We hiked up the Necklace Valley trail and spent the night at Jade Lake. Trail is in great shape and an easy ~flat walk up until the ~5 mile point at the big bridge crossing. After that, the steepness of the trail caused quite a lot of water on trail (a creek, really!) intermittently from miles 6 - 8. You may know that the trail is in pretty nasty shape in those last few miles, anyway. It snowed at night, leaving almost an inch, and we got up very early and left Jade Lake for a snowy/changing to rainy hike in, until descending to ~3500 ft where it was light fog/drizzle and sunbreaks. No bugs (maybe b/c of rain). Pretty muddy, though! There is one big blowdown that someone else already noted in a previous report, right before the big bridge crossing.

4 of us from Monroe headed out to the neckless valley area, east fork of the foss river on the 20th, regardless of the wether report for foul weather. We were counting on luck. We left the 20th at 9am. The plan was to return to town on the 22nd. 2 nights, 3 days. When we reached the trail head to the neckless valley it wasnt raining. However, the past sun had encouraged huge growth amongs the foilage allong the trail. This foilage was about thigh high. So even though it wasnt raining, we got wet from the knees down. The trail is in excellent shape. There are some muddy spots, but that was expected.There are still a few large trees down across the trail, but they are navigable. We hiked the 4 miles in to the camp site 200 yards or so short of the bridge that crosses the east fork, where the trail begins its assent to Jade Lake. We camped out for the night. Birds and chipmunks were the only critters to be seen at this point. However, we did see some scat on the trail which I thought would be feline of some type. The morning gave us a slight wind chill but no rain. After breakfast we began the climb. After crossing the river we meandered through the woods until it petered out below a rock slide. It was clear that we were to climb the length of a few logs and then follow some piles of rocks over the slide. During the climb up to Jade Lake we hit every kind of terrain and wether you could imagin. Forrest, slides, meadows, snow packs. We edged along the edge of many georgous rapids and falls. heard eagles call out and were buzzed by more that one nosey bee. After many hours of serious grunts, strains and time outs, we made it to the lake. Wow! What a site. It sits in the shadow of Bear Breast mountain. We stopped for lunch and coffee on the rock slide, while one of our hikers tried to catch a fish. Several 7 incher brown trouts nibbled at the hook, but no takers. The wind brougt in a chill factor and some snow, so after 45 minutes or so we headed back down to camp, arriving back around 530pm. we spent the rest of the day light ours replenishing the body with grub and drying out. I was up at 5 am and back on the trail to the truck by 630am. Arriving at the trailhead by 820am It rained hard. My shoes filled up with water and the stinging nettles prodded at my knees, but who cares..It was worth the effort. I'll be back!

East Fork Foss River 4/30/05 This trail is the low approach to the high Necklace Valley in the heart of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. It's snow free early and has an easy gentle grade. My Mountaineers Club beginning hiking group liked it a lot. There are minimal views on this trail: a couple glimpses of the peaks on the other side of the valley, some rapids and pools in the river near where we had lunch, a powerful but small waterfall, and a swamp/lake. Mostly it's a forest walk thru a wilderness regrowing after the railroad logging of a century ago. Spring flowers were almost everywhere; trillium, stream violets, calypso orchids, skunk cabbages, bleeding hearts, salmonberries, oregon grapes, and hooker fairybells. Over a thousand trillium and perhaps a hundred calypso in bloom. Vine maple leafing out and ferns sending up new fronds added bright green to the color palate. The trees are mostly douglas fir and hemlock 100 to 150 ft. tall. Some huge stumps and nurse logs are still present to show what the old forest was like. In a couple of centuries the new trees will be monsters too. We saw only 3 other people on this hike and those in the span of a minute, as two friends from the Mountaineers showed up as we were starting lunch quickly followed by one more person. Our friends continued on to the river crossing at 5 miles while we turned around at our 3 mile lunch spot so we didn't see them again. The trail was in good condition with no obstacles. There are 5 or 6 easy little creek crossing . To get there: drive US2 (Stevens pass hiway) just past the Skykomish ranger station and turn right onto the Foss River Rd. (paved). It will turn to gravel and become Forest Rd. 68. Stay on that for about 4 miles to the trailhead on the left (trail #1062). Stats: 6 miles 500 ft. elevation gain top elevation 2150 ft. 67 miles from my north Seattle home. Robert Michelson

Headed out today with a friend with the intention (succesful!) of making an early season trip up Necklace Valley to the Tank Lakes. I'd heard that the area was pretty nice and the countour lines seemed pretty far apart on the map, so seemed like it would make a good trip. And wow. up.gif Easily my best day out in a year, maybe the best out in two. After an obligatory stop at the Sultan Bakery (blueberry scones are so good) we reached the trailhead and started hiking around 9 am. Foss River Road has been regravelled at the start, which cuts down on the fishtailing in the mud that I encountered last time I was out there. The first 4+ miles of the trail are basically rolling/flat, paralleling the river. We heard an amazing number of frogs from the marshes, but decided not to investigate. After crossing the river (my legs hurt too much to go downstairs and get the map to look up the name), the trail ascends rapidly up to the Necklace Valley through forest and open slopes. Spectacular views to the east of near vertical rock faces. Past mile 6, the snow starts and the trail condition degrades. Lots of water on the trail above this point. Slippery old puncheon, mossy rocks, and mud. All covered by a thin layer of concealing snow. Gotta love early season. Reached Jade Lake around 11:30. The lake's starting to melt out around the edges, but is still completely snow covered. Crossed a very sketchy snowbridge at the southern inlet and quickly climbed towards Emerald Lake. Here we broke off from the trail and contoured up gentle slopes, aiming for the low gradient approach to Tank Lakes. Amazing views of La Bohn gap to the south. A little before 3 we crested the ridge looking down on the Tank Lakes (totally snow covered) and just couldn't stop grinning. 360 degree panorama of snow capped peaks and ice covered lakes. A quick class 2 scramble brought us to a local peak above the lakes and we hung out for a while, soaking in the views (and the sun). Glacier, Iron Gap, Azurite Lake, and Angeline Lake all visible. Dropped down from the summit around 3:20 and made short work of the glissade. Back to the car (and pretty tired) around 7:00. ~17 miles, 4500 ft gain.

On January 29 and 30, 2005, I soloed from the Necklace Valley trailhead to La Bohn Gap. Though there were patches of snow at the trailhead and Foss River Road, there were only two short sections of six-inch deep snow toward the end of the four-mile flat trek to the East Fork Foss River crossing. After the crossing, the trail was snow-free in the forest, and six to twelve inches deep in the clearings and open slopes. At the second river crossing, at about 6 miles, you have to go left ten or fifteen yards to pick up the trail. I missed the worn rocks on the left on the way up, and continued straight at the end of the bridge, which deprived me of trail for an eighth of a mile. For the final mile before the Necklace lakes, the trail follows stream beds steeply. The first lake, Jade, is surrounded by snow, and the trail traverses of its east bank. The trail was completely snow-covered at this point, so I boulder-hopped along the stream connecting Jade Lake and Emerald Lake for a couple hundred yards until I arrived at Emerald Lake (4800'), where I pitched camp. At about 2:00 p.m., I put on snowshoes and continued up the Emerald Valley past Oval Lake to a hogsback ridge full of cairns that led to the La Bohn lakes and up a bowl to the gap. Sunset from the La Bohn Gap offers fantastic views of Bear's Breast and Mt. Hinman on the south and east side, and the Necklace Valley's chain of lakes on the north side. A dusk descent led me back to camp at 6:30. Emerald Lake received three inches of snow during the night. On Sunday morning, I followed some unidentified animal tracks out for two miles -- their source had apparently followed my tracks in to within fifty feet of my campsite. Despite the undisclosed visitor, this is a fantastic winter overnight trip, though this January could hardly be called winter.