A great day for a hike so I decided to pull out my snowshoes and head to Mount Baker where the snow base around Artist Point in the North Cascades is still 20 to 30 feet deep. This is hike 31 of 50 I planned at age 50 this year. Due to late season snow fall in May the road to Artist Point is not going to be open. You can drive up to Austin Pass near the Heather Meadows Visitors Center. I parked there around 8:30am and headed up the Wild Goose Trail with others either Sking, Snowshoeing or just in a good set of boots with hiking poles. The weather was spectacular. The hike took about 1 1/2 hours at most. I believe it is easier to hike the Wild Goose Trail with snow than without it. I hiked the Chain Lakes Trail last year which uses the Wild Goose Trail to get back to Artist Point parking lot. It was grueling hike that day. I would definitely rather do it with snow. You can see there are great views from Artist Point and you don't have to fight for a parking spot like most years when the snow is melted. The parking lot is still buried under 20 to 30 feet of snow as I stated earlier. A nice quiet hike with minimal people at the top. I would recommend you have good hiking boots and hiking canes at least. There is a small area that I consider a little tricky but with your sticks you should be fine. The snow was hard in early morning but quite soft on the way down so footing was pretty good. All and all a great hike with spectacular views. Check out my video of this hike from Artist Point or the 100 other hikes I have of Washington State on my youtube channel at lmm3181 or click on this direct link for this hike. It is safe. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmoU7xaRHcM Enjoy your hiking and get out and see this beautiful state. Take Care Mike

Having seen Table Mtn. during many other hikes, I thought it was about time to go up top and look around. I decided to start from the Austin Pass TH., taking the Wild Goose trail up to Artist Point. The extra distance is worth it to avoid the often zoo like atmosphere of the big parking lot at hikes end. Starting before 8:00 AM, I made it up to Artist Point in about 30 minutes; not a single vehicle came up the highway. The signed Table Mtn. trail begins at the far end of the parking lot. Earlier in the season there is usually a large snow bank obscuring the trail. Head uphill and angle left to find it. The trail to the top is short, but steep and rather exciting, being somewhat exposed with big dropoffs. However this is a solid trail with no real difficulties. Once things leveled out, I took a path to the right leading to a good viewpoint overlooking the Bagley Lks. basin. I continued on the main trail that follows along the south-southeast edge of the plateau. The views are 360 degrees amazing: Baker looms to the south, and as you pan west you see the long sweep of Chowder Ridge and Skyline Divide, and then Church, Bearpaw, High Divide, Tomyhoi, Larrabee, Border, Winchester, Goat, Sefrit, Ruth, Shuksan, the Swift Creek drainage flowing to Baker Lake, Ptarmigan Ridge and the Coleman Pinnacle…not to mention distant peaks in BC, many more Cascade peaks, including Glacier. I continued on for about 1.5 miles to where the trail ends at a cliff band above a snowfield. Below, I could see an old, unmaintained trail that drops down to the Chain Lks.Trail. I could see no safe way down…perhaps by heading north a bit I might have found a route. If anyone knows the condition of the old trail, please post a comment. While deciding where to go next, I contemplated the myriad of cairns that clutter the plateau. I’ve seen these things on many mountains in many countries. Call me a purist, but I’m not a fan of re-arranging nature to proclaim ones’ being. Folks, if you feel the urge to leave your mark, just pee on a rock or log like other creatures. Thanks. . While retracing my steps, I suddenly recalled hearing of a path that leads down from Table Mtn. to the junction of the Ptarmigan Ridge-Chain Lks. Trails. Right at the base of a steep section, where the trail splits offering a choice of routes, I found a narrow track heading south. Sure enough, after a short distance I could see a well used path just above the junction. The route starts out fine, but soon becomes steep…not scary steep, just difficult steep (at least at my age). By the time I reached the bottom (about a 400’ loss), my knees and quads were seriously questioning the wisdom of this move. Happy to be on easy terrain, I decided to complete the Chain Lks. loop. Although heavily used, this trail makes for a great hike. The lakes are wonderful, and the view from above Iceberg Lk, with Baker in the background is just stunning. The descent from Herman saddle is not bad, offering a variety of scenery. There are some beautiful little mossy rock gardens complete with mimulus, Lewis monkey flower and a few western pasqueflowers. Nearing the end of the trail, just below the visitor center, you even get to cross over the Hobbit bridge. A great day in the mountains!...About 8 miles…4 stars… mtnowen says check it out.

Excellent hike up to the Chain Lakes loop. Started out from Heather Meadows up the Wild Goose trail. Views of Shuksan were glorious up to Artist point. Passed a couple of small snow patches but was very easy to refind the trail. From the trailhead at Artist Point we had to first navigate a small steep snow patch which was difficult for my partner as she has never had the opportunity to traverse snow in the mountains. After that the trail and views of Baker was glorious. A few snow patches before and after Iceberg Lake made the trail a bit difficult for those that have a problem traversing snow but all in all a great hike with wonderful views. Bewarned though of swarms of flies trying to eat you alive at the lake.

These are two short hikes you can take right from the Mountaineers Lodge on the Mt. Baker Lodge. If you aren't a Mountaineer, you can drive to the trail heads. Artist Ridge is at the end of the road (on top of the world.) It is a great spot to go first and get an overview of the area. You can see Ptarmigan Ridge, Lake Ann, Mountain Top and Chain Lakes trails. You can also view the ants (climbers) on Mt. Baker. Artist Ridge is an open one mile over rocks and rock steps built by a giant. It was very hot the day I went. There are a couple benches, but they are close to the beginning of the trail. Wild Goose is in a valley. If you continued up you would go into the Mt. Baker Wilderness. It is a pretty trail and in shade during the morning. The water was very low, but there were little lakes and a stream all the way. At the end, you can climb to the Visitor Center which is quite interesting. Then the upper Wild goose trail (2 steep miles) leads up to Artist Ridge. Both trails were in good condition. Friends took Lake Ann and Ptarmigan Ridge and really enjoyed those trails, though they were bothered by black flies that bite. I heard the swimming was good at Lake Ann. Sharon Trainer, Auburn

Surprisingly, this was a very pleasant day at Heather meadows. A little snow on the road in a few places going up to artist point. The wide paved trail (road) made for a nice walk as you did not need to look at your feet much. The wild goose trail had a thin layer of snow that made for slippery going coming back down. Temperatures in the mid 50's with hardly any wind and in the sunshine a coat was not needed. Fall colors pretty much gone except the south-facing slopes to the north were still orange and red.

One of my favorite hikes. The Chain Lakes trail when combined with the Wild Goose Trail makes for an incredibly beautiful 9 mile loop. Finally the dam over Bagley Lake's outlet has been repaired- you can now hike on the west side of the lake. Very little snow at Hermann saddle. Iceberg Lake sans icebergs right now. Snowfield still in existence at the junction with Ptarmigan Ridge- not difficult- the steep snowfields that usually linger on the Wild Goose trail have melted. Bugs a nuisance but not a major problem.