Cascade Pass, Cascade Pass and Sahale Arm, Upper Stehekin Valley Road Trail, Goode Ridge, Rainbow Creek Trail, Rainbow Loop, Rainbow Lake, North Fork Bridge Creek & Horseshoe Basin (Stehekin) — Saturday, Aug. 19, 2017

Our week in Stehekin was a week hiking in paradise. Back in spring our party of two scored reservations for Pelton and Sahale in the new lottery system, but for months we weren’t sure how the rest of this 90-mile plan would shake out. Arrived at the ranger station around 10 a.m. on Saturday, to find all of our first choices were still available. That meant our mileage was very lopsided — an average of 3.5 miles in the first two days, and an average of 13.5 miles per day the rest of the way — but it was all according to plan.

We wouldn’t change a thing.

Saturday, Aug. 19, to Pelton Basin, 4.2 miles. Switchbacks up to Cascade Pass are about as gentle as switchbacks can be, to the point that you feel you could run up the mountainside. Once it opens up, there are classic views of Johannesberg, the Triplets, Mix-Up, Magic, Pelton, etc. Camped at a secluded site and fell asleep really early, thanks to the dark valley.

Sunday, Aug. 20, to Sahale Glacier Camp, ~ 3 miles. Another short day, but all uphill to the glacier, hauling a week’s supply of food in our bear cans. Last push to the camp is especially steep but not too loose or confusing. And the payoff is huge. Layer after layer of mountains, and we played name-the-peak all evening. We found many gorgeous sites with rock wall turrets to shelter from the wind. There was plenty of running water. We were tempted to climb the last 1,000 feet or so to the top, but had no ropes or gear for glacier travel whatsoever. Instead we watched a few others summit, from a site with the clearest view into Doubtful Lake, and one of the best views anywhere on earth, to the south. A family of goats made the rounds to each camp at sunset. Wind picked up later, but not too bad.

Monday, Aug. 21, to Park Creek, 12.0 miles. Awoke to a still clear morning, the day of the solar eclipse. Once we hit Sahale arm around 9:30 a.m. it felt like twilight, and it got cold, but with the naked eye we couldn’t tell for sure. Bumped into a couple with French accents, who offered to let us use their eclipse glasses. Saw the banana-shaped sun. Merci. Then we made our way down into the Stehekin valley, where we watched the river grow from a trickle to a roaring giant. The mileage grind began in the valley. Over the next 24 hours we only saw one other party of hikers. The heat picked up at Glacier Basin. So did the flies. From Cottonwood east, bugs were awful, but thankfully it’s a ridiculously flat trail. We made great time to Park Creek, banging out those 4.5 miles of flies in 80 minutes.

Tuesday, Aug. 22, to Goode Ridge and High Bridge, 16.9 miles. We’d hemmed and hawed about whether to hike Goode Ridge, but we got an early start and decided to go for it. The trail up to the ridge has the same incline all the way, where you feel like you’re gaining elevation, but not killing yourself in the process. Trail is brushy till it opens up to knockout views of the river valley, McGregor, Dome, the Ptarmigan Traverse route, etc. We saw remnants of the old fire lookout, and what an incredible place that must have been. It’s a stunning 360-degree panorama, with 9,000-foot-tall Goode stealing the show. Needless to say, it was absolutely worth an extra 10 miles. But be warned, there’s no water the whole way. We’d packed almost 5 liters, and ran out well before hitting the bottom. Cooled our heels in aquamarine Bridge Creek, before setting off for a hot, sweaty home stretch to High Bridge. We’d never been so happy or surprised to see a garbage can.

Wednesday, Aug. 23, to Stehekin and Harlequin Camp, ~ 12 miles. We decided against spending money on a shuttle, and got to study the river over the next 7 miles to Harlequin Bridge — a calm, beautiful place aside from the constant dump trucks beeping in the distance. Quickly we realized we were the only people without bikes or a shuttle. Took a bath in the cold river. Set up camp, then strolled down to the bakery for a huge cinnamon roll, a lemon tart and the best Danish we’ll ever have in our lives. Spent at least $40 on baked goods, all gone within the next day. No regrets. Stood on the shore of Lake Chelan, then headed back to idyllic Buckner Orchard. Not ripe yet, a member of the Buckner family tree told us, but they might be by the time this gets posted. We were free to poke around the old buildings. Checked out the many artifacts in the Old Stehekin School, too.

Thursday, Aug. 24, to Rainbow Lake, 9.9 miles. Took the eastern trailhead of the Rainbow Loop toward Rainbow Creek, but didn’t see several of the camps listed on our Green Trails or Nat Geo maps. The fire of a few years ago has left its marks, but no serious obstacles remain. Through Rainbow Meadows, we tried to figure the best route to climb Bowan and a few other peaks around here, for a return trip. After finishing the long slog to Rainbow Lake, we saw a little trail going up past the latrine. Climbed over a few false summits, but eventually found ourselves at a wide-open pinnacle with a view of most of Lake Chelan, and infinite peaks. I’d highly recommend giving it a shot, if you’re already here. Took us under an hour going up, a half-hour going down, and I did it with a bulky camera around my neck. Not technical.

Friday, Aug. 25, to Bridge Creek, 14.1 miles. Another long day. The ford at South Fork Camp wasn’t expected, and it was cold and slick, but it wasn’t too tough. Bridge Creek has been bushwhacked, so the trail feels wide open. Looks like there’s a brand new bridge up at Maple Creek, but it’s running low enough now that you could hop over rocks. You can instantly tell the Pacific Crest hikers from a distance by their speed and dirty backpacks. Talked for a minute with one from Minnesota, who was finishing up his trek after getting smoked by wildfires near Glacier Peak a couple years ago. “You guys have it made up here, I hope you know that.” We know, man. We know.

Saturday, Aug. 26, to Cascade Pass, 16.2 miles. Retraced our route out, from Bridge Creek to Cascade Pass. One guy we came across at Cottonwood had packed too many energy bars, and tried to donate some to us. Thanks, but no thanks! We were enjoying light packs for once. Perfect clear summer day. Strange to see so many people on the trail again as we inched closer to civilization. We’d started at dawn, and touched the car at 1 p.m.