The last day of hikeathon, so the Grand Finale hike. My challenge this year was to hike solo for the first time ever. I chose this section of the PCT, easy access and well traveled, and I could keep going as far ( or not) as my creaky knees would take me before my turnaround time at 2. I was lucky to meet Hiker JIm (check out Hiking Northwest) and Kim Brown shortly after heading toward Janus from Union Gap so we hiked together for awhile. Kim enjoys the same kind of geeky plant stuff as I do, and there are lots of mushrooms on this hike for photos. We found a somewhat unusual purple one, Kim told me the correct name, but the nickname stuck, Purple Velvet Elvis. Lake Janus is not as spectacular as Valhalla, but much quieter. There is a backcountry loo right off the PCT away from the lake. I left Kim and Jim at the lake and continued north. I had the trail to myself. This section of the PCT is smooth, minimal roots and rocks, with nicely graded switchbacks. A pleasure to hike! I made it to the ridgeline and a bit beyond. There is a nice lunch rock and after I ate I was met by Kim and Jim. They were continuing on but I had met my turnaround time. There are some prime campsites along the ridge (dry) that would be excellent for a quick overnighter, please LNT, some hikers have made campfire rings, please don't use them in such a fragile environment. Watch for old blazes on the trees and the old sign marking the trail before it became officially the PCT. I did miss company on the slog back to the car, no one to talk about food and beer with on the way out. I had a great time and now I know I don't NEED a hiking partner, I can just go! Not many berries, fall color just starting, flowers gone, but lots of mushrooms. Last day contributions welcome:  give.wta.org/Muledeer100

After waiting out four weeks for a broken toe, looks like this will be my one backpacking trip in this summer before returning to work.  This was my annual trip on my adopted section of the Pacific Crest Trail with a side trip up to Bench Mark Mountain on the West Cady Ridge.

I started from the Smithbrook TH around 2pm on Thursday and made it to the small campsite above Glasses on the Pacific Crest Trail.  No new logs down on the trail this year made for easy sailing. Janus had a handful of campers and someone was camped about 1.4 miles up from the lake at the small stream on the left before the ridge.  I stopped for water on a turn above the campsite where there is a boot path, I knew my campsite ahead would be dry.

There had been no precipitation in the forecast for the weekend but that didn’t stop a cloud from parking itself at my campsite above Glasses Lake, I spent most of the night listening to condensation and pine needles dripping on the tarp over my hammock while the wind blew.

I awoke to a rosy sunrise and carried on up over Grizzly Peak, down Wenatchee Pass and up to Pear Lake where I took a site near the back where the Meadow Creek Trail heads up and over to Fortune Ponds.  I had contemplated continuing on towards Benchmark but since I was heading out Top Lake, figured Pear Lake would be better tonight rather than Saturday night with possible crowds. 

Since it was only noon at this point, I decided to do something I had always wanted to do in the times I had been to Pear, scramble over to take a peek at Peach Lake. So, after swinging in the hammock a bit I strolled over and begin making my way to the talus field on the other side of the lake.

I didn’t take the most direct up, heading for the notch at the ridge and once near the top noticed a VERY faint bootpath I stayed on to the top.  It wasn’t graceful and thank goodness for veggie belay. The view down to Peach was worth it and in order to baby my toe, I basically butt crawled down on a much more direct route down that led to a small set of trees near the water’s edge. Would make for a good reference point if there is a next time.

All told, about a 3 hour adventure and it was back to swinging in the hammock until my regular Pear Lake routine of walking up the Meadow Creek Trail to the large boulder in the talus field there and watching the sunset.  All my loved ones know this is where I want my ashes to be. White low level clouds drifted up from the meadow near the junction of Top Lake, tentacles coming over the ridge from Peach as well.

As a person who has hiked the Meadow Creek Trail many a time and not seen a soul, it was surprising at 7:30pm and again at 9pm to have hikers come over the ridge from Fortune Ponds to camp at Pear.  They all knew each other but it can be hard to set up on durable surfaces when your large group arrives late to a popular lake on the weekend. Just sayin’.

The next morning I was up and walking north before the thru-hikers at the east end of the lake, continuing on the PCT towards the junction with West Cady.  My plan was to summit Benchmark, spend some time and then make my way back down to camp for my third night somewhere before the junction with Top Lake (but not Pear again).  I paid attention for campsites to judge where I might hang my hammock. The site before Saddle Gap had plenty of tent space and water but I wasn’t sure about the trees.

The slope up to Saddle Gap still needs some brushing and tread work, it would be easy to misstep off the side.  Just down from Saddle, a marmot sat calling out to friends on the large boulder up from the trail and I was soon turning up on West Cady.

There was a trickle of water just up from the PCT and a nice campsite a few switchbacks up from there.  No water source, unless you count a little puddle that’s probably home to a few frogs. The trees would be good for hanging, though, so I decided I’d be back down to stay here for the night.

The walk up to Bench Mark took about 1.5 hours but I have a lot of pictures to show for it and the blueberries were fierce. I was glad to see the FS had cleared the trees that blocked the trail back in 2016 when I was here last and the rest of the trail was in good shape.  I opted for the boot path up to the summit from the west side, having done the other one and knowing it was not in good condition. I hadn’t noticed there was a campsite where that boot path headed up, it would make a good spot but I didn’t want to hike out from there the next day.

Benchmark was its usual stunning self and I enjoyed the summit to myself for about 3 hours which may have included a nap.  The clouds had been summit high most of the day and luckily I woke up around 2:30 to notice a dark one coming in from the West just in time to pack up and start back down when rain and wind begun. So much for forecasts.

I waited it out for a bit at the campsite below the summit, it wasn’t strong and soon passed.  Just long enough to get the meadow (and my shoes) wet, I made my way back down to the campsite closer to the PCT.  The wind came in bursts so I sat for awhile gauging the best direction to hang my hammock. I’m not sure I did as well as I could have  but I was definitely getting better at figuring out how to hang the tarp over it to protect from rain and wind. I was a little sad that fall seemed to have arrived already, definitely going to pack the underquilt from now on.

Hiking out and back down the PCT in the next morning, it was funny to see the same marmot chilling on the same boulder.  I passed several PCT hikers heading north from Pear Lake and stopped to chat with Ranger Lulu from the Wenatchee District out to scout up where I had just been.  I’m guessing I had the same blue tongue as she did from the plethora of wild blueberries on the trail right now.

Arriving at the junction for Top Lake, I was once again thrilled with the new check steps installed by our North 350 Blades crew earlier this month on my insistence.  Now we just need better signage!  

Continuing towards Top Lake with a short time to get to the trailhead to meet my husband for a ride back to my car, I was slowed down again by berries.  SO MANY BERRIES RIGHT NOW! Top Lake was surprisingly empty (around noon) but I could see a small orange tent tucked back in the trees on the northeast corner of the lake so maybe everyone had already hiked out.

The clouds were high enough I had views across the valley along the slopes of Fall and passed a few hikers heading in as I headed down from Shoofly.  I had been looking for the sign for the wilderness boundary at the end of the burn area and then noticed a new one hanging just outside of it. Must have not survived the fire.  All in all a good trip, about 30 miles and my toe was only a little sore by the end of it.

Nice hike after a rainy day. Lots of mushrooms along the way. Blue berries are gone. The lake was calm and beautiful. Very few hikers. Would love to hike the PCT to the north one day.

Needed to get a long hike in before my hike through the Enchantments this fall to help get that endurance built up.  Left Central District around 8:00 and got to the trail head just before 10:00, to about 12 other cars.  Road is great, a little rocky at points, but I only saw one pot hole on my way up.  No privy, but the trail register was open.

We were on the trail 5 after 10:00, and it is in great condition along the entire way.  A few wet and/or rocky parts, but nothing a good pair of shoes or boots can't handle.  We booked it up the Smithbrook trail and reached Union Gap just before 11.  Another quick hike down to Janus and we took a short snack break when we reached the lake just after 11:30.  We passed one pair of hikers with a dog up Smithbrook, and 3 solo hikers along the PCT to Janus.  One was on day 9 out of 9 on their journey!

At around 11:45 we headed across the stream and up the forested switchbacks towards Grizzly.  There is one downed tree along the way, but there is a carved foothold and it was easy to navigate.  There were so many mushrooms along the way, some of them HUGE!  I need to get better at outdoor education so I can identify more of them.  Almost all of the gain you do along the PCT is here (the rest of it is along Smithbrook).

Once you get to the top of the ridge, the views are incredible.  There were still quite a few clouds when we got up at 12:30, but you could still see the entire valley.  Glacier Peak was pretty hidden in the clouds, and I didn't even recognize it from the South - I'm used to seeing it from the West in Mountain Loop.  But the entire valley was visible and it was a sight to behold.

The trail weaves back and forth along the ridge, and there are blueberries seemingly along the entire way.  Honestly, they were some of the best blueberries I've ever eaten - so juicy and the perfect balance of sweet and tart.  We were able to see both Heather and Glasses lakes.  The water in Glasses looked absolutely incredible and inviting.  After a bit, you start to climb again up a few switchbacks with a great view of the valley to the West.   Again, the clouds made this not the best this morning, but it was still a sight to behold with the clouds racing up around us.  We passed one pair along the weaving, and another group up the switchbacks.

After the switchbacks, it was only a short way to the Meadow past Grizzly.  Unfortunately the wildflowers were on their way out.  A few of them were blooming, but nothing like it would have been a couple weeks ago.  We found a nice clear spot at 2:00pm and sat down for some lunch and beers.  Glacier was still pretty hidden, but it was therapeutic watching the clouds move across.  One solo hiker passed us while we were sitting.

By 2:50 we were ready to head back to the car, and the sun had burnt off most of the clouds.  At a quick pace we headed back south along the PCT.  By this point, you could see the small unnamed lake in the West valley, and Glacier was out entirely.  The view of the East valley with Glacier was breathtaking, and one of the best panoramic views I've ever seen.  We passed about 10 groups along the route back to Janus, almost of them along the ridge before heading down into the forested switchbacks.

We reached Janus by 4:45pm, and stopped to use the toilet by the lake.  There was one other hiker there who was on a long journey along the PCT as well.  We set out to try to make it back to the car by 6:15.  We passed about 5 more groups, most of them solo hikers, up the PCT to Union Gap.  The trail looked almost completely different in the twilight than it did the late morning, so it was refreshing and didn't feel old like some of the out-and-back hikes can.

We managed to get back to the car at about 6:10, with only about 5 cars in the lot remaining.  There were a few parked along a turn-out area just up the road as well.  Looking at the registry when checking out, we were the only group who registered Grizzly.  Everyone else was on a long PCT journey, or chose to got to just Janus or Valhalla.

All in all, this was one of my favorite hikes I've ever done, and would love to do it early spring when all the mountains are snow-capped.  It would also be a fantastic spot to watch the sun rise.  But 17 miles later, and ~4,500 feet of total gain, it was nothing but happy trails.  

Hiked into and out of Lake Janus today with my wife and our two kids, a 9 year old girl and a 6 year old boy. We used the Smithbrook trail to access the lake, getting to the trailhead on the 6700 road about 11:30am and found lots of cars. We met a lot of hikers on the trail up until we passed through Union Gap, after-which the PCT trail to Lake Janus was very quiet, only passing a few other hikers. 

Bugs we’re almost nonexistent and the trail was in good shape all the way to the lake, only a few areas of mud to skirt and a short section of brush. The lake was nice and calm with only one camp that we could tell.