East Fork Foss - Necklace Valley — Tuesday, Jun. 24, 2008

Central Cascades > Stevens Pass - West

Necklace Valley #1062 June 25 2008 We left around 12:30pm on a sunny day, about 70 degrees. At about 3 miles in, we ran into a series of fallen trees that had completely covered the path. At the 5 miles point we camped on the flattest ground we could find. Bug rating on the way in: 2/10 (one bug landing on you every 5 minutes) Dropping the gear at the 5 miles point, we hiked up toward the lakes at about 4pm. Steep climb, ran into snow cover at mile 6, just before the branch-off of the river. The trail disappeared at this point and we wandered up the riverbank until it was too dark to return and make camp. Just as you reach the first of the snow cover (at the top of the steep climb) the trail continues a little more to the right than you'd think. Look for the saw-cut logs as a marker. The trail picks up again for 200 yards, then you reach a point where a lot of wood cutting had been done. Beyond this point, the trail is unnoticeable - but looking at a map we can see that it crosses the river almost immediately. Cold night camped at 5 mile point. Headed out around 9am. Lots of bugs in the late morning. Sunny, but not much sun comes through the trees as you traverse the 5 miles back to the trailhead. Bug rating on the way out: 8/10 (one bug landing on you every 15 seconds) Enjoyable all-around, will go back when snow has melted more. Saw volunteer crews out on the way back working on the small stuff that had fallen between trailhead and mile 3. Thanks to you all.