Heather - Maple Pass Loop — Saturday, Sep. 22, 2012

North Cascades > North Cascades Highway - Hwy 20

This hike has been on my “to-do” list for years now and after finally completing it, I have no idea why I waited so long to do so. This hike is gorgeous! We decided to make our way to the trailhead Friday evening with the plan of sleeping in the car and getting an early jump on the trail. We woke up to temps in the mid 40’s which quickly climbed as the sun broke through the mixture of morning fog, broken low clouds and wildfire haze. We went what seems to be the more traditional counter clockwise route, passing up the Lake Ann turnoff and continuing up and around the cirque rim. Aside from a handful of Ptarmigans up top, we didn't have any other wildlife sightings from the trail. The view of the surrounding North Cascades from the top was amazing despite the wildfire haze obscuring the view a bit. The colors are incredible and only going to be getting more intense in the coming weeks. The loop took us about 5 ½ hours with multiple photo breaks and a lunch break up top.