deem the movie “Daredevil” a disappointment, but with Tapto lakes and so forth, it definitely isn’t the prime-aesthetics repository on the whole trail. For the large portion of the day the lighting is harsh in a spot you wouldn’t really want it to be harsh at. I scrambled up a slope and enjoyed sunset in a rather uncomfortable and precarious position while granting a tree the opportunity to prevent my bag from rolling down the slope. After sunset , the clouds merged and suddenly begin to sock the area in. My baked skin told me it enjoyed the cool and increasingly moist air that the cloud pattern brought. On the dark trail along the descent, the moon illuminated the swirling and dense clouds hovering above Ruth, as I avoided rolling an ankle approximately 56 times. To summarize, not the most enjoyable trail I’ve done in the dark. Photographically speaking: this area is decent. I really had to hunt and peck (mostly peck )for the compositions that I did shoot, which was a very small handful. It may be a better area for longer focal lengths, as I feel that without the heather or other floral growths, there wouldn’t be much to use for a foreground.