Lake Valhalla: Significant snow at Valhalla (3-5 feet of compact snow) on approach to lake and surrounding the lake, at the beach area and upper saddle. Post holing was frequent. Only one campsite at Valhalla and one toilet is melted out currently.

Lake Janus: Smaller trees have been cleared along PCT from Union Gap to Lake Janus. Patchy snow on the trail to Janus, half of the campsites (about 4-5) at this lake are melted out while the other half linger under snow. Both toilets at Janus have been dug out and are ready for use. 

Mosquitos were very bad at both lakes and along the trail. Water was abundant along the trail and at the lakes. 

20-mile run along the PCT from Stevens Pass to Janus Lake and back. 5.25 hours total; hit the trail at 7:45 am and got back to the car at 1:00 pm. 

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With a free Monday, and this being the last nice weather day in the foreseeable future, I went for a long run along a stretch of trail I'd never touched before. Started at Stevens Pass and headed north on the PCT. Snow is visible on the hillside, but for now the pass and the parking lots are snow-free. The PCT was a little icy but entirely dry and snow-free until about 2 miles in, when water starts flowing over the trail. From then on the trail gets increasingly icy, slushy, and ultimately snowy until around 5000' (4.5 miles in) at which point the trail is entirely compact snow. It's slippery, but with some fancy footwork I was able to stay upright and keep my feet dry most of the way to Lake Valhalla (read as: somehow I only ate it once). Trail is totally visible at all times. Lots of pretty little snowscapes along the way. I hung out at the lake shore, ate my first sandwich, and filtered water before continuing to Janus Lake. 

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The PCT north of Lake Valhalla is significantly snowier than the Stevens Pass side, it's basically compact snow all the way to the Smithbrook turnoff. Some patches of exposed ground. That being said, it's pretty dry snow so traction is fine (I think the really wet spots are down towards the Smithbrook TH). There's one extremely icy area though, just south of the turnoff to Mt McCausland, about 10 ft of trail which is just a thick sheet of ice. Other than that nothing remarkable.

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The trail to Janus Lake was just kinda gross. No snow cover on any of it, so it's easy to see at all times, but lots of big puddles, flowing water, slush piles, and a few icy stretches. There was one sizeable stream crossing in particular which slowed me down, about a half mile south of the lake, where there were plenty of exposed stepping stones but most were coated in ice. Took it slow and used my poles and it was fine. The lake was pleasant, not super spectacular, but windy so I only stuck around long enough to eat a sandwich. The shore is largely snow-covered but you could definitely still find a dry non-snowy spot for a tent (if you're into that).

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On the way back, I gave up on keeping my feet dry, and plowed through puddles. I saw two women heading up to Lake Valhalla, and they were the only other people I saw all day. Stopped and filtered again at Valhalla's inlet stream, and ate another sandwich. With no concern for dry feet, it was a cruise all the way back to my car, where I ate my last sandwich.

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Things to note:

Traction-wise, I was fine with trail runners and minimal pole use, although I'm particularly sure-footed, so YMMV.

It was heckin cold, so I was running in two shirts, two pairs of tights, two pairs of gloves, two pairs of socks, a fleece cap, and a buff (although I removed one of the shirts after about half an hour, once the sun came up).

This was my first run with a new pack, a Chicken Tramper fastpack (the CTUG-15). Managed to fit all my extra winter layers and emergency gear in it with room to spare. It sat well for the whole run, and has excellent side/rear pocket access for layer changes and sandwich accessibility on the go.

Stopped for a post-run meal at LouSki's Deli in Skykomish and had their Reuben. Never been before. Very respectable sandwich, better than the Sultan Bakery's Reuben. Price seemed a little high, but I was in such a sandwichy mood that it was certainly worth it to pay that much for that sandwich right then.

I hiked past Grizzly Peak in 2013, and for the last three years have been trying to catch another nice day to go back.  I got the chance Oct 1, and was not disappointed.

At the entrance to FS 6700 road, a sign warns that FS 6700 (Rainy Creek Rd) after FS 6704 is closed due to fire activity. No through access, No Little Wanatchee River access. Lake Minotaur and Snowy Creek Trails still accessible.

Compared to other FS roads in the area, FS 6700 ( AKA Smithbrook, AKA Rainy Creek Rd) is in great shape.  A few minor potholes that any car can handle.

Trailhead sign warns that the trails that access FS 49 are closed, and shows the Nason Fire closure area.

I started out from the parking lot about 7:30 AM on a Friday, with only three other cars in the lot.

There is a nice new bridge on the trail just past the parking lot.  However a bit higher there is running water in the trail tread.  This can be avoided by accessing the trail up the road at the bend, rather than from the parking lot.

Passed a lady and her small dog on the way up to Union Gap, didn't see anyone else until I headed back from Grizzly Peak. 

Thanks to the trail crew that logged out this section. Only had to step over one large and one small log. Two others the trail routed around.

The trail is fairly wet and muddy in some sections.  The overflow from Lake Janus is an obstacle, some of the rocks are submerged 1/2" or so.  You'll get wet feet unless you have waterproof hikers.

Some berries at higher elevation, not fresh but palatable.

Great conditions, no smoke or bugs. Cool enough to hike and jog without overheating. 

It took me four hours to get to Grizzly Peak. My track showed as 8.25 miles on my GPS. It also showed ascent 2,513 ft. Both distance and elevation gain were close to the hiking guide values.  I spend 20' at the summit and another four hours to return.  

On the way back, I saw two pairs and one solo PCT hiker headed north.  Saw five or six hikers coming up the Smithbrook trail.

On my return to the Smithbrook lot at 4PM, there were many  cars in the lot, overflow parking down the road. Lots of folks headed to Lake Valhalla in the evening. 

This trip report is a lesson in making sure you read the directions. Also maybe a lesson in saving the map, or even in finally downloading one of those hiking apps. However, it is also a lesson that sometimes taking the wrong turn works out just fine.

Got a late start and arrived at the TH at 12:30. Parking lot was overflowing in both directions, even on a Monday! My goal was to go up Mount McCausland then maybe dip down to Lake Valhalla. First timer. Quickly got moving and onto the switchbacks, which were nicely moderate. The weather was perfect: sunny but enough fall-crispness in the air so that I didn't get too sweaty. Once on the PCT it's a lovely stroll, and pretty soon my fingers were stained blue from the abundance of berries. Also ran into some trailworkers, which is always a joy! Many thanks to y'all, your work was noticed and appreciated.

After a while though, I started feeling confused. The trail was practically empty considering the full parking lot. I felt like I had been hiking for a while but I hadn't seen the turn off for McCausland. Maybe we were moving slower than I thought? Then the trail was descending and we popped out into a meadow, with a lake to our right! "Oh! That must be Lake Valhalla?" We headed for the waterfront and I was completely dumbfounded: there was no one else there. I couldn't see anyone around the lake edge, the camps were empty, and it was perfectly quiet. I had heard Lake Valhalla was always teeming with people. I also expected something a bit more dramatic with that name. This lake was certainly pretty, and the water was a nice temperature,  but it wasn't super striking. Oh well, we had a good lunch and enjoyed the peace and quiet.

I hoped to still try for the summit (and the views), so I looked very hard for the trail to Mount McCausland. I looked at every smudge in the dirt wondering if that was it. I could feel the miles passing by and finally accepted that I just hadn't noticed it, oh well, it was still a nice hike. Then I got to the junction with the Smithbrook Trail and it hit me. I checked the WTA page I had opened on my phone and skimmed before rushing out of the house that morning.

I had turned right when I was supposed to turn left.

Well, I really, really wanted to get some views in so we picked up the pace and started powering in the correct direction. I ran into some nice folks I had met in the parking lot that got started a few minutes before us. "Are you just getting here?!" they asked, very understandably confused. We talked about the directions of the trail -- they  didn't know the name of the mystery lake I had actually gone to, but I told them to check it out sometime because it was very nice! After that I finally saw the crowds I had heard about, heading back to their cars after their successful day going to the right place. Of course, this meant the berries were much fewer and far between.

Seeing the tiny cairn (do three rocks count as a cairn?) and the obvious trail going sharply to the right was such a huge relief. We started pushing up Mount McCausland and it finally hit me that I was tired, my dog was tired, and it was getting late. We found a nice viewpoint, probably halfway up, and finally I got the dramatic experience I expected. Wow, Lake Valhalla really is an appropriate name! It was actually great timing, because the sun was getting low and the lighting was beautiful. But, of course, this also meant it suddenly got very cold. It was now 5:30 and time to head home.

We took a steady pace back, pretty tired after the push to make it to our originally planned destination, passed by through-hikers and people carrying full blueberry containers. We got back to the TH at 6:45, and I immediately went to look at the map on the information board. The mystery lake was Lake Janus.

All in all, it was actually a very good day. We weren't really "lost", most of our day was peaceful and full of delicious berries, TWO lakes, we kind-of reached our goal, and we are definitely coming back to properly explore this place. I'm very grateful for this trip. However, I'm definitely going to make sure I have the map downloaded next time!

From Union Gap and Beyond:

The trail to Lake Janus was eerily quiet this morning as I descended towards the lake. With a gentle decline in elevation, the Pacific Crest Trail had a soft tread that was easy on the knees. The trail was eroding away on either side exposing the ash from previous wild fires. Imagine this area burning so close to the West side towns like Baring and Index. It's scary to imagine. But the forest seemingly made a healthy comeback. Squirrels and Grey Jays were in an abundance this morning as I wandered down the trail.

As I approached Lake Janus, signs periodically popped up. "Stock Camp", "Toilet" etc were some of the few that were around. This was a camp area for hikers headed Northbound on the PCT. As I took a spur trail to check out the lake, I wandered into someone's camp area, (who was standing there washing his cup out). I said hello and back tracked out of the immediate area. The plan was to tackle Grizzly Peak but with all the fog and low lying clouds, I figured I'd save that adventure for another day. Instead, I hung around "base camp" where all the PCT-ers were sleeping and took in the sounds and the views of the lake. 

There were a few downed trees to step over and a couple of muddy areas along the trail that had the potential to muddy up your boots if you weren't careful. Other than those minor concerns, the trail was in pristine condition. 

From Lake Janus, I made my way back to Union Gap and passed a swath of PCT-ers heading deeper into the North Cascades. I got to exchange pleasantries with a lot of them but I think for the most part, (and since they're literally on the last leg of the long journey) they wanted to keep moving and keep the small talk to a minimum. I have a lot of respect for those who've made the two-thousand plus journey. Not just for the simple fact that they walked over two-thousand miles through the Sierra Nevadas or through sweltering desert heat in Southern California or through snowy terrain in the North Cascades. I have a lot of respect for someone who can put all their worries aside, put their normal, everyday 9-5 life on the back burner and set out for an adventure of a life time. It's quite an accomplishment. 

I arrived at Union Gap under an hour and met two other thru-hikers taking a break. One day, I'll be on the PCT. Until then, I got to settle for just a few miles of it today. And it was a lot of fun.