I might not be able to hike for a few months, so my partner and I wanted a hike worthy of my swan song and of Labor Day Weekend. So even though I visited this incredible loop last year, my partner didn't come, so here goes round two!

Road conditions through the Mountain Loop Highway and FR 49 are actually pretty darn chill. I'm unsure what the fuss is about — I remembered it being much rougher in years past, but this visit the road was relatively smooth. The trailhead was about 85% full when we arrived around 8:30 on Saturday. It was much more full Sunday afternoon, and cars were parked about a quarter mile down the forest road. It looked like tons of folks were preparing to climb Glacier Peak. The bathroom was clean and well stocked both times.

Think of this trail as split into thirds. One third to ascend, one third in the subalpine along the crest, and one third to descend. We opted to walk up Pilot Ridge this time, going counter clockwise. Be warned: for the average hiker, this section is steep. Like, for real, a butt-kicker. There are also a few blowdowns, but nothing too difficult. The incline tapers off to a comfortable climb once the trees thin out a bit.

Blue Lake was busy when we arrived around 2 p.m. It seemed like the entire hike up, other parties were trying to rush up the trail to secure a spot. Unfortunately, most spots already looked to be taken when we arrived. There were a few whiny/barking dogs, as well as a very loud party throwing rocks in the lake. A shame — it's a stunning area, and the name holds true: the water is like sapphire! We also replenished water here.

The climb up the pass from Blue Lake offers incredible 360 views of the surrounding peaks and valleys. Descending counter clockwise is a bit steeper/more eroded than climbing up from the lake, so treat lightly.

Ironically, traffic thinned-out considerably when we joined the PCT. Back when I thru hiked the PCT in 2016, I thought the trail had some challenging climbs. These days, I appreciate it for what it is: a well-groomed, well-graded track that allows you to crank up hills with only reasonable discomfort.

We camped at Reflection Pond around 7:30 p.m. after roughly 18 miles and 6,700 feet of gain. There was one tent when we arrived (with a small, barky dog -_-) and two PCT thru hikers arrived around sundown, somewhat oblivious of respecting tentsite proximity (likely due to their 2,500 miles of walking with other thru hikers). The sites in the trees at Reflection Pond offer great sunset and sunrise colors from both directions.

We left camp around 6:50 the next morning and enjoyed a quiet trail for a couple of miles before arriving at the busy White Pass. There were too many parties to count here, but the tentsite area looked to be roomy. Saying goodbye to the subalpine views, we relished the long descent back to the North Fork Sauk — much less steep this way than the way we climbed up!

Back in the forest, we encountered some section hikers who flew to Washington to LASH (long #$$ section hike) the PCT. One wasn't feeling well, so we drove them to Darrington on the way out. Ready, Cogent and Bear Steps: if you're reading this, it was lovely to meet you all!

The river valleys are brimming with delicious fungi this time of year. We observed, photographed or collected up to 4 gourmet edible species along the way. And in case you didn't know: huckleberries are going BONKERS right now. More than this bear could eat, anyway.

We arrived back at the car around noon, dropped our new friends off, and enjoyed some Pagliacci Pizza at home. PS vegan friends: did you know Pagliacci now has vegan cheese? I am a happy hiker.

Distance: 29.44
Elevation: 7,651 feet

A great little Labor Day loop! Mountains everywhere you looked!

we hiked clockwise and I think this was the right way. Going up to white pass was hard but it would have been more difficult to climb up the other side + the ridge to blue lake with no water available. 

The descent to the Sauk was steep with a few blowdowns but they weren’t challenging to navigate or go over  

theres still water at white pass camp if you go down the hill and turn right when you reach the tent sites. If you follow the stream down a bit there are easy spots to scoop water where the stream gets a little deeper

i saw a lot of people at blue lake camping on grass right next to the lake shore even when there were still dirt sites available. It’s important to use established sites so that alpine vegetation has a chance to grow! Also a lot of parties showed up late to blue lake and had trouble finding a spot. Remember that part of leave no trace is to plan ahead and prepare. If your trip includes camping somewhere popular (any alpine lake in WA) - arrive early so you can find a tent site that minimizes impacts. Happy trails friends! 

Not much to add here except make sure to fill up with water when available because it is quite scarce. Pilot Ridge is entirely dry between Blue Lake and about 1 mile before the North Sauk. The ascent to White Pass is also mostly dry with just a couple of small trickles until you get to Foam Creek. I had 2 1/2 liters with me which was the right amount especially since the days were so hot.

I did the loop clockwise and would consider doing it counter-clockwise next time if only because you'd be saving the best for last. Although the detour to Johnson Mountain was a highlight and definitely worth it.

Berries were bounteous! Happy grazing, everyone.

Flawless itinerary?! The closest thing I've ever seen, anyway. Highly recommended.

Parking was relatively easy when i arrived just before 7am on Friday morning. People were circling when I was leaving on Saturday afternoon around 2pm. It seemed like a significant amount of the traffic at the trailhead is related to Glacier Peak summit attempts, so maybe it's somewhat seasonal.

I'm going to try and keep this focused on info because I could spend a long time describing the beauty of this hike. I filtered two liters of water at the shelter (which is fallen over) because I wasn't sure when the next reasonable source of water would be. It turns out there are several near the junction with the PCT, I would only filter one liter if I could do it again.

I hiked out the Foam Creek Trail to the knoll, really beautiful and increasingly so the farther out you go. More water sources on this trail. I ate lunch on the knoll with a view of Tahoma. While eating lunch two military planes roared through the canyon. Not my cup of tea so I covered my ears and waited for it to end. If it is your cup of tea maybe something that happens regularly? Since the base on Whidbey is relatively close. As I continued south on the PCT after lunch I also enjoyed the added perspective hiking out the Foam Creek trail provided.

There was only one source of water I would choose to filter between White Pass and Blue Lake. It was a little spring fed creek between the White River trail and Indian Pass. I carried two liters from White Pass to Blue Lake which I finished as I descended the high route.

I found the high route trail to Blue Lake relatively easy to follow, when you get to the top make sure you look behind you for the first switchback down. I didn't see it at first and was confused for a few minutes. There were several parties camped at Blue Lake and it was still easy to find a good spot for my tent when I walked in around 6pm.

I left Blue Lake just after 7am the next morning. I hiked to the summit of Johnson Mountain. This was my favorite side trip of the route. It's the highest point I reached and I could visually trace most of what I had walked and what I would hike, really gratifying. Pilot ridge was extremely lovely in the morning, probably baking in the afternoon. No good water sources until you're well into the descent and at that point your knees will want you to wait until the valley floor to filter / treat more water. Two liters got me from Blue Lake to the North Fork of the Sauk River. I think you'd need more later in the day. The descent is the least maintained section of trail, relatively easy to navigate though.

Hopefully this helps someone!

Wildlife: black bear early on it ran as soon as it heard me, hares, hawks, so many marmots, at the other usual suspects.

Berries: ripe thimbles a low elevation, infinite huckleberries and blueberries higher up.

Mostly everything has been well explained in other trip reports. Parking is definitely much much easier on the weekdays without competing with the weekend climbers and trail runners which there seemed to be many of when heading down from Blue Lake on Saturday. As others have said definitely recommend going clockwise unless you just like suffering because the climb up to pilot ridge is pretty tough. I found the high pass to Blue Lake really fun and in better conditions than I was expecting. There is a good water source just off the pct between White Pass and Blue lake. As you pass Sauk Pass before heading up to Dishpan Gap there is an area of more small boulders than the rest of the trail and a flat grassy section overlooking the valley. It is off to the left (looking south) and below the trail about 20ft. Recommend bringing a bug net for staying at Blue lake could be useful for White Pass too not sure tho since it was kind of windy and wet on when we were there. 

Great trail highly recommend although there was a decent amount more traffic than expected especially at blue lake.