I went for an overnight to the river (about 5 miles). The trail is muddy in places, but nothing to worry about. There are multiple downed trees that were not too difficult to climb over or around. I was going to go to Jade lake, but a group I met on their way back discouraged it at this time because of snow.

Full Disclaimer, this trail isn't technically 'difficult or impossible' to navigate, the obstacles after E Fork Foss River ( about 5 miles) are just rather.. challenging. It's totally doable and I made it to Jade Lake, it's just HARD as a day hike right now The lower section of this trail was very brushy, with several blowdowns. This wasn't really a problem, you can just look for the reroutes, or climb over them. From around 1 or 2 miles in the trail is pretty brushy. Watch out for devil's club as well as loose/slippery puncheon in spots. There was a place where you have to scoot/traverse up a log, or take a couple steps through knee-high water. The water was flowing fast and starting to undercut the near side of the footbridge here. This was at about 5.2 miles (the first waypoint on the greentrails map), just after a stretch of brushy meadow. There were wildflowers blooming here, and nice views (although on the way up it was all socked in). If you aren't up for a fairly challenging, scrambly hike, I would reccomend just staying at the campground and having lunch, the raging river is oddly soothing, and the views aren't too bad. There is also a bridge 1-2 miles further up where you could break and turn around, as an intermediate alternative (The Michael A. Nesby Memorial Footbridge), but it requires a little bit of routefinding. After you cross the river, you have to cross ANOTHER river or large creek. Head upstream for ~50 ft after the crossing, and follow the obvious trail, looking for some small cairns that aren't too easy to spot. IF you go up a gulley full of Devil's club, you've gone too far >< This is what i did, and it took me a few minutes to figure out I was going the wrong way. The greentrails map I had didn't show this crossing, so be careful. I think the Foss River washed out a section of trail at some point (not really too surprising). You'll cross a rotting log after the cairns, and then scramble up some boulders before resuming the trail. After this, the trail becomes steep, rocky, and wet with some blowdowns in spots. If you are feeling ambitious, by all means continue on; It's totally passible, it just takes a lot of work. It took me 4 1/2 hours to get to Jade Lake, and it's not as if I'm a slow hiker, but "obstacles on trail" seemed too tame a description for this particular trail. The snow started intermittently near the lake (perhaps ~1/2 mile) The snow was pretty solid, but there was some postholing near the lake and it was steep, so take your time and be careful. As mentioned in previous reports, the lakes are still largely covered in snow. Additionally, I was unable to navigate around Jade Lake. I made it halfway around the left side of the lake, and then there was snow that looked to be possibly on top of water, up against a cliff face, and I didn't really fancy falling into cold water. However, Alexlim in the comments section has told me that you can hug the rock on the left side. Go ahead and try this approach if you'd like. I got to the trail around 7:30 am, took me till about noon to get to Jade Lake, left Jade lake about 12:30, and took me about 3:45 back down. If you are looking for solitude right now, this is a great place to get it. I didn't see another Human on trail the entire day, though I did see a garter snake sunning himself on the trail in the meadows, and the views were nice (although not as nice as W. Fork Foss). The road is in excellent condition too, no washouts to contend with. W. Fork Foss is possibly an easier approach to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness right now, but this is a great trail, I really hope WTA/USFS/ whoever else wants to help can find the resources to come clear some of the blowdowns and brush. I was told also that conditions should improve later, but I'm not sure I've ever seen such a mess on trail even early season. Maybe this is normal for this area.

Me and a couple buddies decided to take a two night backpacking trip up to Necklace Valley. The trail head is well marked and there is a toilet and garbage bin on site. The first 5 miles of the hike are pretty straight forward however there are a couple things worth mentioning. First off the trail is overgrown in many parts. When it's dry this isn't so bad but after a good rain going through the trail will leave you drenched. We were lucky enough to experience this on our hike out and not on our hike in. By the time we reached the trail head our boots and socks were soaked and we could only wonder how miserable we would have been if this was our condition heading up to the Valley. Also there is a small stretch with stinging nettles that left my exposed legs burning for a few minutes. Nothing too bad but you might want to consider wearing pants during the early part of the hike. Another thing to be aware of is that there is a downed bridge right before the five mile mark. The bridge is split in half but still crossable with only minimal/modest effort. The water that the bridge spans is not a raging river so it is not too stressful. Besides the downed bridge you'll know you are almost at the steep part of your journey when you see a sign for a toilet and a couple of campsites along the river. To start the climb you will actually travel through one of the campsites across a log bridge and up a series of large rocks. Follow the cairn rock markings when in doubt of where you are heading. After the short scramble you will return to the trail. From here it is largely up for the remainder of the hike. Along the way there are some downed trees that you will need to navigate and a couple areas where it's easy to lose the trail. Again follow the cairn rocks and look for foot prints in the mud. Eventually you will ascend high enough that you will see snow on the ground. You will need to hike over the snow to reach your destination and be cautious since there are many opportunities for your feet to sink in. My best advice is to follow the foot steps since the trail becomes difficult to see at times. There is one point in particular where you will crest a small snow embankment right before reaching the Necklace Valley and it is easy to miss. When we finally made it to the Valley we discovered that there is currently only one campsite that is readily accessible (see picture). One of my buddies tried to go further around the lake but quickly decided to turn back after sinking into the snow one too many times. The view was great and it was worth the trip. I will warn you however that the nights get cold. After one night at the Valley we opted to return to the lower campsite located right before you begin the climb (see picture). That day we saw two parties both heading up to Necklace Valley with the intent to set-up camp. Both parties ended up returning down the mountain that same day due to the cold (it was colder and rainy the second night). So plan to bring warm clothing if you are heading up anytime soon.

We had an amazing time on this hike, it has always been a favorite. Minor obstacles but very few. The sky was beautiful and there are river(s) and waterfalls literally everywhere. The frogs are croaking at Lake Alturas and the trilliums look great. This is a perfect time to go weather wise, (normal spring weather temps anyway). Out of the 10 mile round trip hike to the river and back, I couldn't have asked for a better 9. Unfortunately we had people with loose dogs. I have a big, shy dog who I leash. Going by "like" dogs, there's no problem. Unfortunately none of the people, (4 parties with dogs) leashed any of them. By the 4th, it went bad. 3 malamutes (or huskies) run up and surround our dog. Our dog is flipping out and the owners are no where. The dogs aren't biting but they aren't leaving and we can't go anywhere. This is all happening within a couple minutes where they finally do leave and come back 2 more times before 3 guys finally show up. We're shaking and calming our dog and yell at them to leash their dogs. One of them yells back "NO" and "we shouldn't have an aggressive dog out in the woods". I'm controlling my dog, (whimpering loudly or not) by keeping it near me with a leash and it was inspirational to know that I am to also control other people's pets that run up and to be surprised when it becomes tense. Who would have thunk. Called the Rangers and it's a $125 fine. Not all, but the majority of hikes are like that. We were told when it happens again, report them to the rangers but also call 911 because there are a couple cops up there who love those calls. So get out there, enjoy the views and I'll be bringing maze next time. (Leash sign ripped down but rangers putting another up soon).

We had an amazing time on this hike, it has always been a favorite. Minor obstacles but very few. The sky was beautiful and there are river(s) and waterfalls literally everywhere. The frogs are croaking at Lake Alturas and the trilliums look great. This is a perfect time to go weather wise, (normal spring weather temps anyway). Out of the 10 mile round trip hike to the river and back, I couldn't have asked for a better 9. Unfortunately we had people with loose dogs. I have a big, shy dog who I leash. Going by "like" dogs, there's no problem. Unfortunately none of the people, (4 parties with dogs) leashed any of them. By the 4th, it went bad. 3 malamutes (or huskies) run up and surround our dog. Our dog is flipping out and the owners are no where. The dogs aren't biting but they aren't leaving and we can't go anywhere. This is all happening within a couple minutes where they finally do leave and come back 2 more times before 3 guys finally show up. We're shaking and calming our dog and yell at them to leash their dogs. One of them yells back "NO" and "we shouldn't have an aggressive dog out in the woods". I'm controlling my dog, (whimpering loudly or not) by keeping it near me with a leash and it was inspirational to know that I am to also control other people's pets that run up and to be surprised when it becomes tense. Who would have thunk. Called the Rangers and it's a $125 fine. Not all, but the majority of hikes are like that. We were told when it happens again, report them to the rangers but also call 911 because there are a couple cops up there who love those calls. So get out there, enjoy the views and I'll be bringing maze next time. (Leash sign ripped down but rangers putting another up soon).