I was in the area to hike the nearby Bald Eagle Mountain Trail but I hit snow early on and had time for further explorations. I decided to hit up the North Fork Sauk & Red Mountain. FS 49 is rough but passable for any vehicle if you go slow over the potholes. There were several cars in the parking lot despite it being Monday. Most of the cars were still there when I got back; perhaps a big party bound for Glacier Peak?
The trail to Red Mountain starts a stone's throw from the parking lot. This trail is short, steep and overgrown but easy to follow. After a mile-long cardio workout, you reach the Red Mountain viewpoint with its low but stunning view of the North Fork Sauk Valley. A path leads further up the mountain but it seems to peter out after a couple hundred more feet of climbing. After that it seems to be a bushwhack if you want to summit Red Mountain.
I descended back to the North Fork Sauk and headed toward Mackinaw Shelter. The trail is easy to follow with only a few obstacles. There is a huge red cedar across the trail that has an easy to see (but tricky to negotiate) scramble path around it. Some sections of the trail are overgrown with thick vegetation, so sing a song to scare away the bears. Other than that, it's just the usual mud, high water stream crossings, puddles and rocks to manage. The trail is snow-free all the way to Mackinaw Shelter and beyond; surprising, given what I encountered on the Bald Eagle Trail nearby. I climbed uphill for a good while and still didn't hit snow, though I could tell by the surrounding mountains that there's a heavy pack in the high country. I ran into a pair of skiers returning from the White Pass area who had huge grins on their faces.
I returned to Mackinaw and set up camp for the night. The weather was perfect and the sound of the nearby river lulled me to sleep as it got dark. The mosquitoes were bad in camp but thankfully I packed repellent. Some previous campers had made makeshift furniture out of the remains of the shelter. Way cool. There was also evidence of people using the shelter as firewood. Way uncool. Please don't burn historic artifacts. Would you use the old houses of Monte Cristo or the Pilchuck lookout as firewood? I think not!
I packed up the next morning and headed back to the car. On the way I was attacked by a mama grouse who I assume had chicks or a nest nearby (didn't see them). Yep, vicious attack chickens is what you have to look forward to on the good ol' North Fork Sauk Trail! But seriously though, if that happens to you, be very careful where you step because the chicks are camouflaged and difficult to see. They freeze in place and press to the ground to hide from predators, but that makes them easy to accidentally step on.
This is a great hike that mostly serves as a gateway to the alpine wonderland of Glacier Peak, but is still a great destination in its own right. The forest and its huge trees are simply awe-inspiring!
"The hobbits felt encouraged, and looked up hopefully at the broadening daylight in the sky. At the far side of the glade there was a break in the wall of trees, and a clear path beyond it. They could see it running on into the wood, wide in places and open above, though every now and again the trees drew in and overshadowed it with their dark boughs."
J.R.R. Tolkien "The Fellowship of the Ring"
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