This is a bit of a delayed report, but better late than never I suppose. 

I had planned on taking the Panjab trail to Crooked Creek to Danger Point to Smooth Ridge to Mt. Misery, back to Panjab. I made it up the Panjab trail to just before the Crooked Creek trail drips down into the woods before making camp on 6/2. The next morning I continued down Crooked Creek, but things were getting increasingly overgrown to the point where I was basically bushwhacking. I got to the point where Gaia says the Danger Point trail was, but didn't see any sign of a trail. I wasn't prepared for that much bushwhacking, so I backtracked up Crooked Creek and took the Rattlesnake trail out to the FS road and back to the Panjab Trailhead. This ended up being much easier hiking even if Rattlesnake was a bit faint in places, since a good chunk of it was through a burn. Some beautiful views too! 

Someone with better navigational skills than me probably would have been fine, but I still had about 18 miles to hike and didn't know how much of that would be difficult bushwhacking, so I wimped out and chose to turn around. 

Still a great hike - the Panjab trail is in good shape, and the Rattlesnake trail is in OK shape but could use some maintenance. Take the Rattlesnake trail if you want views. 

Wildlife - saw two "brown black bears" that weren't very interested in me fortunately. I thought they were grizzly bears at first! Also woke up in the middle of the night to wolves howling, which was pretty cool. 

Snow - basically none. There were patches off to the side up high and a small patch in the woods, but I only ran into one *tiny* patch on the trail. 

Three-night backpack from Panjab trailhead up Panjab Trail to Indian Corral; Mt Misery Trail east to Sheephead and west to Oregon Butte; return via Turkey Creek Trail.

Looking for a mellow start-of-the-season backpack we had our eyes set on Mount Misery Trail (Misery Highline in Romano's Backpacking Washington). There aren't many trip reports for this corner of the state, especially this early in the season, so we weren't sure what to expect. We learned at Pomeroy Ranger Station that the Diamond Peak trailhead was still inaccessible due to snow on the road (same for Teepee trailhead, which was expected). Hence we had to work a little harder for the easy ridgeline rambling and first climb 2400' up Panjab trail.

Trailhead access: Well-graded gravel road to Panjab trailhead. Diamond Peak and Teepee trailheads inaccessible due to snow.

Trail conditions

• Missing bridge at Panjab trailhead: Both the FS website and WTA hike description say the trail is inaccessible until the bridge is replaced. That's a little misleading. The two creek branches are easily crossed with dry feet via downed trees ~100' upstream from the bridge location. Fording also wouldn't have been difficult through shin~knee-deep water.
• Panjab trail to Indian Corral: This was the best-maintained section of the trip. Basically no obstacles and mostly obvious tread. Only one point where the trail crosses a creek and almost immediately switches back to the other side had us confused for a moment. I think the climb through burnt sparse forest could get unpleasant in midsummer heat but was quite enjoyable this time of year.
• Indian Corral to Sheephead (day hike eastwards on Mt Misery Trail): Generally good conditions. The forest section between Clover and Bear Wallow Springs is severely burnt and has some blowdowns but nothing difficult. Some patches of snow and muddy sections that probably won't stick around much longer.
• Indian Corral to Oregon Butte: Some more blowdowns and a bit larger snow sections. Nothing dramatic.
• Oregon Butte to Teepee trailhead: We felt this was the least enjoyable section of the trip, at least in relative terms. There wasn't much alive yet in the burnt forest besides mushrooms. Going was slower due to more blowdowns and longer snow sections. Not many views until shortly before the trailhead. Maybe the higher trail over West Butte would have been the more interesting option?
• Turkey Creek Trail from Teepee to Panjab trailhead: Much less maintained than Panjab trail. Some tangled double-blowdowns that need scrambling through. A few somewhat interesting creek crossings and places where the creek had usurped the trail. The denser forest and narrower valley may be desirable in midsummer heat but we were glad we had chosen Panjab for our ascent.

Water: All the springs along the ridge that we checked out were flowing nicely. Snow patches spared us some water carrying when camping high above Oregon Butte Spring.

Campsites: Plenty on the ridge, sometimes with glorious views. Just take care not to disturb the meadows and keep your distance from the many burnt dead trees. Don't put your trust into the campsites Romano promises along lower Turkey Creek: You might be able to find something in a pinch, but we didn't see any obvious dry flat spots that weren't surrounded by burnt snags. There's a flat site at Teepee trailhead, but I wouldn't exactly enjoy camping next to the huge parking area and horse troughs.

Wildflowers: A LOT. It clearly was too early for peak wildflower show. Lupines and Balsamroot hadn't even started yet on the ridge. Shady aspects had the recently melted out brown look. But the sunnier meadows were already carpeted in bright colors by Grass Widows, Glacier Lilies, Spring Beauties, and many others. Lots of Arnica in the valley. Calypso Orchids seem to like the Turkey Creek valley.

Wildlife: Many deer hoof prints, fresh bear tracks, and scat along the ridge trail, but we didn't see any big wildlife. Many small birds that kept their distance. Butterflies were very active along Panjab Creek.

Bugs: No Mosquitoes, yay! Some of the largest ticks I've ever seen, boo!

Weather: The 5000' forecast promised lows around 40 and highs around 60 F, which was probably accurate. However, a stiff breeze made it feel colder much of the time. Some thunderstorms brushed past us, sprinkled a little spray once or twice while hiking, and one night dumped a mighty downpour on our tent. Otherwise a pleasant mix of sun and clouds.

Crowds: Zero. Complete solitude for four days and no sign of recent human visitation on the ridge.

PS: I'm confused about the WTA hiking guide entry for "Mount Misery": Trailhead directions are to Teepee trailhead and the endpoint in the description is Oregon Butte lookout. That hike is much shorter than the quoted 16 miles and already exists in the hiking guide as "Oregon Butte". So it would make sense for this entry to describe the ridge line hike from Diamond Peak trailhead to Oregon Butte. But then the trailhead is wrong (should be same as for "Mount Misery Loop") and the roundtrip distance would be closer to 25 miles.

Spent a week in the Blue Mts. The 2021 fire burned to the trailhead. The only downed tree is in the first 1/2-1 ml. For hikers it is easily navigated but would present issues for horses. All other trees have been cut up. There is lots of access to water for most of the hike - either from Panjab Creek or the 2 feeder creeks in the lower section. As you start up the switchbacks you have 2 spots to cool off. The sign at the 4 way junction has been replaced but the trail to Indian Corral is not labeled. We continued on past Indian Corral and were able to locate Dunlap Spring as it was shown on the map. There is a downed tree just prior to the camp and spring. It was flowing well and was so refreshing! We did see a herd of 30+ elk in this area. Wildlife is prolific and humans are not-just the way we like it! Amazing country and worth the drive! Paper maps are available on the USFS website or at the Pomeroy Ranger Station.

Hiked the Wenaha-Tucannon loop as described by Douglas Lorain in Backpacking Washington, starting and ending at the Panjab Trailhead. Incredibly scenic, saw elk, bear and probably a moose, and no other people for five days. But had to contend with trails in dire need of maintenance due to previous wildfires, and some that have essentially been abandoned.

Route. Started at Panjab Trailhead (road was actually closed 2 miles before trailhead due to flood risk), then headed east on Mt Misery Trail to Diamond Peak. Turned south on Melton Creek trail, then Crooked Creek to Wenaha River. Up Smooth Ridge Trail from Fairview to Oregon Butte then back out Panjab Trail.

Trail conditions. Panjab has had a recent fire but is in okay shape (brush hasn't grown back enough to be a serious problem). Mt Misery trail to Diamond Peak was in great shape, although adjacent to some recent burns. Melton Creek trail was faint, brushy and had blowdowns, but very beautiful. Crooked Creek was increasingly brushy and in need of maintenance, and Wenaha River Trail from Crooked Creek to Fairview was similarly brushy and in need of maintenance after the more recent wildfires. Fording First Creek was a bit difficult due to unusually heavy spring rains, and fording Crooked Creek took some nerve and willingness to use log jambs as bridges - in a normal spring, neither would probably be too bad. Once atop the ridge from Fairview, the Smooth Ridge Trail is obliterated and essentially abandoned - it's had no maintenance since the 2015 fire season, which means hundreds (thousands?) of downed logs and extreme brush. Technically doable, but be prepared for extraordinarily slow progress, constant scrambling and bushwacking until you get closer to Twin Springs. Once at Twin Springs, it's not too bad all the way to Oregon Butte and back to Panjab, but trail still has not received recent maintenance, so expect pretty regular blowdowns and brush. Some snow on Mt Misery Trail and near Oregon Butte, but not bad.

Water. On Mount Misery, Dunlap Springs and camping area was burned in 2021(?); the pipe in the spring was displaced but the spring itself was still flowing. Clover Spring and the rest on this section were all fine. Plenty of creeks and springs after that, with Twin Springs in great shape. Lodgepole Spring has the pipe displaced but was able to get water at the spring. Some maps show a spring at Table camp just north of Oregon Butte, but I couldn't find any sign of it.

Wildlife. Plenty of elk and deer and I'm about 90% sure I saw a moose at one point on Mt. Misery Trail, which there are reports of. Saw plenty of bear sign and one bear. Ticks were bad at times, recommend treating or buying clothing with permethrin. Close encounters with a couple of rattlesnakes on Crooked Creek trail, keep an eye out on the lower elevations.

Summary. Beautiful, rugged and remote, but trails are in extreme need of maintenance or have been essentially abandoned, so only consider this exact route if you are comfortable with potentially dangerous scrambling over logs and mentally and physically prepared for route finding and bushwhacking.