Absolutely gorgeous backpacking weekend in the Glacier Peak Wilderness! Road to trailhead was rough in places but passable ending in a full parking lot on a Friday night. Starting at 9pm we had a couple miles of night hiking to the North Sauk River trail/PCT turnoff sites. I have never seen so many large toads! Our dog did not like them...
Second day we got an early start walking ~3 miles before having a nice breakfast at Mackinwa shelter camps. The shelter is destroyed but there were plenty of sites a new pit toilet cover. On our ascent up to white pass we passed many trail crews who had made huge improvements on the hike-ability of the trail. THANK YOU CREWS! The climb was not as bad as expected with stunning views. It was hot and we should have filled up with water at White pass because the rest of the ridgeline streams were few and far between. We took the high route to Blue Lake which was not great -- definitely pretty narrow and slightly sketchy in places. However, it was passable even with our dog. The camps at blue lake were quite full but we managed to find a spot. The bugs were BAD, so we (and most others I saw) ate dinner in their tents. The privy is also completely full and gross. Upper blue lake definitely seems over-loved.
The last day we got out early and headed for Johnson Mountain which is absolutely beautiful. We had our breakfast at the top which was a huge treat! If you do this trip Johnson is an absolute must do. It was cool to see the the remains of the old fire lookout and of course the 360 degree views including Baker, Rainier, and, of course, Glacier. The rest of the day passed uneventfully although the descent down to North Sauk is definitely tough. Bugs and all, this trip was amazing and would strongly recommend to others. Total trip was ~31 miles with 8500ft of gain.
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