I’ve been wanting to do this trail for a while and I would say that in general, it did not disappoint. The views start to open up after a few miles but you don’t get up into the basin until the last half mile or so - that’s where the gorgeousness is, in the form of an amazingly rocky landscape, sparkling tarns, and a stunning lake nestled into the rocks at the end of the trail.

Caution: this trail is exceptionally rocky in general, and I would not recommend doing it in wet weather.

The hike here is every bit as formidable as the visuals on display. After the mild opening act, you will be tested with a tangle of roots, bare rock, mud, and loose rock at an imperious incline until you eventually ascend into the basin. Then it will all be worth it.

Follow the white marker flags (conveniently invisible in fog, unfortunately) from the initial opening of the basin to Foggy Lake. Take your time on the climb here (unless you're like me and only have one speed)- both your wide eyes and weary legs will thank you. The continuing beauty of this area relies upon your ability to stay on the trail and pack your waste out (or make proper use of the toilets). We had some remarkable luck with weather conditions as the heavy fog cleared dramatically just meters from our entry to the basin at around noon, and it remained completely clear at Foggy Lake for our brief stay.

We started out from the Barlow Point lot on Monday around 9am and were the third car in the lot and second group to register for Gothic Basin at the kiosk for the day (shortly after the junction on Weden Creek Trail). I've checked the box for berries, but for most of the ascent, blueberries are either withering or watery. Blueberries from the basin itself were much more in season, but not overly abundant along the trails. If you want a strenuous hike in this area with striking views and a more fulfilling berry scene, try Dickerman.

Showed up to the trailhead around noon on a Saturday. I had to park quite a way away off to the side of the road. Very busy. Road to the trailhead is all paved. The first half of the hike is through a shaded forest with plenty of switchbacks but I found them mostly moderate in grade. After you pass the waterfall, the grade increases. What made the trail difficult was going over all the rock in the last couple miles. The grade is very steep in sections and you need to watch your footing. Bring trekking poles. This hike is perfect for a weekend overnight. 4 hours at the most (with breaks) to make it to Foggy Lake. Only a couple hours to get back to my car the next morning. It was clear when I was there in the afternoon then started to get foggy in the evening. The wind picked up at night. Woke up at 6am and made coffee and the fog started moving in fast over the lake which looked very dramatic. The entire hike back to the car was through fog. Even though it was pretty busy with a lot of people camping, I would do it again. Nice trip. There are trails up to a couple peaks that I think are worth checking out. Many people at the lake were going but I decided to hunker down.

I've been wanting to do Gothic Basin for a while but I usually only get weekends off. I was lucky to have a weekday off this week so my friend and I decided to venture out to this popular area for an overnight trip.

Road to the TH

No forest road at all. You can either park at the Barlow Pass trailhead or the small lot next to the actual trail that leads you to Monte Cristo/Gothic Basin. I opted to park at the Barlow Pass TH because there was shade. I was thankful because my car wasn't overheating when I got back Wednesday night. There is a pit toilet and picnic table here. Toilet was stocked with TP.

Trail

Yeah, this was a hard hike. I've been hiking more this year but this one still kicked me in the butt. The first 1.4 miles until Weeden Creek was easy. A little bit of up and down. Then the last 3 miles up to the basin were absolutely brutal for me. My dog had a lot of fun though. We saw a DNR trail crew working on adding more steps to the slabby portion of the trail. Thanks for all the hard work!

When it's dry, it's totally doable. But when it's wet or early season, I could see this being tricky. There were a few spots to take a long break along the trail. First being Weeden Creek, second being another creek once the trail begins to open up and the third being the waterfall. I was thankful for all these spots to fill up water because both Tuesday and Wednesday were hot and humid. And of course, my dog appreciated it too.

Camping & Toilets

We went on a Tuesday night and I suppose this is considered later in the season. We didn't see anyone else camp in the basin itself and assumed everyone was probably at Foggy Lake. There were many campsites available but I'm sure they fill out on the weekends.

There were ponds and pockets of water in the basin but nothing was flowing. More streams were available at Foggy Lake. DNR must be really working on maintaining this area - there were flags for the various campsites and even flags to mark the trail up to Foggy Lake and yet, we saw a few day hikers the next day seemingly confused about where to go. 

There are two toilets at Gothic Basin now. There were no signs but one of them is clearly marked on the maps. The first toilet is to the left right when you enter Gothic Basin. There's a campsite numbered Campsite #1 - you take a left and continue on. It's huge so it's hard to miss. The second toilet is further along a trail towards Foggy Lake. Here are the coordinates for it: 47.97950, -121.46251. See the toilets? Use them. I've seen trip reports where this has become a problem at Gothic Basin. These toilets have great views and seem to be so much cleaner! There is a vent for better ventilation.

We day hiked up to Foggy Lake the next day. We followed the official marked trail up. We went further up towards Del Campo and found more water and views. We turned around and took the other way back to camp. This trail was also marked on the maps and if you take this route, you will see the second toilet.

Overall, other trip reports covered everything! All I wanted to really say is use the toilets. Might take a bit of work to find them but it's better than digging a hole! So much more comfortable really. And coming here on a Tuesday/Wednesday was definitely the way to go!

Trailhead:
Arrived at the trailhead around 7:45 the morning of Saturday 8/30 to begin an overnight backpacking trip. The trailhead itself is small and was full by the time we got there. We parked along the road not too far away.

Hiking up:
The hike up starts flat for the first couple of miles, and then begins to sharply ascend shortly after crossing a stream. Once reaching the ascent, the trail (which was mostly dirt and loose rock) switchbacks through the forest. A while later the trail becomes a bit more rocky, but still climbs through patches of trees and the occasional exposed section. Only in the last 0.75 miles did the trail begin to feel more exposed. With our overnight packs it was slow going. With plenty of breaks for rest, water and snacks, it took us approximately 5 hours to reach Foggy lake. We found trekking poles to be helpful on the way up.

Backpacking sites:
With it being a beautiful Labor Day weekend, we were fully expecting the area to be packed with overnighters (and it was!) On our way up we chatted with a few folks returning from their overnight trips who mentioned that quite a few backpacking groups had set out and arrived very early in the morning. Sure enough, when we arrived at Foggy Lake around 1:30pm, nearly all of the established campsites around the lake were already claimed. Though all of the sites to the right of the main trail were taken, we were still able to snag one up on a small ridge to the left of the main trail. There were still plenty of established sites available in the lower area of Gothic Basin.

Hiking down:
We left Gothic Basin around 9:30am and made it back to the trailhead around 1pm (around 3.5 hours), with only a few short breaks. There are plenty of opportunities to slip, trip or fall on the steep trail heading downward, so consider building in time to take it slow if needed. Trekking poles were yet again helpful. We only passed ~6-8 groups of backpackers heading up, so it seems as though Sunday night may have been slightly less busy than Saturday night despite the holiday weekend.