Went up this "trail" with a rag tag bunch of fellow volunteers on a WTA Backcountry 4 day stint.  The trail up is getting better every year. but there are spots that are still "are you kidding me" level. We made it up and we had two projects. I was on the lower project team working on adding some stone steps about a mile from the basin. 5 of us moving massive rocks to set in place to just get stepped on over and over again. We also added some chunk gravel in an area that was like grease just before making those first steps.  We added a few other little touches to help hikers keep off the trail edge and easy to see it with your headlamp is going up or coming down in the dark. The upper project was creating a reroute the may open up next year so more exciting things to some in 2025. The basin is STUNNING. The view of Del Campo in the evening sun was amazing. There are a lot of folks who hike and camp here and seeing all the tent lights scattered about made of a  great night time shot. The hike back down was just as demanding as the hike up but we made it out just fine.  

Hiked in on Thursday September 19th for an overnight adventure.

Parking is at the end of the asphalt road on Mountain Loop Hwy. I was able to park in the Barlow Pass lot, which is up to the left off the road. Otherwise you can park along the road where permitted. Trail starts on the Monte Cristo trail.

Started hiking at 5:00 pm. Got up to Foggy Lake at 7:20pm.

This trail is definitely a leg burner. First 1.8 miles is easy and about 200’-300’ of elevation. After that it is about 2,300’ of elevation in less than 3 miles. This trail will definitely test your physical and mental strength. But it is worth the trek.

I got up to the top at 7:20 and immediately set up camp after a few minutes of wandering to find the “perfect” spot! Got set up right in time as it got dark enough for a headlamp at 8pm. The only other people up at Foggy Lake staying the night was actually the WTA crew! Was pretty cool knowing I was sharing the area with the trail crew. Major shout out to WTA trail crew members and all their hard work! 

It was rather windy throughout the night which made it difficult to sleep.

Woke up early the next morning and watched the “sun come up”. All I could see was fog! As expected considering the area and the name of the lake! Still enjoyed the morning watching the fog roll in and out for a couple hours. 

Watched the trail crew get up and assemble. Did their morning stretches and got ready to work on the trail some more. We all (WTA crew and myself) left Foggy Lake around 9am. I passed them on the way down as they stopped about 1/2 mile from the top to do some work!

I got back to the car in less than 2 hours. 
Overall it was a great time and worth the struggle.

Cheers, 

Ryan 

WTA crews are still working on this trail! Thanks so much to the volunteer trail crew improving the grading and cutting steps into the rocks on the trail's upper sections.

I arrived to an almost-full Barlow Pass Trailhead parking lot and plenty of cars parked on the shoulder of the highway at 8:30am (Sunday). Many parts of the trail were muddy and wet, but the stream crossings were easy. The hike to the basin took me 3 hours, I spent an hour hiking to Foggy Lake and having lunch, and the descent took me just over 2 hours. The weather was foggy today until well after I had begun my descent, so the views at Foggy Lake were less stunning than many report but more in line with its name. I enjoyed seeing at least a dozen different types of mushrooms on the trail today! There aren't many berries by the trail, though— it's possible they've been enjoyed already by other hikers, but I only saw a few ripe berries despite passing at least a mile of bushes. Happy Hiking! 

The trial was hard, long, steep, some sections need both hands and feet.
Road was in great shape, we meet 7 WTA workers there on their 6th day of amend steep trail. From when we went in and came back, we can tell they made such a difference. Trail was in a much better shape. Thumbs up for the hard work!
View at the foggy lake was out of this world. Definitely go to foggy lake, you would appreciate it.
For a Tuesday there’s still a lots of people camping there, we counted about 12 people, plus 7 workers, they’re a big party for the night.
No bugs.