This is a very nice hike in three seasons.  Never crowded.  Its not right off highway twenty, its a long way before you get to 360 degree views or a lake so I guess that explains the lack of crowds.  Today we got a late start so we turned around at Beauty Creek falls and then had lunch on the banks of Robinson Creek. Very nice outing.  Lost River Road has a fair number of potholes but its totally navigable in any type of vehicle.  The trail itself is in decent shape.  Mostly a nice gentle slope with a few short steep spots.  There are a few brushy spots but nothing to spoil a great day.  Bugs were not bad.  My wife got one bite.  I got none.  Only bumped into three other hikers while on the trail. Apparently there is a washout past Robinson Pass.  We did not go that far so I advise that you check trip reports if you are going on a multi day trip using this trail for the rest of 2022.  There is also a washout further up Harts Pass road so accessing the Robinson Creek trail from the upper end is also going to be difficult for a bit.  All in all an enjoyable. 

Full disclosure, we did not summit Robinson, it wasn’t even a possibility for the day. However, all of the approach was done and we basked in glorious sunshine alongside a high alpine pond (just below the peak) eating bon-bons😅

Robinson Creek is a bit of a thoroughfare. Horse packers use it to access the Paysayten Wilderness. The biggest benefit is that the trail is always in great shape. This morning, having suffered from a freak rain event, the trail was soaking. Like, pour-water-out-of-your-shoes, water. At 2.7 miles we crossed Beauty Creek. Thus far we had ripe blueberries, some great waterfall views, and, as I said, soaked to the bone trail conditions.

Beauty Creek Trail is an official FS trail that has not seen maintenance in a long, long time. Remarkably this is not its biggest problem as it probably sees very few hikers. Steep, brushy, and with poor tread are the issues. The first 1000’ is gained in 3/4 of a mile or so. After that the gain eases a bit and the original tread becomes downright excellent!

Our day was fully spent entertained by wildflowers, so the steep-trail-miles quickly melted away. Just past crossing a creek the user trail to Robinson appeared to our left. We were not fooled by the term ‘trail’. This ‘path’ gains 900’ in the first half mile before ‘easing off’ for the final 600’ to the lake. Our legs got a good beat down today!

All of this was absolutely gorgeous! We identified nearly sixty wildflowers, swam in a pristine alpine lake and saw just one other individual all day😊

The last report for Robinson Creek was posted on the WTA web site on June 7, 2022 (https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/trip-reports/trip_report-2022-06-07-2853270783).  As noted in that report, the stream was roaring and the flowers were excellent; for us, we experienced the same (Figure 1).  In that earlier report, the author had to turn around soon after the second bridged crossing over Robinson Creek (~4 miles) because of debris from an avalanche covering the trail.  Although we only went to the Beauty Creek bridge (~2.7 miles), it seemed from those coming down or going up that this had been cleared.

Unfortunately, scheduling forced us to select a hike that would only take 2.5 hours round trip from the trailhead.  Had the road from the end of the paved Lost River Road been graded in the last decade (too many fires, not enough money), we might have had an extra 30 minutes!  The far sides of the road appear best for avoiding the numerous, often deep potholes, but which side?  It varies.  The short spur to the trail head is in excellent condition; there is and was ample parking; kiosk is informative; and the single door facility was in good condition.  In fact, there was a USFS employee updating the kiosk and maintaining the facility. 

Soon after leaving the trail head, one encounters a clearly very old sign indicating the distances; for example, the distance to Robinson Pass is 9 miles (Figure 2).  An abandoned road is followed to the base of the hill, where Robinson Creek, to the right, is left and up begins.  The trail is in excellent condition.  Just before and just after the first switch-back, one sees several bigleaf maples, only one large, the rest are saplings or a seedling.  A rarity for this far east of the crest.  After this switchback, the trail contours and continues to steadily gain elevation; some of the time one is in shade, much of the time in sun.  Soon the roar of the river can be heard as it descends steeply from the valley floor above.  The first bridge is reached -- a substantial one easily bearing the weight of horses for example (witness the fresh horseshoe prints; the trail tracks through a camp spot, makes a switchback and now gains considerable elevation, passes the sign indicating the wilderness boundary, continues gaining elevation until as one rounds a minor ridge, a view of the mid-valley section of the trail emerges.  At this point, the river is far below to the left. This is a great flower zone (Figure 3) and for the next almost mile, the trail does not gain or lose much elevation .  A small stream is crossed – first good water for a dog.  As one approaches Beauty Creek, the trail and Robinson Creek are now converging in elevation although the stream and the trail are still vertically separated. 

Here overstory trees include Douglas-fir, Engelmann spruce, subalpine fir, and western redcedar.  Understory species include Rocky Mountain maple, redosier dogwood, mountain ash, serviceberry, thimbleberry.

Soon there is the roar of another stream.  Standing on the Beauty Creek bridge (~3,600 ft), it is difficult to hear someone talk as the water coming from the basin formed by Mt. Robinson, tumbles in a series of cascades right in front of one (Figure 4).  About 50 feet further from the bridge is a climber’s trail to the basin below and ENE of Mount Robinson (8,731 ft).  We had a snack and water on the bridge and headed back.  We made the car with 15 minutes to spare!

We chose the hike up Robinson Creek for its promise of spring flowers, a roiling creek and views of the surrounding peaks, all with the potential of seeing wildlife in this wild valley.  The hike did not disappoint. 

The trailhead access is good, although the final few miles of dirt road is severely pot-holed and requires slow and careful driving.  We found only one other car in the parking lot on this Wednesday morning, and we met nobody on the trail all day. 

The trail itself is in excellent condition up to the bridge over Beauty Creek.  However, after that it become progressively more overgrown, with berry bushes often crowding over the trail.  It was easy to push through these, but long pants were appreciated.  Four trees have fallen across the trail between Beauty Creek and the second bridge over Robinson Creek, about 4 miles in.   Two of these are large and require climbing up and over.  They would definitely present insurmountable barriers to equestrians. 

We had hoped to hike in about 6 miles, to the ford over Robinson Creek, but we were stopped a few hundred yards past the upper bridge by a massive pile of avalanche debris across and along the trail (see photo).  The dead trees were piled four deep in a tangle of trunks and branches, and we were unable to find a way over, through or around the blockage.  Somewhat disappointed, we backtracked and had a leisurely lunch stop on the exposed rocks just before the bridge, enjoying the views of the high surrounding ridges. 

Even though we had to turn around sooner than we had planned, we thoroughly enjoyed the trail.  The views of Driveway Butte to the south, Robinson Peak to the north, and the high ridges on either side were lovely and better than we had expected.  Numerous streams cascaded down the steep valley walls on both sides, and Robinson Creek itself was a roaring torrent.  Blooming wildflowers and flowering bushes were abundant all along the trail, and the air was perfumed with their blossoms.  Orange paintbrush dominated much of the way, but there was an astonishing diversity of other species as well, including larkspurs lower down, ball head waterleaf, yellow arnica, chocolate lilies, and fairy bells in the middle reaches, and patches of violets and glacier lilies near the upper bridge.  There were many other species, as well: too many to list and many that I could not identify.  This is clearly an optimal time to hike this trail for the waterfalls and flowers.

All in all, the four miles to the upper bridge made a lovely spring day hike.  The trail is well graded and easy to follow, with only a few rocky sections, and the gradual elevation gain allowed us to keep up a good pace with relatively little effort.  Even though the trail is in a deep valley, its southeastern alignment allows plenty of sunshine to reach the valley floor, at least at this time of year.  The only disappointment was the avalanche debris blocking the trail above the second bridge.  I expect that this is going to prevent backpackers and equestrians from accessing the upper reaches of the valley for some time to come.

I hiked up Robinson Creek to Beauty Creek falls and beyond about 4 miles one way. After the pavement ends at Lost River, the road was passable for my VW Golf, but there were quite a few potholes so take you time if you have low clearance. There were not other cars at the trailhead on a Thursday morning. The trail was well maintained with a few blowdowns that were easily stepped over or walked around. Lots of wildflowers this time of year and the creek was really roaring! As you walk further this trail had a nice wild feel to it heading out in to the Pasayten Wilderness with views out to Beauty Peak, Robinson Mt. and beyond. At 2.8 miles the falls make a good turnaround for a short day on the trail. Just past the bridge over the falls a few feet and on your right is a climbers trail that will take you up in to the high country for views and climbing if you like. Lots of options and really quiet wilderness feel up Robinson Creek...