Arrived at the Smith Brook Trail head at 6:45am on a Saturday morning and took the last spot in the lot- looked like plenty of people had packed in on Friday. Made it to Lake Janus by 8:15am- the bugs were terrible and the established campsites were full from the night before, so we continued up the PCT toward Grizzly Peak. Berries become much more plentiful along the trail after the lake and everyone we saw was packing in (several PCT through hikers). As the guide states there is a stream along the incline but no water at the top. Amazing views of Glacier peak! We ate lunch at the top of Grizzly Peak over looking Glacier before heading back down the trail to a camp site approx. 2 miles south of the summit. There are several campsite at the top of Grizzly but the footprints were small and a cold wind was blowing. Woke up to significant frost on our tents- Fall is coming! Saw lots of day hikers along the trail back to Janus and even more on Smith Brook. There were lots of cars parked along the road when we got back to the car to leave on Sunday. All in all, a great one night trip!

I arrived at the trailhead at 8:30 a.m. and there were not to many vehicles in the parking area. The trail is mostly in good condition, but there is a section where it is somewhat overgrown.  Two downed trees across the trail, but they are easily navigable. 

I went to Lake Janus and Lake Valhalla on the same day without much difficulty. The trail does split into both directions, so be aware of which one you want to go to. When I got back to the parking area at about 2:30 p.m. the parking area was overflowing. 

Hiked to Lake Janus after hiking to Labyrinth Mountain. We wanted extra milage. After Minotaur Lake, this is not spectacular, but pretty never the less. The bugs at the lake were horrible. Trail is in great shape.

Intended to go all the way to Grizzly Peak but had to turn around shortly after Lake Janus (about 5.2 mi from Smithbrook TH). The climb north from the lake was okay until we got to the ridge line where the trail crossed over to a northeast exposure and subsequently got very snowy. At this point, the trail traversed across a steep, soft snow-covered slope which we decided was not worth the risk even with micro-spikes. Fortunately, there was a sunny bald close by, perfect for a lunch break. We also enjoyed great views of Glacier Peak. I'll be back to finish the distance.

We had a nice hike to Janus Lake today, and on up the ridge about another mile.  On the way back, just before the turnoff to Lake Valhalla, two of our group went off trail to look at a fungus, and stepped on a ground nest of yellow-jackets.  They both got stung, and I went to retrieve the poles one of them dropped, and also got stung several times.  They chased us down the trail, and were quite ferocious.  It was the largest nest I've seen, and quite dangerous.  It's right beside the trail, so use caution!

I do want to add that every woman hiker should get herself a Kula Cloth, used for peeing in the woods.  No more drip-dry, and please, hikers, don't use toilet paper and leave it!  Get yourself a Kula Cloth.