Very happy to report that the Phelps part of the road has been completely fixed now!! The rest is still rough but the nasty bit after the split to Phelps is completely gone. A couple trees down but nothing bad up to the basin. Nice rolling terrain with mushroom and shade for most of it. The climb to Larch Knob was a totally different trail feel, rough and rugged with scree, loose rock, and a few big steps. Nothing crazy but quite a climb. Larches at the top were incredible! Not nearly as many as Carne but stunning and the view was unbeatable!
Road/parking: The road is not great but not too bad, just very very long. There are a couple narrow spots where it is hard to pass and a couple more this time of year due to roadside parking. The link below shows highlights of the drive but note that the Phelps Road section has been fixed and is in great shape at the moment.
There is tons of roadside parking space at the TH but you may have to walk a bit. There is nowhere to turn around at the end so you may want to turn and park where you can. Maneuvering and two way traffic was very rough. There is no toilet the the TH and the trail register book was full. Views right from the TH are stunning!
Trail: Parking is packed at the TH due to sharing with Carne but very few people were on the Phelps Creek trail. The trail to the basin was a nice compact dirt tread with very few rocks and roots, enough so that I became complacent and managed to find a few with my feet since I wasn't looking >_< There are a couple tiny water crossings that are very low at the moment. We had to duck under one tree, which wasn't hard but might be with a full pack. All the other trees down were step over, around, or an easy swing a leg over type. Not a ton to see, but a pleasant forest with shade, a stream, and lots of mushrooms.
Walking into the basin the trees stopped abruptly and the view was breathtaking! Jagged peaks of every shape and color, many crowded with golden larches. Everything in the meadow was crispy but I imagine this place in bloom is quite a sight. There were a few side trails off to campsites but we didn't check them out and instead continued on to the far end of the valley. Those larches almost straight ahead may really look up there but that is it!
There was a muddy spot and a large stream crossing but both were low and no issue this week then the trail dips back into the trees and near the junction with Phelps Basin and Larch Knob/Spider Gap there was at least one large group campsite with minimal views.
The trail up to was steep with some loose rock and scree but someone recently did some pruning, which was much appreciated. We had a little smoke in the air which made the climbing a little more taxing and made the valley a touch hazy, but still stunning. There was one very big rock step that was a bit tricky to get up, at least 3 ft high. Some areas are narrow and people with a fear of heights might want to pass on this part.
At the top there is plenty of room to spread out and explore. There are several very nice campsites and a few more with views but a bit of a slope. The toilet box was quite a climb to get to but it had quite a view! The water was low, but there was still a little up there too.
Stats: 14.9 miles, 2860 ft elevation gain/loss, 5.45 hours moving, 6.5 hours total.We made the top in just over 3 hours. We are moderate/fast hikers who hike weekly and were really moving on the flat bit of this one.
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