Day 1, 9 miles: We backpacked out about 9 miles and set up camp just before the Hardscrabble connector trail. Saw a rattlesnake rattling and poised to strike early on - yikes! The first 7 miles or so were gorgeous, with the creek raging and full, plenty of water was available. Around 7 miles, things start to get very brushy. Our camp spot was perfect - right along the river. There was pretty strong wind night one, which helped keep bugs at bay.

Day 2, 14.5 miles: Hiked from camp up to Ingalls Lake. The trail was very brushy and overgrown, at times, really difficult to see, but not hard to follow if that makes sense. Scenery was absolutely stunning - Mt. Stuart and Argonaut were amazing! As we got out further we could see all of the peaks in the Teanaway area to the south, Stuart and the backside of the Enchantments and more! The trail up to Ingalls Lake is a bit hard to follow and a bit of a scramble. The lake was absolutely stunning - still all frozen! It was very windy and cold there, but we hung out long enough for a snack. We then went back down from the lake and up to Stuart Pass to gain even more views

Day 3, 9 miles: Hiked out, no rattlesnakes

Overall, an amazing trip that was way more gorgeous than we anticipated! The trail is in good condition, but definitely needs clean up the further out you get!

Teanaway!  6/26/24

What a stunning Trip!  3 Nights, 4 days, Per Gaia: 29miles, and 10K gain exploring the Teanaway trails! 

Wednesday:

My hiking buddy and I met in Cle Elem on a Wed afternoon and we headed out to the Teanaway epic-ness!  First, we both drove to the Bean Basin trailhead and left her truck there.  Then we both rode in my SUV to the Stafford Creek/Navaho Peak trailhead and parked there.  The day was stunning and trail good as we made our way up the trail!  We stopped at ~4,800ft for a food break at the creek crossing by those camp spots and then continued.  The next camping area near the meadow was really beautiful, but after admiring the view we continued on.  The trail from the meadow to the pass opened up and with all the open sandy/rocky ground and erratic larger stones here and there it felt like a total moon scape!  At about 6000ft, just below the ridge, there is a little trail that takes off to the left with a couple really nice camp spots with water access I’d spotted on my last trip and wanted to try.  We set up camp, ate, and soaked in the epic colors of the sunset! 

Thursday:

Unfortunately, along about 11pm, the drizzle and wind arrived including some occasional hail just for variety.  The morning brought more of the same for a bit, but thankfully the water dried up and just left the wind.  We packed up and climbed up to Navaho Peak.  The view was breathtaking!  The wind however was really moving and Cold!  We stayed on the summit just long enough to take pictures and appreciate the view before returning to the saddle. 

Next we took the trail straight ahead along the ridge to Wrong Turn Peak.  The trail took us up and over Wrong Turn and back down to the next little saddle.  We passed the junction (very faint) there that descends into the Hardscrable Creek valley and continued to follow the ridge up to the next point.  There was some remaining snow along the ridge, but thankfully the actual ridge line was melted out just barely enough to walk on dirt 95% of the way!  We only had to take a few steps on snow! 

Once we reached this point at 6,800ft, the ridge got, shall we say, “Interesting.”  This little piece of trail was a big question mark of the day though I’d found mention of a successful crossing of this bit of ridge in another trip report so we felt hopeful!  We are not rock climbers, but enjoy some scrambling and this was just challenging enough without feeling too sketchy.  The rock was solid, but there was some pretty good exposure at times.  The real challenge was the weather as the wind was quite fast and kept trying to pull us off the rock!  The misty rain added to the situation, but thankfully the rock stayed grippy.  We started by skirting right of that 6800ft point, then down around to the left of the next bump (I think?) and then below the ridge a tad at 6,700ft (great views of the little pond on the south east side of the ridge) before scrambling rock/fighting up scree to join the ridge again at ~6,800ft toward Earl Peak.  There were a couple moments of wondering if we’d have to bail down to the lake and to access that other trail up to the saddle into Standup Creek, but thankfully each time we discovered a way to work our way through the ridge “teeth” and continue!  We were both very happy to reach the Earl/Bean Peak ridge! 

The weather began to deteriorate rapidly at this point as we made our way toward Bean Peak.   Right before the last ridge bump before hitting the Bean basin trail, we saw a way to shimmy down the scree at an angle and took the opportunity to get off that dang ridge!  The rain was pelting us, and the windy gusts were unpredictable and strong enough to cause us some real concern.  Plus, by this time we were tired and cold and super happy to head down!  The Bean Basin Camp was beautiful and after dropping the 700ft or so down the wind subsided and the temperature was much warmer!  We extatically set up camp, ate some hot food, and burrowed into our sleeping bags to warm up! 

After taking some time to re-warm and relax, the rain had pretty much stopped and we enjoyed a lovely evening of cards and even made a little campfire.  Great Adventure Today!  I was so stoked we were able to successfully travel the whole ridge from Navaho Peak to Bean Peak with full packs!

Friday:

Once again, I was amazed by the rapidly changing weather in the mountains!  Friday morning dawned with blue skies and was already showing signs of heating up early!  We packed up quick and headed for Bean Peak!  There were a couple scrambly bits, but totally do-able.  What a view!!  We chilled at the summit for a bit before descending toward Volcanic Neck.  This trail was easy to follow and chill!  There were about three snow fields to cross, but they were not steep so no problems there.  The saddle below Volcanic Neck was snow free and Beautiful!  Felt like a moon scape again : )

The trail down from the Volcanic Neck into Fourth Creek was stunning with countless wild flower meadows and little stream crossings.  We popped over the little pass (Hardscrabble Pass?) there, then down to meet up with the Beverly Creek trail.   We filtered water here at the sweet little camping spots and headed up toward Turnpike Pass.  This bit of trail was rocky and a bit exposed.  Beautiful day but getting hot!  We met some folks coming down who had climbed Bill’s Peak; Wow!  So cool!  On the North side of Turnpike Pass we encountered some snow as we had expected.  Thankfully it was easy to stay on route as the trail is just heads straight down the little valley.  In a bit less than a quarter mile we were back on dirt.  A few blow downs to step over but no problems.  This trail looses elevation rapidly very into the Turnpike Creek basin!  I would not want to come up this trail.  Once we reached the valley proper at about 4800, the trail was gorgeous!  Such a pleasure to hike along a cool creek under the trees!

There was a very kind log to cross over Ingalls Creek.  The 200ft up from Ingalls Creek to Ingalls Creek trail was quite Brushy and we did some pushing through a tall yet stunning hillside of flowers!  The boot tread underneath was solid and obvious.  The junction with Ingalls creek trail was a small meadow of Tall Bluebells; the perfect spot for some food.  Next we cruised downhill on Ingalls Creek trail for about 1.5 miles to the junction with the Fourth Creek trail.  We set up camp on Ingalls Creek at a pretty nice camp there with room for 4 or 5 tents. 

Saturday:

Started the morning with a brisk crossing of Ingalls Creek in our crocs.  Water was only about 5” deep, but Cold.  The Fourth Creek Trail was cruisy with beautiful little meadows as we neared the Hardscrabble pass.  Upon arriving at the Beverly creek camp spot again, we set up our tents and headed up to Eldorado Pass and Iron Peak with only our day equipment.  The trail was snow free and easy to follow!  Standard Cascade Grind up to the top of Iron Peak!  Beautiful Views!  Holy Cow!  Perfect Day!  We spent almost an hour up there relaxing, snacking, and just basking in the mountains.  I am beyond grateful to live so close to all these special places!  Back at camp by the Beverly Creek junction we rested, but the day was only about half done and the car only about 3miles away.  We knew rain was predicted to arrive late that night, so after some discussing of options, instead of spending the night, we packed up our tents and headed down the Beverly trail and back to the car waiting at Beverly/Bean Creek TH!  My hiking buddy dropped me off at my car back at the Navaho TH and we high-fived a GREAT TRIP!!  I decided to relax for one more night at a nice dispersed camping spot to spend just a tad more time in the peace of the mountains. 

Pretty hike along Ingalls Creek today with my best friend hunting wildflowers. There are still a lot of flowers out now and the creek was beautiful. Only did about 6 1/2 mile round trip since we were told a rattlesnake was on the path. Still a great day.

I backpacked 8.5 miles in to one of the camps a little before the Hardscrabble Creek junction for two nights. In the middle day, I attempted to hike to the pass but lost the trail in snow very near the end, at just above 6000 feet. If I had been more determined, I probably would have made it. I stopped in a nice alpine meadow just waking up from winter.

Blowdown is cleared the first nine miles. There is a one mile section with a lot of trees down around the Four Creek junction, then just a few after that. Overall the trail is in good condition with the exception of that one section. Don't expect much in the way of views unless you make it to the upper canyon. You have to walk - and work - for your views on this trail.

This is a story of optimism and hubris -- and startling beauty. tl;dr: Ingalls Pass to Ingalls Lake is blanketed with snow; parts that see the southern sun are getting soft and squishy and you're likely to punch through; the other faces are hard and often icy. Poles and microspikes recommended. Be cautious of avalanches: in the next few weeks, I expect the whole area to start gracefully sliding down the mountain as it melts.

I had been scheduled to join a group to head up a glacier this weekend, but with thunderstorms over the mountains, we cancelled the trip and I decided to go find a sunnier spot. Weather maps told me that Leavenworth should be seeing some sun while everything else was covered in rain, and convinced myself that the Teanaway and Ingalls Creek might just count. I was somewhat right.

Seeing a trip report from last year, I decided to try the loop: Longs Pass to Ingalls Creek, up to Ingalls Lake and back over Ingalls Pass. I’d spend a night somewhere on Ingalls Creek. I left Esemerelda Trailhead around noon, passing lots of hikers coming down. All of them reported that Ingalls Pass was snowy, and so they'd turned back, feeling they didn't have the right snow gear. 

I turned right and lost the crowds. There were fresh wildflowers blooming all the way up Longs Pass. Crossing over the pass and onto the snowfield below took a small dose of courage: the trail was covered with snow, leaving the edge a little more precarious. The snowfield itself was firm, solid and long. It was a glorious glissade with a safe run out at the bottom, dropping about 500 feet. 

It began to snow towards the bottom. The snow down there was softer, so the trip down into Ingalls Creek was damp, but beautiful. Lots of small punch-throughs. The snow turned to drizzle as I reached the creek. 

Ingalls Creek has lots of beautiful campsites along it, so it’s almost never hard to find something. For future hikers, know that there were several very close to the turn off for Longs Pass, right at the 5000 foot line, and another few  a half-mile later, just at the 5400 foot line.

The snow line kicked in at 5800 feet, and seeing as this was about to turn up to the lake, I stopped for the night. The snow intensified and picked up for a cold night. Here is where I admit that I had not thought hard enough about cold weather planning: I had a 30 degree bag and it was Not Enough. I slept in every bit of gear I had brought; my toes are still angry at me about it.

The next morning it got a little warmer after the sunrise at 5:30, and was almost balmy by seven. I stamped sensation back into my feet, packed up my tent, and started heading uphill. The sun crested the mountains, as I started the last push up to Ingalls Lake, and the temperature rose another ten degrees. Clouds blew past but never rained; Mt Stuart alternated between showing its head and its foot, but infrequently the whole mountain at once.

The climb to the lake is very firm now, with a hard layer of slippery under it. I was very grateful to have my spikes and poles -- but I would have felt even better for a few segments with an axe and perhaps crampons. I'm not sure it would have been worth bringing crampons for the trip, but there were definitely some slippery parts. The ground was untouched.

I saw my first other people of the trip at the far end of the lake. The trip from the lake, along the ridge, and then dropping that back down to the parking lot was more straightforward; the other trails to follow made for easy navigation. The southern aspect is getting very mushy, and it’s easy to posthole. I wasn’t the only victim to enjoy a hip-deep drop. The other sides, more protected from the sun, stayed firm for now.

This leaves me with a warning: while I found the snow firm, it doesn’t have long to go. I could often hear water running underneath the layers. At some point, it’s going to start falling off in great slabs.expect avalanche danger to increase, and look carefully where you’re going as it melts out.