With the fire closure of the Cady Ridge trail our BP group cast about for an alternative way to get up into the meadows on the west flank of Glacier Peak. I don't know how I had never stumbled across the Pilot Ridge trail before, but so glad I did! It sounded so good that we stayed with it for our 3-day backpack plan even after the Cady Ridge trail re-opened. That's not to say that it was EASY. Far, far to the contrary. With no trouble finding our way to the well-marked North Fork Sauk trailhead, we set out through the huge trees and filtered sunlight for 1.9 miles on the N Fork Sauk trail to the (unsigned!!) junction to the Pilot Ridge trail on the right. (A sign on a big tree just past the jct reads 'Pacific Crest Trail' with an arrow.) Almost immediately the trail vanished into the river and we faced a crossing over a very well-placed log - not too high, nice and flat on top, no problem! From there the trail began to climb, and didn't quit for about 3 hours. The main 3.5 mile, 3000' switchback section featured one glimpse of Glacier Peak, its top shrouded in clouds, but mostly remained in forest and transitioned into more uphill, over several successive humps on the ridge. Finally after about 4 hours we began to break out of the trees into meadows with views of Keyes, Monte Cristo and Sloan Peaks. From here the views were broad and flowers profuse, if a bit past prime. We began to see Johnson Mountain ahead, traversed the meadows around it, and finally descended steeply to Blue Lake on its south side. Blue Lake had a privy, a couple of good 3-tent-sized sites and multiple smaller ones around a pretty reflective lake. The camp area we chose looked out over a west-facing dropoff and our sunset payoff was dramatic. Though the nominal gain for our Pilot Ridge day was just 4000 feet, based on our GPS track we had actually done 5200 feet that day, over 11.6 miles. After talking with others at the camp, we decided to take the 'high route' from Blue Lake up and over the ridge to Dishpan Gap, saving 2 miles. One fellow called it "brutal" which gave us some pause but we stayed with the plan and it proved no big deal - a bit steep but good clear switchbacks on both sides. We had reached Dishpan Gap and our old friend the PCT by about 10AM, and turned left to circle around Meander Meadow and Kodak Peak (no marked trail up Kodak, just a basic bootpath, but a straightforward though steep walk-up and great 360 views). From the point that we crossed the ridge above Blue Lake the day had been open meadows, and this pattern continued all the way to White Pass with the exception of a short forested section on both sides of Indian Pass. The lupine was profuse here, and even some fuschia-bright monkey flower by a spring. Alas, by the time we had passed Reflection Pond to the west just beyond Indian Pass (with camps and fairly clean water), the clouds had lowered significantly and were beginning to drip on us. By the time we reached White Pass the valleys below were pretty well obscured. We had planned to set up camp at White Pass and dayhike up to Red Pass for views across to the White Chuck glacier, but no views were to be had and the weather was setting in in earnest. (Several good camps down below the trail at White Pass by the way, with a little sign to campsites and privy. Didn't see water but previous reports had said there was some down there.) So instead of setting up camp at 2PM only to hunker down in our tents, we decided to head on down the North Fork Sauk trail and camp near Mackinaw Shelter. The descent that looked so horrible on the map was really quite well graded and no problem. By 4PM we had found the shelter and set up in the spacious camps by the river nearby. Second day stats: another 11.5 miles and 3200' of gain. It rained all night. The next morning we packed up and made it the 5.4 miles back to the trailhead in 2 hours. Ice cream in Granite Falls! Try the salted caramel, fantastic!

From the trail head at Sloan Creek we traveled to Mackinaw Shelter and spent one night. Light bugs, well traveled trail and many people departing as well as entering the wilderness...too many people in fact. The next morning we traveled to the junction of the PCT and on up to White pass where we spent another night in the crowded campground...a line to the toilet. Beautiful views and a 1.5 mile trek down the Foam Creek trail and up off-trail to the ridge of White Mountain for spectacular views of Glacier Peak. Many NOBO PCT hikers moving up to Canada...great stories from "Georgia man" and advice. Next morning hit the PCT and headed down to Kodak Peak and Dishpan Gap...water in very few spots. Wonderful view of 2 F-18's flying low and up and over near Bryant Peak. From Dishpan we turned West on trail 650 over Wards Pass and on up to trail 652.1 - better known now as "Steep and Dangerous". Be careful here as the trail is thin, rocky and steep. We were awarded a spectacular view of the surrounding mountains as well as Big Blue Lake from 6200' overlook. Down into Big Blue Lake is again steep and slippery. We spent 2 days in Big Blue Lake climbing Johnson Mountain and relaxing around the beautiful lake. Again, more people than we would have liked. The near 12 miles out the final day awarded us with fresh Blueberries, spectacular views, fog and a very log covered route on trail 652 back down to 649. Beware the steepness of trail 652 as it is not for the faint of heart.

Ridge trail is about 50% exposed. Still snow on the approaches to Johnson Mountain, so I again turned back about a mile from Blue Lake. Despite the melting snow, finding water up here is difficult. It soaks into the ground without collecting. More photos at: https://picasaweb.google.com/113721145200540181645/PilotRidgeIV?authuser=0&feat=directlink 360 view: http://360.io/CkeL6Y From the trail register, there was a two-person attempt from the White Pass approach, interested to hear if they made it through.

Too early in the season to do the loop. We made it within a couple of miles of Blue Lake, but turned back due to snow depth, steep pitches and no water. Looking North towards Glacier Peak, you could see the PCT passing through a couple of avalanche chutes, and it did not look feasible. Hit the trail head at 06:10 with overnight supplies. After weighing my pack at 36# the night before, I removed my Buck knife, twig stove, and alcohol fuel. Well, I didn't miss the knife. Jogged in to the Pilot Ridge turnoff, and crossed the N. Fork Sauk by 07:00. Had a really nice climb, with sunlight filtering through the trees. No fog today. At the upper creek, about 4,000', 08:20 I stepped on a slippery rock and tumbled into the creek. Minor scrapes and bruises, wet pants and lower shirt, but able to continue. Filled up 2 liters here, which I later found was not sufficient. Lost the trail under the snow, but had a track on a map to follow. Made the wooded ridge at 4,900' at 10AM. Little did I know the climb has just begun. 10:40 found some exposed ground for lunch break, 5,200 There is a large opening with views at 5,400, 11 AM, shown in the top photo. We work for our views around here! It looked to me from the map that the route traversed about 200' below the ridge. I trudged through endless off-camber traverses, sinking in to the snow about 6". On the way back, staying on top of the ridges worked a lot better, at least this time of year. At one point, the traversing strategy turned into a nightmare of steep gulleys. We had to climb straight up to the top of the ridge, where the going was much easier. As you traverse you pass three ridges that go North. Stay headed E/SE. And make sure you stay to the correct ridge on the way back! At about 5PM, reached the spot shown in photos as the turn-around point, 9 miles from the trail-head. Johnson Mountain is in the background. We just need to cross the ridge off to the right of Johnson, and Blue Lake should be just past the ridge. But given our slow progress, the steep pitch of that crossing, we are out of water, we have completed only 9 of the 30 mile loop, and the PCT route back looked impassible we decided to turn back here. We back-tracked about a mile, and found an island of exposed ground to use while setting up camp, at 19:30. After my pack-lightening exercise, I had only an alcohol burner and the internal fuel. I was able to melt 1/2 cup of water. I also filled my bladder with snow and left it on a black garbage bag, but the solar power was insufficient. 04:40 the next morning, packed up camp. The snow crust can support our weight this morning, which made the steep slopes icy. One sip of water for me, and one for Niko. We both ate snow on the way back. Niko often was reluctant to traverse the steep slopes, and requested that I carry him, either by refusing to proceed or attempting to climb up my leg. I appreciated his caution. At 11AM, we had finally descended far enough to encounter liquid water. The deep snow had taken its toll, reducing my normal 2 MPH average speed to an average of 0.9MPH. I had to take many more rest stops than usual on the way back. 14:30 back to the registration and trail-head. Driving home, had to pull off and take a 1-hour nap to safely make the rest of the trip. More photos at: https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/LhO3oUN1xmWrHClNdTDfTNMTjNZETYmyPJy0liipFm0?feat=directlink and 360 Panorama at: http://360.io/cCjyTS

After losing the Pilot Ridge trail in the snow at about 4,000', we found our way over the top of Pilot Ridge, down the other side and onto FS Rd. 4920, which led us back to the parking lot. Just walking the dog. (Executive Summary) We started from the parking area around 7AM, and encountered a group of back-country skiers headed for Glacier Peak. They were well equipped with skis and in one case a pink TuTu, so I'm hoping there is a trip report for that. Seemed like a fun group. We got on the trail just ahead of the Tutu Skiers, and with a light day-pack were able to jog all the way to the Pilot Ridge turnoff. The first log-crossing looked dangerous, no bark and water washing over the top. Looking further upstream there was a stack of logs, with the top few high enough to safely cross. One log looked pretty good but has lost about 1/2 the bark and is slippery. There is a higher log with bark on, but a root ball obstacle at the far end. We took that route. Anything a Corgi can do, a Westie can do better! Climbed over the root ball and jumped to the far bank with a Jackie Chan move. There is a lot of switchbacks and a few blowdowns on the climb up towards Pilot Ridge, but with the cool temperatures and the sun filtering through the trees we enjoyed the climb. Got a few nice pictures of a golden-mantled ground squirrel. We lost the trail under the snow at around 4,000'. Lacking a track on my map, I simply headed for an obvious saddle on the the Topo map. A couple of times I spotted sawn logs, indicating the trail traveled this way as well. After a mile of dead reckoning, I gained a ridge just over 5,000 feet. It was about 11AM, and rather than heading back I noted FS 4920 about a mile South and 2,000 feet down the slope. So we headed in that direction. I broke out onto a talus slope with great views to the S. and of Bedal Peak. As we bushwacked lower, I started to see stumps indicating logging. So I had hope the road was nearby. I was grateful the Devil's Club has not yet filled out, the bushwhacking would be much tougher later in the year. We eventually broke out onto the road, and were able to jog back and return over a bridge to the parking lot around 2:30 PM. I was delighted to see that bridge, as I was concerned I would not be able to re-cross the Sauk, and have to go back the way I came up over the top of Pilot Ridge.