We started at the Necklace Valley trailhead around 9am on Sunday morning. The parking lot was full, but most people were heading out from a weekend trip and on their way home. Just a few potholes on the road, but nothing too bad. As expected, the first 5 miles are just lovely and easy going... hiking along the valley through forest. There are some rolling ups and downs, but it's easy going. Some brushy areas. Berries ripening. There are a few campsites along the river on the way in, and I could see going back there for an early season trip. At ~5 miles, there is a bridge at the river crossing where we saw a few groups stopped for lunch. Those on their way down warned of tough trail ahead, which we expected from the trail description. After the bridge, turn left and head about 50 yards to another campsite. Turn right here following cairns across a large log and start up the rocks. This is where the going gets tough. We climbed over the rocky part using hands as needed. Then the trail heads steeply up a rocky slope. We tried rating the ascent on a 1-10 scale with Aasgard Pass being a 10 (Aasgard in the Enchantments- gains 2000 ft over 3/4 mile). We decided that this trail rates around 6 to 8 at the steepest. There are moments when you slowly take one step at a time to ensure you have footing. Parts are rocky and muddy. I don't remember any true switchbacks, just steep grading. We carefully made our way up in about 2.5 hours (including a quick lunch break). There are also some flatter parts on the 3 mile ascent to Jade Lake. Enjoy them, but don't get your hopes up :) It's a LONG 3 miles. After one last rocky climb, we finally spied Jade Lake through the trees. We had a sigh of relief and began the skirt along the lake (found some fish swimming and took a break on a nice rock there). About 3 scenic campsites line the lake's edge. We crossed the stream on the far end and pushed on to see what the other lakes had to offer. When you spy the cabin, many trails head in all directions. (The cabin looks a little creepy inside, but people were camping in there.) To the right is Locket, to the left is Emerald and beyond that to the left is Ilswoot. Straight ahead lie Opal Lake and much further on La Bohn. I don't know if there is one best way to get down to each lake, but we found one trail that went down to the lower end of Emerald and crossed the outlet stream there. We turned right and headed down into a rocky gully to find Ilswoot. A ranger had recommended trying Ilswoot for a quiet camp spot, and after we saw the deep turquoise color, knew it had to be where we stayed. We skirted the edge doing a bit of rock hopping until we found a rocky inlet with a 'private beach' and dry campsite just up the hill from it. A waterfall across the lake offers a nice white noise. We saw a few mosquitos, but didn't have any issues with them. We had a sweet quiet afternoon watching the lake change colors as clouds and sun came and went. It rained that night and was foggy/wet in the morning. Even though it wasn't actively raining as we started hiking out, the underbrush soaked our hiking pants. Rain drizzled on and off, and the water made for a muddy, slick hike down. It took closer to 3 hours to go the 3 miles back down the the valley. I wish we could have spent at least one more day up there exploring all the lakes... people kept recommending Tank and La Bohn, but I don't know how hard the route-finding is going further on.

This is the 3rd time hiking this trail. We took lots of short breaks and snack time and it took about 5 hr one way. Carry lots of water or a water filter if you do this during day time. First 5 or so miles are relatively easy and pretty trail. Few campsites along the trail before the end of 5 miles but I've heard last year someone saw bears on the trail so I haven't tried to camp at one of those. There are overgrown bushes and long pants are good to avoid getting cut or wet by those plants. After crossing the bridge and going up the rocky parts, you pretty much only going up and up. It's hard but not difficult. There were not many bugs till you get to the lakes. There were 3 or 4 tents around the lakes but everyone was spread out so not crowded. We stayed at Ilswoot lake. There were many mosquitoes but we had very good repellent so weren't bothered. There were some a little aggressive bees though. It's a good hike. I wish we had one extra day to enjoy the lakes.

Started Saturday morning with a few cars in the lot at East fork Foss TH. The trail crews did a great job brushing out the 1st section of trail all the way to the river. Minimal blow downs and the ones that were there are easily negotiated. Worked my way up the valley slappin mosquitoes the whole time. They weren't so bad as long as you kept moving. Very cool area by Opal and other lakes. A spaghetti tangle of trails could be confusing but I keep moving towards the valley head and eventually got there. I got to the falls coming from La Bohn lakes at the head of the valley. I knew the route to La Bohn Gap went somewhere along the falls, across the rocks, however the route/gap was socked in with fog so I couldn't see the route from below. I brought along crampons and an axe anticipating snow on this side of the gap. I was kinda itchin to use the gear so I opted to climb the snow field a little west of the falls. I couldn't see the run out but, according to my map, this approach wasn't as steep as the waterfall route. Experience with snow travel and self arrest is a must...this is not the place to slip and fall. made the gap in whiteout conditions...Bummer cuz I heard it's cool! I guess I'll have to come back. 80% to 20% hard snow cover to rock across the gap and down to Chain lakes. Just use your map, compass, and follow the terrain. It will naturally lead you to the falls above Williams Lake . The down climb is where the snow stopped and I was rock hopping again. Williams lake was amazing as I was now below the fog. Went out Middle Fork but not before running into a friendly backpacker and his dog coming into the lake where the bugs had picked back up after coming up from Necklace... Now I just have to return when the views are out!

Departed for an overnight on an overcast July morning and were quick to label the passage up to Necklace Valley the "give and take trail". For all the gorgeous wildflowers dotting the path and bushels of sweet huckleberry and salmonberry patches alongside the trail, there was overgrown nettle spilling into the way. Since it was damp out and was intermittently raining, the overgrown brush soaked us to the bone, drenching through our socks and soaking our waterproof boots too. The majority of this overgrown brush is from mile 3-5 so come expecting a rough few miles there. After you reach a few campsites, the road becomes a challenging ascent up nearly 3000 feet and though not necessarily technical, it took a while to traverse. At the top, we were greeted by a number of pretty lakes but none bested Lake Ilswoot, which was a bit confusing to locate but its electric blue shade made it a sight to behold. We were told by some passerby hikers that Ilswoot was less buggy than the other lakes right now and, according to our experience, I cannot imagine how buggy those other spots must have been. We were assaulted, and I mean assaulted, by mosquitoes. I'm not normally "bugged" by mosquito bites but this was in a whole different league. We hurriedly cooked our dinner and ate walking in circles so as to cut back on bites. We quickly hung up our food and hid in the tent at around 7 because it was just too horrible to be outside with those bugs. Which is a damn shame because it really would have been a nice spot to relax at. All in all, gorgeous peaks and views w/ great wild berries and flowers but the difficult stream crossings, excessive and prickly overgrowth and the insane amount of mosquitoes makes this an outting that should probably be skipped until a better time of year or, as we suspected might be a better idea after, camp at the bottom of the ascent and day hike up to the lakes without staying in their mosquito-infested lands overnight.

The first 5.2 miles of this hike lull you into thinking it'll be no problem reaching the lakes, but wow, it gets hard for the remaining 3 miles. Pretty much all your elevation happens in the last 3 miles, as noted in the description. We weren't going fast, and it took us 2 hrs, 40 min to the 5.2 miles campsite, over 3 hours to go the next 3 miles. First 5.2 miles of trail are in relatively good shape. A few blowdowns, but the worst part is the brush is really overgrown. Not a big deal most of the way, but there's a section with lots of stinging nettles and they hurt like hell. I donned a rain jacket once I got stung. Long pants are a must, and if it's wet your pants will get wet from the brush. You cross a log bridge just before the 5.2 mile campsite, but it has seen better days. Can be a slight challenge to get up onto it, but not too bad. Then a little further you reach another log, and this one can be confusing. We first took a wrong turn, going up the riverbed instead of realizing we need to cross a log. It doesn't look like a bridge. Across that log you're on a boulder field for a short bit, following cairns. Then the trail begins again, but there were blowdowns, very slick mud in places, and it's steep. Water is available several places on the trail. They're pretty obvious on the map as these are mostly year-round streams. Wood toilet available at lower site, look for the sign a bit before the actual site. There are two reasonable sites down there - one before you cross a river on a log, and one after it, just before the next log you cross. There were also some sites even earlier on the trail. There was also a fire that had been left smoldering at the 5.2 mile campsite. I threw some water on and gave it a stir, but seriously folks, put out your campfires until they're cold! When you reach Jade Lake, there's a site right near the outflow, and another towards the other end of the lake that's bigger. I think there are others off the trail at other points if these are full, but there was nobody else up there since it was not a weekend anymore. No fires beyond the 5.2 mile mark, but it appears fires are allowed down at the first campsites? We never ventured beyond Jade Lake. The weather was really unfortunate: cold, windy, and somewhere between gloom, drizzle, and rain all afternoon/evening. In the morning when it was clouded in and misting we decided to scrap the day of day hiking and head down. Still took almost 7 hours down with a stop for lunch, but we were slower than average. Road is in great shape. Outhouse available at the trailhead. Less than 2 hours from Seattle. One final note: If you're hiking with dogs, PLEASE keep them on a leash. I was approached by three dogs running ahead of their human and one was growling at me. The woman who came up behind called the name of the dog but got no response and he continued growling until she passed me. Another of her dogs jumped up on me with muddy paws, and she didn't even seem to care.