Enchanted Valley via East Fork Quinault River, O'Neil Pass, Upper Duckabush, North Fork Skokomish River, Six Ridge & Graves Creek — Friday, Jul. 29, 2022

Overview:  It was a loop hike starting at the Graves Creek TH going through Enchanted Valley, up over O'Neil Pass, down through the Upper Duckabush, over First Divde, down the North Fork Skokomish, over Six Ridge, and down Graves Creek to the TH and my car.  

This report will go into more details as I move through each of those sections as the earlier sections tend to be more traveled and more reported on.  I will include comments in each on:  Trail; Water (availability), Mud, Brush, Blowdowns, and Bugs.  For Brush, I will use the following scale as I find "it is very brushy" very subjective when talking to people:

• 0 = clear, may as well be walking down a sidewalk
• 1 = some brush and sometimes it touches my legs but the path is clear
• 2 = yes the brush is reaching over the trail but I can still see there is a trail, I can see my steps just fine even if I need to push some brush out of the way.
• 3 = i can't see my feet.  I need to actively bush the brush out of the way to see what I am about step on (rock, root, a downstep, etc.).  

Feel free to comment and/or ask questions if more details are desired.

Enchanted Valley:   This hike was pretty uneventful as i've been up this way before.  The biggest factor was just the heat.

• Trail:  good condition, no complaints
• Water:  good availability
• Mud:  minimal
• Brush: 0
• Blowdowns:  minimal if any
• Bugs:  minimal

Not much to say about Enchanted Valley.  It is a gorgeous valley to visit and I recommend the hike.  I'm just not going to spend much time on this one as this is well written about by many others so I can't really add much.

O'Neil Pass:  I got up early to tackle this because of the heat.  I did a 5:30am departure because I wanted to get up and far along as possible before the heat of day kicked in.

• Trail:  good condition, no complaints
• Water:  good availability all along the route
• Mud:  minimal
• Brush: 1 overall.  maybe a small section with 2
• Blowdowns:  minimal 
• Bugs:  minimal

O'Neil pass trail has some really nice views over the Enchanted Valley, Anderson Peak, Anderson Glacier, and is worth doing in my opinion.  A lot of people talk up Marmot Lake.  It is a nice area and I was originally going to camp there but due to my early start I arrived around 11am or noon and didn't want to hang out in the sun/heat all afternoon. Given the unknowns around Six Ridge (I didn't know how good/or bad it would be) and the heat, I wanted to get a few more miles while I still had the afternoon so I decided to proceed to Upper Duckabush so I would be in the shade.  I would recommend Marmot Lake - and Heart Lake and LaCrosse Lake - I just had different goal and timeframe.

Upper Duckabush:  This trail is not actively maintained it seems.  This is where blowdowns, brush, and general trail conditions go downhill some.

• Trail:  meh.  some creek bed walking
• Water:  Can't remember, I refilled up at Marmot Lake so I didn't need any.
• Mud:  moderate overall (on the low-end)
• Brush: 1-2 overall.  
• Blowdowns:  5+ (maybe 10+)
• Bugs:  minimal

I found the Upper Duckabush trail from Marmot Lake to the Upper Duckabush Camp not well maintained.  When compared to some "primitive" trails, this could potentially qualify.  it was easy to follow overall though and it is really just sections of brushy, creek bed walking/mud, and blowdowns.

The Upper Duckabush Camp I found very nice.  There is a nice swimming hole where you cross into camp and the the camp itself has some really nice flat spots.  i don't know how much use it gets but I don't think much.  There was one other person there the night I stayed and that is only because they didn't want to continue up to Marmot Lake because the heat made it a long day for them coming from Nine Stream.  I would recommend the Upper Duckabush Camp and was happy I pushed through to it.  The bugs were not bad at night either.

First Divide:  This section was intended to be from Upper Duckabush Camp to Camp Pleasant (but I pushed on to Six Ridge).   Another early 5:15am start to beat the heat.

• Trail:  between meh and good
• Water:  Good. Home Sweet Home, Two Bear, Nine Stream, Camp Pleasant
• Mud:  moderate overall (on the low end)
• Brush: 1 overall.  
• Blowdowns:  10+, majority on the Duckabush side, some on the Skokomish side.  None too nasty imo
• Bugs:  became annoying as I approached Home Sweet Home and over First Divide

Overall, the conditions were good.  The Skokomish side of First Divide is in better condition than the Duckabush side.  Less blowdowns, less brush, etc.  None of the blowdowns were that bad.  Generally speaking you can make some pretty good time on the Skokomish side.  There is a river ford at Nine Stream.  I do want to give a shout out to a couple very nice ladies who picked up my water filter and delivered it to me at Camp Pleasant, right when I figured out I had left it there.  THANK YOU so much!

Six Ridge (east to west):  Skokomish to Belview.  This was a big unknown for me minus knowing from BeccaW that work was done on the approach up from the Skokomish side. 

• Trail:  good
• Water:  Pack water from the creek ford at the start all the way to Belview (or 0.2 miles shy).  i took 3L because of the heat
• Mud:  Yes - near Belview, elsewhere none
• Brush: 1-2.  2 from ~2500ft-3500ft.  
• Blowdowns:  3+/- from where the trail work stopped around 3500ft (if I recall correctly).  One was a little tricky.
• Bugs:  minimal on the trail - horrible at Belview 

First off, a big thank you to BeccaW and crew on their work on Six Ridge.  It was really good and helpful.  there was work done on the trail itself but the it looks like the bulk was on dealing with blowndowns.  This was a big help for a couple reasons. a) it made the climb that much easier not having to cross over them, b) it helped mark the path since you could see the cuts and knew you had to go through them.  The hardest part of this part of Six Ridge was the heat.  Luckily, given the E-W nature of the ridge, and the fact the trail up seems to be predominately on the north side, I had plenty of shade from the sun until the section that is at ~4400 ft and you are on the south side of the ridge. 

The big worry coming into this was the talk of Six Ridge being brushy and trail finding:  Honestly it wasn't that bad and the brush was huckleberry (unfortunately the berries were ready).  Only maybe once or twice did they cause a pause of whether or not I was on the right path and a quick check of the GPS indicated I was and that was quickly confirmed by seeing the trail.  Only one other time did the path really come into question that required a little looking around and that was due to a messy blowdown above there the trail crew had finished up.

While on the ridge itself you do cross over and back a few time from the north side to the south side.  This includes some down and ups but nothing bad.  The only part I think folks may find a be more nerve racking would be around 4400ft while on the south side.  you do have a climb on a fairly steep side and there are parts of the trail that just aren't as wide as the used to be.  I found it fine, but could see where folks may get a little nervous.

From there you hit the middle of the upper ridge and it is quite smooth sailing (not that it was really all that bad before).  I had to cross a couple of small snow patches/fields but you are in the middle so there is no danger.  I did it with just hiking poles and no microspikes or anything.  (for me, these couldn't have come at a better time as due to the heat and sun exposure I used some of the snow to cool me off).  From there it is a nice stroll to the junction of Belview trail and the Mount Olson Way Trail.  it is very clearly marked which way to go.

The trail to Belview is in good condition and easy to follow.  The only tricky part is as you approach Belview (after the creek that is 0.2 miles from the site) somewhere the trail must actually turn left and down hill to avoid the marshy area you run into if you keep following the trail straight.  I ended up following the trail into the marshy area and connecting up with the trail at the south end.  I had full intention of then backtracking the trail to see where it diverted but didn't - sorry.

Belview camp is nice but was very buggy.  It is understandable given the marshy nature of the area.

The trip up to Belview took me longer than it should but that was much more due to my frequent stops in the shade to hydrate and lower my heart rate due to the heat than trail finding or the trail condition.

When leaving Belview the next morning the actual trail follows between the tent sites and the marshy area even though there is a trail that looks better used and cuts up in between the tent sites into the woods.  If you take this latter way to avoid the marshy area, just make sure to head to the right (uphill) to connect back up with the actual trail. Summary from Belview to Sundown Lake

• Trail:  good
• Water:  Plenty available along the way
• Mud:  Yes, shortly after Belview and in some of the high alpine meadows
• Brush: 1-2
• Blowdowns:  none I'm quite sure
• Bugs:  annoyance but not as bad as Belview.  Just don't stop too long in one place

The trail is in good condition overall and trail following is fairly straight forward with a few exceptions.  These are all where the trail hits marshy areas.  Shortly after leaving Belview (and after regaining the main trail out of camp) you will hit another marshy area.  as you enter it you will end up climbing uphill again.  After a small climb the trail becomes obvious and you continue the westward trek.  There may be one or two of these smaller marshy areas you have to cross shortly later but the route finding was still ok.  The only other times route finding is an "issue" was in McGravey Lakes - but this is no different from any other high alpine meadow route finding - i.e. the trail seemingly disappears, you stop, look around, explore a couple forward options and you find the trail.  From there, up and over Six Ridge Pass and down to Sundown Lake it is straight forward.

I really enjoyed McGravey Lakes.  I found that area quite beautiful with nice views.

Overall Six Ridge: 

• The brush isn't as bad as people make it out to be.  It was no worse than the Upper Duckabush imo (and that is not a "primitive" trail).  
• Trail finding is overall minimal.  I had my GPS and CalTopo.  Did I reference them?  Yes but 95% of the time just to verify I was on the right trail because everything else I read said there are a bunch of game trails and it is easy to get on the wrong one.  I didn't find that to be the case at all.  5% of the time, I need it to do a slight course correction or simplify a quick search.  I'm glad I had the GPS with me (honestly my green trails map wouldn't have helped much because of the granularity needed - it was helpful for the big picture route) because it just provided a level of assurance and verification.
• The only real complaints I would have are:  mud (primarily in / out of Belview area), bugs (from Belview on through Sundown Lake), and the heat (which died down my last day from Belview to Graves Creek TH.

Now my for what you really need to know - Graves Creek

Graves Creek:  From Sundown Lake to the TH.  I left Belview at 6am and made the traverse to Sundown Lake (~5 miles) by 9am.  As mentioned above, besides shortly after leaving Belview, the traverse is fairly easy to follow and quite beautiful all the way to Sundown Lake.  Once leaving Sundown Lake it is an easy stroll to the junction of Graves Creek trail and Sundown Pass/South Fork Skokomish trail.  All is well until about 3500ft and this is where following picks up (note this does not apply from approx. 2 miles from the TH to the TH where recent work has been done):

• Trail:  horrible
• Water:  Available along the way
• Mud:  Yes, throughout
• Brush: 3
• Blowdowns:  I lost count after 15
• Bugs:  annoying

Details:

• Trail:  a lot of creek bed walking - stones, roots
• Mud: whole sections of just mud walking, sections meaning multiple meters at a time
• Brush:  Let's see.  Huckleberry-check, ferns-check, nettles-check, devil's club-check, thick and over the trail - check.
• Blowdowns - it has the whole variety.  the climb over kind, the climb under kind, the hike around kind.
• All of the above at once?  Yep. there was that as well.

Graves Creek has had some recent work done from the TH to approximately 2 miles in (the 2nd major gully you'd have to cross if coming from GC TH).   I was hoping it would've been clear sailing from Success Creak Camp (non-existent) to the TH but that wasn't the case.  But let me back up.

Once you get on the Graves Creek primitive trail shortly after Sundown Lake you enter the above conditions if you weren't walking in a creek bed, you were walking through mud, or walking through brush where you couldn't see your feet, or a combination of all.  Then you would hit a large blow down.  This continued for the ~6 miles.  I actually did more "route finding" on this section than I did on Six Ridge.  It just wasn't fun - I don't know how else to describe it. 

I was hoping once I forded the creek ~3.2 miles from the trailhead (at Success Creek) it would just get easier but it didn't until I cross a dry gully about 3/4-1 mile along.  In order to safely get down into the gully I dropped my poles in and then grabbed the trunk of a maple growing out the side and slowly dropped in.  The down trail side was easier to climb up and out of.   I understand why the trail crew stopped where it did.  The gully crossing needs work before they can continue up the trail.

Shortly later I started to see some of the very good trail work a crew had done earlier this year.  I do want to emphasize a big thank you to that crew.  When you see some of the blowdowns they cut through it does leave you wondering how a hiker would get past it - i'm talking about a 5ft+ (?) Dougfir.  Not only did that crew clear large trees but worked the trails itself.  The brush wasn't as bad and they built water ways to prevent mud and trail erosion.  Very good work - I just wish it came sooner.

Overall:  this has been a trip on my list for a while because the Staircase area is the last part of the park I haven't spent any time in, I like loop hikes and I really think a this loop could be a great one (starting either at Graves Creek or Staircase and going either way).  Alas, I think that dream may need to wait.  

My biggest surprises were:

1. Six Ridge wasn't as bad I think it is made out to be.  The trail condition overall is quite good (esp with the recent work on the Skokomish side - thanks again BeccaW and crew), the bushiness isn't really that bad, and the route finding minimal if that.  it is actually pretty well maintained.  I'm not sure the "primitive" label is appropriate when compared to Graves Creek (which is primitive imo) and Upper Duckabush (which isn't labeled as such but is probably bushier than Six Ridge imo)
2. Upper Duckabush was worse that I was expecting.  Honestly, I didn't read up on it before going so I just went in assuming it wasn't that bad.  While no where near what Graves Creek is, I personally think it was worse than Six Ridge.
3. Graves Creek.  Here again, I didn't do enough reading on this section before going.  In fact while hiking part of it I starting thinking that a year or two ago I read on this and remember saying it was bad / impassable. It that recollection is true - I could see it.  Some of the blowdowns where were cleared late in my hike (w/in 2 miles of the GC TH) could be blockers.  Again thank you to the crew that did that work.  While the rest of the trail isn't impassable - I can't honestly describe it as fun.  I did think to myself that if I had started this loop going counter-clockwise and up Graves Creek first going to Sundown Lake, in the heat, I'm not sure I would've made it and just turned around.  I just don't know if it would've been worth it.

Would I do this trip again?  I don't think so.  But that isn't because it was all bad.  Most sections are quite nice and I highly recommend them - it is really just because of Graves Creek.  I actually would recommend Six Ridge, I just don't know how to exit (assuming you enter on North Fork Skokomish) as I hear the South Fork Skokomish is a bit of a mess and Graves Creek is.  

For loop hikes in OLYM, I would recommend the Grand Loop and the Seven Lakes Basin / High Divide.  I do hope that work can continue up on Graves Creek.  If that is ever done, this wouldn't be a bad loop hike.