West Fork Foss River and Lakes — Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015

Central Cascades > Stevens Pass - West

This is a truly beautiful hike to some gorgeous lakes in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. The trail was mostly empty for us the whole way up to Little Heart Lake (our turnaround point) except for one or two other small hiking parties. We saw more people on the way down, but had plenty of solitude. As others mentioned, there is a very large cedar tree down across the trail at about the 2 mile mark. It's extensive, but it is manageable (see pic). You just have to climb under/over and use some ingenuity. We were able to get around it rather quickly. The hike is steep and rocky, so this isn't what I would call an easy hike, and with our sidetrip up to Malachite Lake (a very steep .1 mile but totally worth it!!) the round trip mileage of our hike to Little Heart and back ended up being closer to 12 miles. It took 7 hours and we usually average about 2 miles per hour when hiking. I think the mileage listed in the trip report (and on the trailhead sign) is misleading. This felt like it took a lot longer and my friend's mileage tracker bracelet had us at 12 - this included a few bathroom breaks in the woods, a little wandering but not much. I loved the gorgeous, pristine lakes and the lovely views, especially on the way back down when the clouds cleared away and we could see down into a gorgeous steep valley. The fall foliage, mushrooms, and occasional giant old growth trees combined with the low foot traffic made this one of my favorite hikes. It was almost a mystical experience and I really want to go back and spend a night or two exploring and taking in the lakes without feeling pressed for time. The trail itself is also in very good condition except for that one blowdown. It's obviously seen a lot of care and effort by the trail crews, much appreciated! Definitely do this hike!