Hannegan Pass and Peak, Copper Ridge Loop, Whatcom Pass & Brush Creek to Tapto Lakes — Thursday, Jul. 15, 2021

Spectacular 4-night backpacking trip on the Copper Ridge Loop plus Whatcom Pass and Tapto Lakes. What an incredible place!
We hiked the Copper Ridge loop clockwise, staying at Silesia Camp on night one. There are a few snowfields along the trail up to Hannegan Pass and on the ridge, but they are melting fast and easy to get across or around. We were glad to have trekking poles, but ice axes and microspikes felt unnecessary. Silesia has two lovely sites on the ridge, with a food storage container and a composting toilet. It's worth waking up early to catch alpenglow on Mt Shuksan and Baker! We found a small puddle of snowmelt close to camp to boil for our dinner, but otherwise the closest water source is down at Egg Lake. The lake is beautiful and the sites down there all looked melted out, too.

On day 2 we continued the loop to Indian Creek Camp. Our map showed Copper Lake as the last water source until the switchbacks down to the Chilliwack, but there were actually several streams right on the trail just north of Copper Lake, so you don’t have to go down to the lake for water (but it’s pretty). We talked with two different groups who had camped at Copper Lake and said they saw a black bear. Be prepared for some light route-finding over and around blowdown, especially on the switchbacks down to the Chilliwack. Others have complained about the brush on the trail, but we didn’t find it to be that extensive or bothersome; the majority of the valley part of the loop is pleasant forest-walking with lots of impressive cedar and fir trees to admire. Just wear long pants, and you’ll be fine on the brushy parts. Plus we saw tons of thimbleberry just days away from being ripe for some hungry hikers or bears to enjoy! The Chilliwack River ford is very manageable right now. There are two braids of the river to cross. One is only about ankle-deep; the water on the other section is up to about mid-thigh and feels great on tired muscles. Follow the pink tape on trees to find the route.

We made our way to Whatcom Pass on day 3. Graybeal Camp has a nice spot to fill up water on your way up. The views get progressively more exciting as Easy Ridge, Whatcom Peak, and Mt. Challenger emerge over the course of the climb, and even more peaks are visible from the pass. Definitely worth the climb! Follow the user trail to the south to get a little higher up for a better look at Challenger (unless you’re headed to Tapto Lakes like we were; the route to the lakes has even better views). We stayed at Tapto Lakes this night. The user trail to the lakes starts to the left (north) of the USGS marker at Whatcom Pass. The trail is easy to follow all the way to the lakes, but be aware that it’s fairly steep and involves some scrambling, a strenuous end to an already-challenging day. Tapto Lakes is an amazing place. It’s hard to describe how incredible it is to camp among the pristine lakes with views of Challenger and Whatcom. Next time, we want to stay for two or more nights to have time to relax and explore. If you get permits to stay here, please listen to the ranger’s instructions about how to camp with minimal impact so we can all continue to enjoy it.

On day 4 we reluctantly packed up our tent and hiked back down to finish the south leg of the Chilliwack. The cable car was surprisingly delightful and in good working order. We camped at Hannegan Pass. There are plenty of nice-looking sites up at the pass if you wander towards Ruth Mountain, or if you’d prefer to camp near a water source and a latrine, you can hike 0.5 miles down to Hannegan Camp. We hiked the last 4.5 miles out on day 5, and we noticed so many more wildflowers blooming than on our first day out. This trail will continue to get more colorful and tasty (with berries) in the next couple of weeks, and the snow should be almost all gone soon, too.

Bugs were annoying at times. There were biting flies on the trail to Hannegan Pass, and they seemed especially bad at Boundary Camp when we stopped there for water at around 6pm. We saw some campers at Boundary wearing mosquito head nets which seems like a good idea if you stay there. Mosquitoes were nasty around sundown at Tapto Lakes, too. Don't let that discourage you from doing this trip, though! We didn't have any trouble with bugs at our other campsites, and the biting flies basically disappeared up on the ridge. Bug bites are a small price to pay for an unforgettable trip.