Dates backpacked: 9/1/18-9/3/18
Miles Hiked: 34+ miles
Campsites we stayed at: US Cabin Camp and Copper Lake
Permits: I submitted for the North Cascades Lottery System in spring and was given these permit slots ahead of time so I did not have to wait at the ranger station 24 hours prior. I just picked up and went. ($20 lottery submission)
Parking: the road to the trailhead washed out a few hundred feet. So the main area parking is not accessible, it is blocked off; you just have to park a little further down the road. The toilet and shelter are still there though.
Day 1: Hannegan Trailhead to US Cabin Camp
10.1 miles, 1900 ft gain, 2400 ft loss
We left trailhead around 9:30 AM, took an hour lunch at Hannegan Pass, and got into US Cabin Camp around 4:10 PM. This was our easiest of the 3 days. We were all feeling good this day, nothing really memorable to this day. You start noticing a lot of ripe blueberries and huckleberries pretty early on, on trail though! There are 4 camps at US Cabin. We chose the one on the left, furthest away from trail and thought it was the best site. It was closest to the river and secluded. You hang your food at this campsite, we used an Ursack.
Day 2: US Cabin Camp to Copper Lake
12.8 miles, 3000+ ft gain, 700 ft loss
Day 2 was our hardest day. We left camp around 8:00 AM and got to Copper Lake around 7:30 PM with an hour lunch break taken at the river ford. The trail is easy going from US Cabin until a little bit past Indian Creek. Then it is a straight uphill death march, we hiked for 6 hours going straight up.
The cable car crossing is only 20 minutes past US Cabin Camp and it was really fun. The suspension bridge was also fun to cross. We had lunch on the rock bank in the middle of the river ford. We followed the pink flags and did not have any trouble finding the trail on the other side. Parts of this section of the trail is very overgrown.
We got to Copper Lake later than expected, ate dinner, and went to bed. There is a bear vault here that you can store your food in. I also liked the compost toilet here too, it’s not just a wooden box and was considerably clean. You are only supposed to poop in it, they don’t want liquid waste in it.
Day 3: Copper Lake to Hannegan Trailhead
11.4 miles, 1000+ ft gain
We left Copper lake around 7:00 AM this day, took a 40 minute break at the Lookout, and got back to our car around 4:15 PM. This day just had a lot of uphill and downhill. Lots of ripe berries on trail. The last few miles out just drag. All our feet hurt by then, and we were all very happy to see the parking lot.
Overall, I loved this trail and the beautiful scenery that comes with it. If we had more time, I would have rather done this trip in 3 nights/4 days and taken our time. 2 nights/3 days is doable, but there were times when it felt like a death march lol.
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