Such a beautiful time of year to hike near Mt. Baker! It was sunny and warm, although a stiff breeze near Camp Kiser kept things comfortable toward the distant reaches of the hike. The trail is in good shape and there were no bugs. Fall colors have arrived, and the last of the summer berry crop is still hanging around. Parking lot was 1/2-3/4 full when I arrived just after 8 am (on a Tuesday)... keep in mind you can always park lower down the road and hike up if there aren't spots available in the main lot. 

A beautiful day on the trail today. Left the parking lot before 8 am with plenty of parking left. We had the intention of going out about 4 miles or so and then coming back, but once we got out there and saw the rest of the trail we ventured farther. Made it almost to the end but opted not to do the scramble.

Weather was perfect. Lots of people on the trail on our way back. Back to the lot by 2 pm and had someone waiting for our parking spot when we left.

Carry lots of water and wear layers. Today was warm but the wind can pick up out there.

Men’s restroom was closed but they had honeybuckets available. Women’s restroom was open and had plenty of toilet paper.

Did this epic trail out to East Portals, which makes it more like 12 miles and 2,000 ft of elevation gain. If you have the energy, I highly recommend the full things. Absolutely incredible.

Artist Point TH was hoppin' this morning at 6:45 am when I arrived. I bundled up (it was 39 degrees F) and started out. Thankfully, the trail was pretty quiet at this early hour. The trail's landscapes and views are constantly changing. So neat. Once the official trail ends shortly before Camp Kiser, it's good to have the map downloaded. The unofficial bootpath was easy enough to follow (look carefully for switchbacks as you start climbing after Camp Kiser. If it seems too sketchy or dangerous, you are probably off the trail.) There is one small snowfield to cross. After that, the trail devolves into chaos, as it more or less disappears. In its place are a million social trails, so it's really choose your own adventure. I used Gaia to determine where Portals East was, then found a trail there. Views were simply outstanding. Literally a sea of mountains in all directions. Mount Baker is front and center. Only a few other people up there with me. 

I stopped at Goat Lake on the way back. Will go back for backpacking perhaps. Aside from the lake itself, there is not much water left on the trail. There is a small stream shortly after the Chain Lakes-Ptarmigan Ridge junction where you probably could get water with slight difficulty.

Bring clothes for all seasons. The morning was freezing. The Portals summit was windy and more or less the North Pole. Then the sun came out, and I lost all my layers and was still quite warm! The way back took longer than I thought it would, simply because of the sheer number of people. Cars lined the highway for quite a ways as I was leaving!

On this last official day of summer, apparently I wasn’t the only one trying to squeeze in one more hike. Arrived at 9:15 and the parking lot was full. There was no one in the overflow parking, but when I returned around 2:30, that had filled up, and so did every possible apace alongside the road. Turns out everyone had the right idea because it was a gorgeous day with some clouds hovering around the peaks, making the views very interesting. Fall colors were plentiful as were the berries under Coleman Pinnacle. Most people were friendly, respectful, and used good trail etiquette. It’s a 100% view hike, astounding from start to finish. I hiked close to the “end” of the trail, about 500’ shy of the place where the trail becomes a climbers’ route. Beautiful day!