Lake Ann — Friday, Jul. 4, 2014

Snoqualmie Region > Salmon La Sac/Teanaway

Started out at Esmeralda Basin trail head on the morning of the 4th intending to backpack the Ingalls Peak Loop over two nights and three days. No issues getting to the unnamed pass looking over Lake Ann. Trail in good condition with mderate traffic. Getting down to Lake Ann a bit more difficult as trail is mostly obscured by snow, so glissaded most of it. Heading towards Van Epps Pass from Lake Ann it looked like I might have been the first to make the attempt this year. Many blow downs and quite a lot of snow, but very peaceful and full of wild fowers. Trail moderately difficult to find in a few places but should be easy once snow is gone. Van Epps Pass full of mosquitoes and a bit of 4x4 trash strewn about, so decided to head down the rest of the County Line Trail and link up with Van Epps. This is where it got interesting. The mining road leading to Van Epps trail was alternately buried in deep snow or strewn about with massive trees uprooted by avalanches. At the bottom of the road, I found an incomprehensible system of dead-end 4x4 trails and foot paths, all leading into snow-bound oblivion. I could not find the Van Epps trail head after an hour of hard searching; I fear it may have been obliterated over the winter. Camped at Van Epps and headed back out the way I came next morning. Maybe try the loop again in August.