Got to Chinook at around 9:30a.m and walked this lovely trail. The flowers are out....Pasqueflower in almost all stages of development, cinquefoil, wood violets, spring beauty, glacier and avalanche lily phlox, etc etc. The east side of the loop is still patched with snow and there is alot of mountain stream music to keep one happily moving from one streamlet to the next. The sounds are enchanting. We took lots of pictures from the saddle overlooking the Dewey Lakes and then decided to go down to them. The trail down(PCT) is snow free at least to the lakes. We found a nice spot and waded in to our knees. Frogs seen! Minnows! Wow...wildlife... Cruised back up to the Naches loop and continued around...almost no snow on the west side of the loop, and more flowers. Bear grass just coming into bloom. Sadly, the hike ends with a quarter mile of walking next to the busy highway. Lots of trash spoils the mood. Who are these guys who sit overlooking Tipso Lake and throw their beer bottles down the embankments? Somebody klonk them for me.

Parked at Tipsoo Lake, got lost for a couple seconds in the snow looking for the trailhead, but found it and sailed up to the bridge over Hwy 410, going over one large snow patch. We crossed the Hwy then slogged through a basically nonstop snow field for the whole section on the PCT. But well worth it-the little tarn is almost melted out. The snow disapeared after we came into view of Dewey Lakes, which are melted out. Had a beautiful lunch on the outcrop looking over the lakes and Rainer. Hit snow in the last 1/2 mile. An excellent dayhike, flowers are just coming out.

The highway over Chinook Pass is open, however there are 4+ feet of snow on either side. Tipsoo Lake is largely frozen and snow covered still, and all trails in the area are 100% snow covered.

Except for a very few frosty places, the drive up to Chinook Pass is bare and dry. It's like early summer again! DAR, DML and I hiked the traditional clock-wise loop. The eastern side, as might be expected, is 99% snowcovered in frozen hoarfrost with a few icy areas by trees. This is not the place for folks in sneakers or kids running free, due to the steep slopes, but with decent boots and a pole or two the average hiker will be fine. The snow depth is perhaps a foot and the trail well-pounded out. Some chunks of ice like 4"" ice cubes dot the trail below the icicles of the frozen waterfalls. Once you reach the tarn (I dubbed this Mountaineers Tarn a few years back), any exposure is gone. The tarn is frozen, while the slopes downvalley are mainly bare and dry, and snowy above and surrounding the tarn. We rounded the saddle for the view down to Dewey Lakes, still open water below with some snow around the shoreline and a film of ice developing in a corner. We ate lunch on bare rocks at the frozen tarn beyond the Dewey Lake junction, with a wonderful clear view of Mt. Rainier across the way and great photos before the sun angle changed. The camp robbers only discovered us as we finished lunch. DAR ventured out onto the tarn and reports his ice axe encountered ice even 4"" down. DML and I were speculating as to how wet DAR would get if the ice cracked underneath him. There were bare patches of dry trail and areas of part dirt and part snow along the open meadowy stretch before the trail re-enters trees and turns 100% snow covered. In early afternoon, this was not too icy until just before the trailhead, but the volunteer ranger we saw on the other side of the loop hiking counterclockwise had reported icy snow there. The temperature inversion is below here - we ran out of the fog in Enumclaw and ran back into it around Greenwater. Go now while the sun is shining, the sky is blue and the snow is white. On December 1, believe it or not. In the sun, short sleeves and shorts would not be foolish (in the shade, well, it is a bit cool in the light wind).

After a summer of radiation therapy I couldn't wait any longer to get in touch with the mountains again. Still at a much less than desired energy level I needed something easy and ""The Loop"" seemed to fit. I wasn't sure I would make it around but there was only one way to find out. It turned out to be a wise decision. I made more short stops than usual and it took me three hours but what a joy. The sky was pure blue and the fall colors were brilliant. Dewey Lake sparkled and The Mountain stood out in all of its usual splendor. I make this trip every year and have many photos of the area. This time I took my digital instead of my SLR camera and took 75 pictures (I like the price of the film). Most of them came out great. The trail has not changed. In the morning the muddy spots are fairly hard. The remnants of a snow dusting lingered in the shade. There were more signs of horses than usual. There was only a handfull of hikers. It looks like they are working on a new ""restroom"" at the parking lot. I thoroughly enjoyed this trip and am grateful I was able to make it. I do miss my yearly trip in the fall to view the Larch on Ingalls Way. Maybe there will be a few snowshoe and ski trips this winter and look out spring.