Little Giant Pass — Saturday, Sep. 13, 2014

Central Cascades > Stevens Pass - East

A couple years after the 1998 publication of 100 Classic Hikes in Washington with its snazzy color photos inside, I decided to do every hike in the book. It took longer than I originally planned but I completed the list yesterday with #42, Little Giant Pass. There is an asterisk. Early on, because of the overlap between classics, I decided it was OK to combine destinations where it made sense. For instance, the Wonderland Trail goes Moraine Park, so I saw no need to hike it separately. Per the description of hike #64, the PCT, I decided to cherry pick sections rather than do the whole thing, clear cuts and all. At any rate... One of my hiking buddies who had briefly sworn off hiking with me after we went up Kindy Ridge last year, agreed to join me for another hike of formidable repute AND even professed an interest in seeing the Napeequa. The truth is, the trail isn't all that bad. It is quite steep in places, but the steepness is never as sustained as the death-climb middle section of the Kindy Ridge trail. The most demoralizing section is probably the first steeps starting from the place where the switchback-builders dropped their tools and went home. The descent to Little Giant Creek is more like 200 feet than the 400 feet Harvey Manning wrote. There clearly have been numerous reroutes of the trail since the description in 100 Classics (which probably dates back to the 1970's). It turned out to be a great day for hiking, with crisp morning temperatures, ample sunlight, and no biting insects. We hit the trail at 9:30 from a packed parking lot, forded the Chiwawa and stashed our water shoes, and headed up the trail which at first gently ascends an ancient debris flow (I'd guess) to the valley wall. The trail breaks up nicely into segments, so you can monitor your progress: * Half mile gentle ascent to valley wall * Several PCT-grade switchbacks up the wall * The switchbacks stop and the trees change and thin out, for a steep dusty ascent * Traverse, then short steep descent to Little Giant Creek * Cross the creek and ascend in forest * Steep ascent in old burn * Up the schist rib * Mixed ascents and traverses in scrubby forest * To the right in meadows * Back to the left to the pass With bow-hunting season underway and high buck season about to start on Monday, there were plenty of hunters, plus day hikers to the pass, plus a party of four completing a week long trip originating at Trinity. Big kudos to Gwen and the WTA crew for their August improvements beyond the Little Giant Creek crossing! There were plenty of ripe berries among the past-ripe ones, which slowed us down over the last mile. What a view -- especially 100 yards in each direction from the pass. Now, to get to all those hikes not in the book that I want to do...