Headed to Goat Rocks for a relaxing holiday weekend. The road was still blocked, probably about about 2.5 miles from the trailhead now. The bridge that is supposedly out seemed totally driveable to us. Call the ranger station to see if the road has been reopened or plan on road-walking. We hiked up to Tieton Pass and spent the first night in McCall Basin. We failed to notice the trail ever steepening much. Didn't really encounter snow until the Basin, which was in the process of melting out, so there were lots of snow patches and standing water, but we managed to find some dry flat ground to set up camp. The next day we headed up to Shoe Lake. Patchy snow started shortly after the junction with Hidden Springs Trail. The basin was probably 90% snow covered and the lake itself was still iced in, but the trail up to the basin showed itself often enough to prevent any major navigation challenges. Camping is not permitted in the lake basin, but there are some nearby sites around Hidden Springs. Hiked out on Hidden Springs Trail, which was easily the steepest leg of the trip. Normally I would want to go up such a leg, but there are really great views of the peaks across the valley as you head down. This trail is also less maintained so is a bit trickier to follow at times. The snow level was between 5000-6000 feet depending on slope/aspect/other terrain features. The biggest obstacles were the blowdowns that hadn't been cleared yet for the season. Made for some exciting acrobatic maneuvers and scratched up legs. Bugs were out but not too bad yet.

Planned for an overnight trip to McCall basin, but the N fork Tieton road is closed 4+ miles from the trailhead.

I Solo'ed this hike. I stopped by the Cowlitz ranger station in packwood to find out about this hike. They told me there was a washout and there is a 2 mile walk to the TH. I drove to the Tieton River road and found that the road is not closed at the bridge but at where the road turns to go around Clear lake. Being the sucker I am I said I can walk it. It was a SLOG of 4.5 miles to the trail head... So be warned. The trail #1118 is in very good shape with peek-a-boo glimps of the towering goat rocks mountains. By the time I got to the pass I was pooped. I took a few shots and headed back. By the time I got back to the car 18 miles round trip I was dragging butt. But for a good endurance hike this is it. I will try and add photos tomorrow.

Hiked in to McCall basin this weekend. The road is closed 4 miles from the trail head due to a bridge wash-out. Trail is dry and clear of snow most of the way to Tieton Pass (4800 ft). We camped there, 9 miles from the car. The next morning along the PCT towards Lutz Lake the trail was mostly snow covered though hiking with packs was pretty easy and rout finding wasn't too difficult using the map and topo contours as a guide. We encountered soft snowfields when we popped out of the woods headed for the ridge and Elk Pass. It was difficult to know if we were on the trail or not. Without ice axes or crampons we decided against going above ~6000 ft when the ridge started to get quite steep. Glissading into the McCall Basin was a hoot! We spent the night there. A few of the campsites are melted out and dry. Wildflowers are only just begining to bloom and the bugs were minimal. The trail out of the basin is a little difficult to find in the snow. We tried to leave sticks in the snow for the next group. What a beautiful spot!