Naches Peak Loop — Thursday, Sep. 30, 2004

Mount Rainier Area > SE - Cayuse Pass/Stevens Canyon

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2004 – NACHES PEAK LOOP / PCT CHINOOK PASS SOUTH With the weather still holding strong with bright clear sunny sky in the mountains I had to get another chance for fall photography up high. Needing to be home no later than 3:00PM I had to do something close or something short. I opted for the wonderful loop trail around Naches Peak just south of Chinook Pass. The arrival of sunrise came with the first stomping steps I took on the PCT heading south from Chinook Pass. Frozen steps too---the mud was frozen solid in the below freezing temperatures! Seems just before the later easterly offshore winds kicked up I was seeing 29 degrees out at 6:30AM. No bugs! The first two hours of sunlight were so beautiful---even the first four hours were as many areas on slopes here and there had such a stunning angle of light and fall color! It took me two hours to hike to the first tarn along the PCT…so that’s maybe ¾ mile? In all, after hiking a pretty hard 16 mile hike in 10 hours of photography on Tuesday…well this hard day saw me doing 3+ miles…in five hours! A great photographer’s pace if I can say so myself! Five hours and three miles later I returned past Tipsoo Lake and back to Chinook Pass and the trailhead. Nearly 330 images, 1.2GB of CF card space used. And I was heading home shortly before noon…home by 1:40pm with time to spare. Clarks Nutcrackers were enjoying the early morning light. A mother bear and small cub were seen down far below me in the Pleasant Valley just before sunrise. I treasured around two minutes of viewing them through binoculars and then they slowly worked their way into the woods along the river. Otherwise it was simply a very peaceful and quiet morning…only three guys passed me just after I started, then I saw no one all the rest of the time on this busy trail. Not even by Tispoo Lake on Hwy 410. Void of people but for me. Alan L. Bauer 10/01