Road was passable with any vehicle, I saw a Honda Fit and Prius at TH. That said, lots of large cobblestone and a few dips you have to make, but overall better than not.

 
Trail- lots of roots, some mud/boggy spots, a few trees to step over. No snow. We spent a few nights and while there isn’t water at the pass it’s easily found within  a short walk. 
If you want to add on a short distance and 600 ft elevation there is a short walk/scramble due south to top of ridge, views were amazing. Very easily navigated. 
We ended up packing out trash left behind from other peoples camp. Unfortunate. 

Mosquitoes were an annoyance, especially at dusk. 

With deep snow still lingering in the high country, creeks and rivers running very high, and many access roads closed due to bridge washouts or fallen trees, we found our hiking options more limited than usual as we contemplated a hike somewhere along the Mountain Loop highway.  We searched our various trail guides and the WTA Hiking Guide and trip reports, looking for a trail that was mainly snow-free but nevertheless yielded good alpine views.  Since it promised to be a hot, sunny day, we also hoped for shade along the way.  As always, we were looking for solitude and a dog-friendly trail.  The trail to Squire Creek Pass along Eight Mile Trail seemed to fit all these criteria.  At the end of the day, I would say that it did fulfill all of our hopes, although the effort required was somewhat greater than we had expected.

 The road in to the trailhead is in quite good shape and I think it could be managed by most vehicles with reasonable clearance.  There are some deep potholes and dips, but most of the road is smooth gravel or double track.  One caution is that the brambles and bushes have overgrown the verges and they brushed against our Subaru Ascent many times.  If you are concerned about minor scratches on the finish of your vehicle, this is not the road for you (in our experience, these can be buffed out). 

There was only one other car at the trailhead, and that belonged to two young women who were heading up to climb Three O’clock Rock.  They left just as we arrived, and we caught up to them at the base of the rock as they were starting their climb.  They were still climbing down as we hiked out.   They were the only other people on the trail all day.

The trail starts out on an old, very rocky logging road and then proceeds upward on softer tread through a series of pseudo-switchbacks in open, second growth forest. The trail climbs relentlessly but at a moderate grade until it reaches Three O’clock rock.  Just below the Rock, it crosses an old slide on a very rocky tread, and this section is almost obscured by the trailside bushes.  At the base of the Rock, trails lead both left and right.  The left trail is a climbers’ trail.  Take the right if you are going up to the pass.

Three O’clock Rock is a clear transition point in the quality of the trail.  From here up to the pass the trail is downright nasty.  For most of the way it is very steep, extremely rooty and rocky, and often overgrown by trailside vegetation.  The higher you go, the worse it gets.  In many places we were climbing more than hiking, having to pay close attention to where we placed each foot, and bracing ourselves with our hiking poles to guard against slipping backward on the slick roots (see photo).  On the way down, we were constantly checking our momentum, taking one careful step at a time with the help of bracing hiking poles.  The few places where a brief 50 – 100 feet of soft, even trail allowed a decent hiking pace were short-lived relief.  Several large logs are across the trail but these were relatively easily negotiated.  Many creeks cross the trail, but we were able to rock-hop across all of them without difficulty.  None presented problems for our stalwart trail dog, Crockett.    The upper sections of the trail were often muddy as well as rooty, and in several places, the streams run down the trail, making for slippery going.  For the last half mile below the pass, snow still covers the trail intermittently, but it is easily crossed.  We never had trouble finding the trail at the other side of the snow field.  Faint traces of last-weekend’s hikers still remained in the snow to guide us. 

Cairns provided helpful guides once we reached the open, granite slabs below and at the pass.  The stunning view west to Whitehorse and Three Fingers mountains revealed itself just as we reached the pass (see photo).   We followed more cairns left (south) for a few hundred yards, climbing slightly above the pass, before settling on a lovely spot for a late lunch.  Snow becomes continuous about 100 feet above the pass, but it looked like a use trail continues up to that ridge.  We were too tuckered from our battle up the trail to forge any further and were satisfied to just enjoy the lovely views of Three Fingers and Whitehorse peaks and the steep, wild ridge connecting them.  Knowing that we faced the steep, slippery trek down was daunting enough. 

The upper reaches of the trail pass through great swaths of huckleberries and heather meadows, but wildflowers were few and far between.  We saw a few Tiger Lilies near Three O’clock Rock, bunchberries here and there, and occasional Avalanche Lilies, but that was about it for flowers.   

All in all, given the limitations of trail choices this early in the season, this was a good choice.  However, the trail is rugged and challenging with few views along the way.  In its present condition, it is a more daunting hike than the hiking guide descriptions would suggest.  We think it is also somewhat longer than the 5.4 miles given WTA Hiking Guide.  Our GPS, which tends to overestimate distances, gave a return distance of 7.3 miles.  Day Hiking North Cascades gives 6 miles. Given the difficulty of the trail, budget more time than you would normally for a trail of the stated distances. 

If you are really confident and careful or you do not care about your car anymore, you can get away without high clearance. Initially, the turn from Mt Loop Hwy does not appear to present problems. But that nice gravel driveway eventually comes with more potholes and 4 dips where larger rock replaces/prevents washout. Then we crossed the stream and the remaining 4 miles presented more difficulties. Trees do not block the road but there were a couple overhead that my Outback had plenty of room to clear. The forest road was not quite bad Suiattle Road like conditions but getting there.

Parked across from the trailhead. There is space for at least 10 cars parking politely. There isn't a toilet.

The trail starts on a rocky old roadbed turning left at the trailhead. After about a quarter mile, the trail narrows. You can see signs of long ago prior trail work. However, the vegetation starts to crowd the single track in spots.  Roots and rocks of varying angles to the ground and moisture made the trail a slow go both up and down.

We did see some impressively sized trees, tree trunks, and skunk cabbage. Huckleberries and blueberries starting to form but weeks away.  Witnessed many columbines early and a thistle or two.

The trail became muddier as we ascended. Hit consistent snow about 2.5 miles in. Meandered back and forth with my Alltrails app but you can eventually see the pass through the trees. Snow was soft, covering many melting streams, but I only postholed a couple times.

Bring hiking poles if you have them. Did not need microspikes. Crossed many smaller streams. But I still fell multiple times coming back. I should have gone boots rather than trail runners. Would have had better grip and more protection for the wet rock, mud, and roots I was sliding off of.

I got a total of 6.5 miles. Hope you have less accidents than I and do not need to pull out your first aid kit.

Happy Trails!

Hiked up to Squire Creek Pass from Eightmile Trailhead off of NF 2065. Road is in good shape with 3 trees hanging down over road. Lowest tree leaves probably 7-8 feet of clearance. Was comfortable in a Hyundai Santafe (9 inches of clearance), but anything lower may pose issues making it to the trailhead due to some deep dips in the road.

The trail itself is somewhat steep and not well-defined in places but is in generally good shape up to around 3600', where snow coverage begins. Snow is constant from 3600' to the top of the pass at 4000'. Some route finding required on snow, but nothing too difficult. Snow was soft around 2pm and mostly low angle. I felt comfortable without poles or foot traction. Earlier in the day I would recommend poles and at least microspikes. All major creek crossings had enough snow coverage to make it across, but I did punch through a couple times up to my thighs in various places. I did the hike in approach shoes and was thoroughly soaked after boot glissading down the snow fields, so either embrace the wet or bring some gaiters.

Great views of Three Fingers and Whitehorse from the top. Higher squire peak looked very straightforward to get up to, with well-consolidated snowfields up to the summit block. Overall, a great hike! Definitely worth the effort. 

Biggest news first: The massive "hazzard tree" looming over the road has finally been removed. Thank you Forest Service! Road is still rough, but with careful driving a sedan can probably make it. I once scraped the undercarriage of the Crosstrek, but that was my fault for going too fast through a ditch.

It's a great time to hit this trail IF you don't mind the additional slipperiness caused by the seasonal wet. The trail is every bit as steep, rocky, and rooty as promised, and the roots are now extremely slick. The granite slabs have a nice grip even when wet, but watch out for the occasional slick organic film. I lucked out with a partly sunny Saturday afternoon after what felt like three weeks of continuous rain (aka standard PNW fall). Lots of trail sections had running water over them, but nothing too deep that couldn't be stepped over. Some swampy sections (conveniently marked by huge leaves of Swamp cabbage) had ankle-deep mud. I was glad I had opted for boots.

Fall colors are a bit past their peak, but the base of 3 O' Clock Rock still has vibrant maples on display, and the berry bushes further up a dark crimson. I think I snagged the very last edible berries :). All kinds of mushrooms have popped up around the tread. The pass is snow free while Three Fingers and Whitehorse opposite have a nice dusting. (This may change soon, of course. Last year I went in mid-November, got my boots soaked in mushy avalanche debris under 3 O' Clock Rock, and turned around shortly after when the trail had completely disappeared under snow.)