I had this Friday off and decided to take my 12 year old to one of these Mountain Loop Highway classics (scrambles).
Parking & Road: A couple of sections with big potholes on forest rd 4065 but they were not too bad. Last year, I drove a Camry 1993 to Hidden Lake Lookout TH and made it, so I would have no problem to drive a sedan to this TH, although a high clearance vehicle would be better.
We started at 9:30 AM and it was a late start for me but we got the closest parking spot to the trailhead. Parking lot was surprisingly not busy at all.
Trail: We mostly had the trail to ourselves. We encountered only 4 small group of hikers on the way up (but a lot more hikers and backpackers on the way down).
The hike started in a shaded forest but it was short. Views opened up after we crossed the South Fork Stillaguamish River. I had to filter water there as I forgot to fill my water bladder. I also refilled more water at Vesper Creek. Easy rock hopping to cross both creek and river/stream.
Lots of ripe huckleberries just before the first boulder section at around 3400 ft. We ate a few on the way up.
It was breezy and moody and it was such a good day to go up Headlee Pass so I did not find it difficult. Going down the last section of the pass was a bit difficult with loose rocks and we did not have poles with us.
Routefinding was not too bad. It's a bit tricky on the boulder section before Headlee Pass but like another reviewer said, there was an arrow marked on a big rock. Other than that I was able to see where the the trail was without looking at my GPS.
The scramble to the peak was my favorite part. My 12 year old was a bit intimidated on the way down but eventually got the hang of it. There were cairns as a guide but we picked our own path of least resistance.
Overall, it's a great scramble but It's still tough for my 12 year old. I could see that he was struggling in some sections and it's probably even tougher for younger kids.
We recorded 7.81 mi round trip with a total time of 7:51.
Comments
Great photos!
Posted by:
Maddy on Aug 12, 2023 07:14 AM
Thank you 😊
Posted by:
rbs13 on Aug 12, 2023 06:02 PM