Cutthroat Pass via the Pacific Crest Trail — Friday, Jul. 5, 2024

This was my third time to go backpacking on this trail. Two previous times were in the fall, for the golden larches, and the bugs were not an issue. But they were really bad this time and kept us from lounging outside the tent. There were two other parties that were camping overnight in the established campsite area that appears about 4 miles from the TH the same night. There were some snow patches left, and the recent snow melt was making the campground soil moist. This combined with the sudden warm weather probably made it THE time for all the N Cascade mosquitoes to come swarm hikers. We didn't get to put on the bug lotion until we reached the campsite, so that was our mistake, but my daughter and I have never gotten so many bites before! (Daughter reacted worse than me to the bites & took Benadryl before going to bed. She was fine and slept well.) The nighttime temperature and weather were optimal, however, and I could see stars and Milky Way through the roof of my tent, since the rain fly wasn't needed. The bugs were not gone even early in the morning, not even at the pass when my dog and I did a morning hike. Still, the view of largely snow-covered mountains, wildflowers and lime-green larch trees proved to be the silver lining. I also never encountered this many stream crossings on this trail before, and there was one that was wide and a bit deep, so be prepared to get a little wet (hiking poles were amazing to have). I still love this hike - I just won't come back here this early in the summer again :)