Amidst the Thanksgiving weekend frenzy, I hiked several miles up the East Fork Foss River Trail to just short of where the trail starts climbing into the Necklace Valley. We encountered no one else on the trail all day. It was quiet and lovely, easy going. A few streams crossing the trail were swollen but manageable to cross. Some of the old boardwalks could use an upgrade within a year or two, but we were fine. We saw snow not too far above on the mountains rimming the trail. We hardly heard or saw any wildlife either - just one angry chipmunk and one or two bird calls. At only one point on the trail did we have to move branches of a downed alder to cross the trail. When we got to the logs crossing the river (or a tributary), we decided to turn around, partly due to timing and the prospect of crossing a slick log wasn't appealing. More photos and details on my blog Pacific Northwest Seasons, link below. BTW, restroom at trailhead locked for the winter. Happy trails!

Decided to take advantage of the good weather and head to the mountains. Mt Hinman was on my list. I enlisted a hiking partner and we got to the Necklace Trailhead just before 11am on an early fall Sunday morning. Parking was overflowing out on the road. (nearly empty when got out Tuesday) On trail along the river we met a mushroom hunter who showed us how to identify Chantrelles. We found a couple on the way up and ate them with dinner. I don't like mushrooms, but they were more tolerable than most. We crossed the river and headed up the steep stuff. We met lots of people leaving the valley. Got to Jade, traveled along the shore, and crossed over the inlet. We explored the the north end of Emerald and took a peek down at Ilswoot where I've camped before. Came back up decided to stay at an obvious site at Emerald. Not a soul around. Well, not until 6pm when we saw the only hiker in the valley that day. An older gentleman came by our spot and asked if he was on the main trail out. Turns out he came from I-90 up to Chain Lakes and was planning on hiking out to the Foss River RD and hitching a ride out. At the hour of his exit, I'm guessing he didn't find any rides, as it would be really late and dark. At this point I couldn't find my food. I had trail mix and jerky. But we realized that when my friend came to get me in the morning, we decided we didn't need 2 stoves and i took mine out. Apparently, my food bag never made it back in. We took stock of his food, and realized we had plenty to continue on. I didn't even finish my trail mix by the end of the journey... :) NO BUGS! Beautiful star gazing night. I got up earlier than my friend and went to find Al Lake and Locket Lake. Harder journey than it looks on the map, but not too difficult. I got back and we ate Oatmeal with blueberries gleaned from the nearby bushes. The berries were mostly in good shape in the valley, although some bushes contained mushy ones. A Ranger came by, entering camp from up the valley. She had come from W. Foss taking the Alpine Lakes High Route, which I wanted to do this summer, but failed on one attempt due to miserable soaking rains. Found it odd that she brought a full sized shovel. That must be annoying to drag around. When we told her we were headed to La Bohn Lakes, the said not to listen to Green Trails map, as it says to stay left of the waterfall. She was right. At the end of the valley, you go up the talus, but stay to the left against the short forest following cairns. Then you'll see an obvious cairn-marked entrance to trough the forest, then through a small boulder field and back into the woods/heather slope. It is steep, but better than attempting the Snow covered route up to La Bohn Gap. We explored the three La Bohn Lakes (5800ft) and set up camp at the middle one. Then we packed day packs for a journey to MT Hinman. Heading along the western and southern shores of the big lake, we then dove into the elevation gain. I don't remember seeing any cairns. I saw some later that may mark a different track. We just picked and chose the easiest visible route up. We gained Hinman's western ridge and were rewarded with spectacular views all around. Just breathtaking on a cloudless late September day. Adams, Rainier, Bear's Breast, Chimney Rock, Overcoat, Baring, Glacier, Monte Cristo range, Baker, Three Fingers, Pilchuck, Index, and more, and more, and more and lots more... At this point i would say to avoid the false summit, which we mistakenly climbed. That spiky ridge out to the east is the real summit. So after the false summit, it is back down, and then up again. The rocks on this approach to Hinman are not fun climbing. Lots of plates about 3 feet x 2 feet. They shift around and slide and make you nervous. On the way up I was able to identify a Prairie Falcon on top of a suspended boulder at the top of Hinman. It took off as i got closer. We didn't have time, and probably not the gear or training to get the true summit. But close enough for me. About a tenth of a mile and 40 feet short. On the way back we avoided the false summit and went across the top of the glacier. Just regular footwear was sufficient today. Then we picked our way back along the ridge and down to camp. We also spotted a pair of White Tailed Ptarmigans with a juvenile. The were remarkably comfortable with how close we were to them (10feet?). Back at La Bohn Lakes, we ate, watched the twilight come on, and had another brilliant sky for star watching. 10-15 shooting stars in about 60-90 minutes. I wanted to get up early and solo climb La Bohn Peak. I woke at 2am and the sky was still clear. When i woke at 4am, i couldn't see anything. We were in a cloud. I got up at 6, but I couldn't see more than 100 yards. I've had bad luck in the past finding my way up new mountains with low visibility, so I cancelled my morning side trip. We left the lakes around 9 and headed down to the valley and out. We took a different route on accident and ended up at the top of Opal Lake. It's mostly a meadow/swamp on the uphill side. A Western Jay almost collided with my friend's face. Another one came by as well. Couldn't figure out why they came so close, as they weren't acting like they were guarding a nest. But they definitely left from a tree 30 yards away and came right to us. We went around Opal and headed out. We only ran into a couple parties headed up to the valley, and the parking lot had only about 6-7 cars. Successfull Trip!

I have only done one other backpacking trip before this (West Fork Foss to Big Heart Lake) but this one was truly incredible and my favorite so far. My boyfriend and I decided to go after work Friday the 23rd and hike up to Ilswoot to set up camp. He had done this backpacking trip before solo and promised himself that he would set up next to Ilswoot because he missed out on that spot last time. I have to say we got a late start because of work, so we weren't out and beginning our hike until 2:30pm. It was a long trek to Ilswoot and it was very difficult because it was raining and cold. The fall foliage was gorgeous, but we were soaked, tired, and dying. It was a very difficult trek to Ilswoot and was very dark by the time we arrived, but the site was worth it. This is definitely not a hike for the faint of heart, and good waterproof boots are required for a happy trip. We were soaked, cold, and tired, and decided to set up camp for the night (it was dark and very difficult to set up camp when one is blind and frozen), so we busted out the head lamps and did the best we could. We ate some chili mac (YUM) and hung up the food away from camp and settled in for the night. We didn't see anyone on our way up, and we had the entire spot all to ourselves. The next day, we were rewarded with gorgeous weather and beautiful views of gorgeous Ilswoot (Photo #1). The color of the lake is truly incredible. We had picked the perfect camp site. We ate some breakfast and took a day trip hiking up to La Bohn gap with the dogs. The way was rocky but was marked clearly with cairns. At first, we couldn't see the cairns, but we just took the safest looking direction that avoided the snow, because we did not feel comfortable climbing up on the snow with the dogs. We finally made it to the top, which looks like an entirely different planet and hike with the rocky views (Photo #3), but it was so so so cool. We walked along the ridge and had some adventure time. We came to the edge of a cliff and looked down and could see at least two different lakes and some gorgeous mountains. I wish I had an idea of what we were looking at (photo #2). We looked at a map but it was hard to tell if we were looking at the same thing. We sat and took a break, let the dogs nap a little bit, and my boyfriend fired up the jet boil and we made some instant coffee at 6,000 ft. It was delicious and warmed us up, because it was pretty chilly up there. I recommend Starbucks via mochas...they are phenomenal when you are cold and tired. We also ate sour patch kids and trail mix. Yummy snacks of deliciousness. We then walked the opposite direction and followed the ridge line looking to see if we had a view on the opposite side. The views of the surrounding mountains was absolutely incredible. We were just wandering around at this point and soaking in the beauty and solitude. We had the whole upper portion of the hike to ourselves with not a soul in sight. It definitely made us feel small (Photo #4). Again, I'm not sure what we were really looking at, but it was breathtaking. I strongly recommend doing this hike if you are fit and enjoy some great views. We spent the majority of the day up here exploring with the dogs and taking pictures. We hiked back down and made some dinner and got ready to go to bed. It was nice to just chill out and hang out by Ilswoot for the rest of the evening. In the morning, we woke up, ate some breakfast burritos, and hiked out. We saw quite a few people as we were hiking out, including some mushroom hunters and a couple of guys who were beginning their trip on Sunday (lucky- you won't see anyone!) and everyone was very nice and friendly. Overall this was an awesome trip and a lot of fun. I would gladly do this again. It is not an easy trip though, so you have to know your physical limits and what you are capable of. Hiking boots are also strongly recommended. The days were nice but the nights were INCREDIBLY cold (I'm a very small person who is always cold), so bring warm clothes. This was an experience that I won't soon forget. It makes me excited for more backpacking next summer. Happy hiking! :)

Headed up the East Fork of the Foss with an eye towards an evening in the lower valley, followed by a day or two on the higher ground. As usual, the first 5 miles rushes by on soft, well-maintained and flat, duff-covered trail. The climb, starting after the river crossing remains well-marked by cairns throughout the short boulder hop and then pushes its brutal way up, up, and up. Roots and rocks abound and only the occasional views break up the slog. A surprising number of blueberries, though somewhat passed their peak, remained along the trail here. Made it to Jade Lake in just under 4 hours before having a snack and then meandering up and over the rider and down the gully to Ilswoot. Many more and much tastier, low lying blueberries along this route. Collected more than a few for snacking with a beer. Set up camp for the evening just up from the shore, planning for rain. Believe I had the whole of the valley to myself that night. Rain indeed came along and, contrary to my pre-trip forecast, was far from "showers" by morning. With a blueberry supplemented breakfast done I packed up and wandered up to Emerald to consider. The drenching rain and low clouds made my planned route look far less enticing and my mutt took every opportunity to take a seat under a dry-ish tree he could find. I scrubbed the plan and we headed downhill. All the rooty, rocky mess of the trail between Jade Lake and the Foss is compounded mightily by flowing water; you can see why a nice trail does not exist here--anything you cut would be washed out annually. By the time we reached the car a bit more than 3.5 hours later we were drenched and glad to be there. Had met a number of folks on their way out from various through-routes: I wasn't the only one cutting my trip short. While a gorgeous area I think I prefer the beautiful (and less destruction-prone) trail along the West Fork. Will have to revisit to verify. A note about Ilswoot camp: notable yahoo detritus up there. Unhappily found a fire ring, number of .22 casings, a good deal of broken and unbroken glass, and--the cherry on top dug up by my dog--a Ziploc used as a toilet. Packed out some, buried some while I brushed over my tent stake holes and thought through LNT principles.

Nice trek up the necklace valley, up to La Bohn Lakes area for the night, and up most of Hinman the next day before heading back. The trail up to the necklace valley is pretty mellow for the first 5 miles before the elevation gain picks up. Some nice fall colors are appearing in the rocky hillsides above the East Fork Foss. Once you reach the end of the valley trail, you cross a log bridge to the right and follow some cairns up through rocks to trail, and up the creek valley heading right. If you miss this turn to the right for the log bridge, the trail will appear to join a dry creek bed and become enveloped in Devil's Club. The climb up to the Necklace Valley is definitely steep, and the trail is fairly rocky and rooty. Look out for a hornet/wasp nest built in a dead stump on the left at about 3200 feet while you're heading up - it's right next to the trail and kind of torn up looking. No problems if you just scoot by quickly. Once you get to the valley it's a lovely series of lakes. I found it exceedingly easy to lose track of which trail was the "main" trail, so come prepared to lose your way a bit as you go. The low-growing huckleberries up here are the best around. Super sweet and delicious. The bushier berries down lower in elevation are starting to ferment and get nasty. If you're heading for La Bohn Lakes, prepare yourself for a more strenuous climb. Hike up to the end of the valley (generally hugging the eastward side of the valley along the big rock wall) until you get to the valley's end. Instead of hiking straight up to La Bohn gap which involves more steep rock and ice/bergschrund navigation, you can hug the treeline left (look for cairns) and basically follow the tree/heather line left and up until you come out on top of the ridge where the lower La Bohn Lake drains down to the necklace valley. Up there you'll find a beautiful series of lakes and glacially scraped rock. To climb Hinman: from upper La Bohn Lake, you can take the ridge on either side of the lake (some routefinding generally required) to the ridge you see above the lake. From there you can generally follow Hinman's west ridge towards the summit. If you want to reach the true summit, you'll probably need ice axe and crampons, or perhaps just a lot of time to skirt around the glacier. I just made it to the prominent ridge that splits the glacier and called it close enough. The rock up here can be frightening to travel across. The western ridge is like a chaotic multi-ton jenga set that you are walking around on and hoping not to collapse upon yourself or others. While camping I heard a hair-raising rock slide from just down the valley. So travel with caution! And enjoy, it is so beautiful!