Saddle Lake via Meadow Mountain, Goat Flats & Three Fingers — Sunday, Aug. 29, 2021

ATTENTION: There is maintenance being done on the Three Fingers Lookout from 8/27-9/6, and from 9/10-9/17.  Access to the lookout will be limited during this time.  Please bring your tent or bivy bag since you will not be able to stay in the lookout.  There is good camping at Goat Flats, a couple spots at Tin Can Gap, and a couple spots just below the lookout.

I went up Three Fingers via the Meadow Mountain Trail for an overnight berry and mushroom gathering expedition.  The road leading to the Canyon Creek bridge is rough and potholed but doable even for small cars.  There was a Mazda Miata at the trailhead, so I guess that's proof.  The TH is small, with limited roadside parking for about 10 cars.  The road on the other side of Canyon Creek is washed out, excluding all motor vehicles wider than a dirtbike.  The way things are eroding, I wouldn't be surprised if the whole bridge gets wiped out by next spring.

To get to the Meadow Mountain Trail, hike (or bike) the road for about 2 miles to the TH.  It will be on your right, about 1000ft past Saddle Creek, which is the only significant creek crossing before reaching the trail.  You will also notice flagging tape and two parking pullouts from when peeps could still drive the road.  Heading up the trail, you almost immediately enter the Boulder River Wilderness.  The path climbs gradually for a couple miles before switchbacks bring you steeply up above the 4000ft contour.  Here the trail levels out some and the forest begins to open up.  You pass through pocket meadows and subalpine hemlock-fir forest before cresting Meadow's grassy summit and descending steeply to Saddle Lake.  The lower trail is overgrown and there are many down trees to negotiate, but the route is fairly easy to follow.  This is the case both for the ascent to Meadow's summit and the descent to Saddle Lake.  Most of the blowdowns are easy but a few take some effort and determination to get past.  There is a challenging creek crossing on the lower trail, within the first 2 miles or so.  The trail drops suddenly down a steep, washed-out embankment to a root ball of a big tree that fell across the stream.  You will see where folks have climbed through a gap in the roots to walk across the log bridge.  There are traction grooves cut in the log, but it can still be quite slippery in damp conditions.  Past the log, the tread climbing away from the creek is washed-out and can be sketchy.  The upper trail is in better shape, with regard to obstacles, but it occasionally disappears as it passes through a grassy meadow or navigates around some forest debris.  A few moments of patient observation and exploration usually reveal the continuation of the trail, but bring your map, compass, and GPS gadgetry just in case.  Parts of the trail are extremely muddy even after periods of dry weather.  There is a LOT of animal sign on Meadow (scat, tracks, flattened grass, shredded logs and tree trunks) but they didn't feel like showing themselves.  I discovered some Chicken-of-the-Woods mushrooms along the trail and stuffed them into my food bag.

I made it to shallow Saddle Lake and took a quick side trip over to visit the old Mountaineers shelter.  It survived another winter and still stands proudly, if not terribly inviting with how bug infested it is.  Still, it looked like someone had spent a night or two in it at some point; there was evidence of a campfire and part of the floor had been swept clean to accommodate a bivy or solo tent.  I had lunch in the shelter then proceeded on to Goat Flats, the trail climbing moderately up first through forest, then gradually into meadows.  There is very little water past Saddle Lake, and the lake itself is, well... let's just say all the dead bugs floating in it is a nice touch.  Thankfully there is one stream about 3/4 of the way to the Flats that is clean and flowing.  Stock up here, as the only water past this stream is in shallow tarns and stagnant puddles.  You could also make the short side trip to Columbine Lake, which has decent water when treated.  There are a few more down trees to cross, but far fewer obstacles than Meadow Mountain.  The huckleberries and blueberries along the trail between Columbine Lake and Goat Flats are currently the best in the area; the berries are under-ripe or acidic in other places.  I made sure to spend most of my berry-picking time here.

Once at Goat Flats, the trail passes through the lovely, expansive meadow and climbs up toward Tin Can Gap and the summit of Three Fingers.  I set up camp at the Flats and cooked up some tasty broth using a blend of spices and the mushrooms I gathered with some dehydrated celery, onion, beets and kohlrabi.  I then added couscous which soaked up the broth and turned the meal into a delicious veggi/pastarice thing.  It was awesome.

The next morning I awoke to fog and mist.  I packed up and hiked to Tin Can Gap which was totally socked in.  The wind was blowing and visibility was down to around 10-15ft at times.  I sat at the Gap for a while and watched the battle between the mist and the sun, hoping the sun would win, but it soon became clear that things were at a stalemate.  I had planned on going up to within shouting distance of the lookout (though not inside because of work crews), but with such low visibility and a sketchy trail, I decided not to attempt it.  I hiked back down the trail, stopping to pick more berries along the way and making a quick side trip to Columbine & Noble Lakes.  The turnoff for the lakes is unmarked but easy to see branching off to the east from the main trail.  Columbine is only a couple hundred yards from the main trail.  Noble Lake is reached by bushwhacking a short way SE of Columbine Lake.  Once back at Saddle Lake, I took the Meadow Mountain Trail back to my awaiting car (more fun than walking a road for 9 miles!).  This area is fantastic and I plan on coming back in a month or so to check out the fall colors!

"And seeing the snail which everywhere doth roam,
Carrying his own house still, still is at home,
Follow (for he is easy paced) this snail,
Be thine own palace, or the world's thy jail."

-John Donne