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Tag Archives: hike

Cutthroat Pass Hike

This is another great fall hike! We started at the Cutthroat trailhead and hiked five and a half miles to the pass where we connected with the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) and hiked down another five or so miles to Rainy Pass where we had left a second car in the morning. We did not have the blue skies and sunshine of the previous week’s hike and that made the dogs a lot more comfortable. Also there were numerous stream crossings, especially on the Rainy Pass side, where the dogs could wet their whistles. At the pass we saw quite a few PCT through hikers who were nearly to their goal on their hike from Mexico to Canada. The ones we talked to said they should reach the border in just four more days. They were all cheerful and looked healthy and hearty. After such a long journey on foot, I think I expected them to look gaunt and tired.

Starting up the trail, not yet to Cutthroat Lake
Unexpected water on the trail
I love this enormous slab of rock. Can you see the face in it?
Quincy looks good in red
The start of our walk through the magnificent yellow larch trees
Left to Canada or right to go south. We went south.
Luna celebrated her 9th birthday the day after this 11 mile hike!
It’s so hard to get everyone to pose all at once!
Tails
Through hikers enjoying a grand view at lunch time. I wonder how many of these grand views they’ve had since spring?
Seems like one small earthquake could change the face of that mountain
Looking south into the central Casades
Lots of switchbacks make for an easy grade.
The golden larch season is fleeting. It’s best to enjoy it while we can.
Out of the larches and into the dark forest.
It was so nice to see small creeks in this drought-stricken year.
Frida blends into this creek

Maple Pass Hike

The Maple Pass/Heather Pass loop hike may be one of the best, easily accessible fall hikes in the North Cascades. The fall foliage colors are outstanding. Combined with endless blue skies and surrounding mountain peaks and throw in a couple of brilliant tarns and it is sure to take your breath away.

My friend Cindy drove 2 1/2 hours to join me and all along the hike she kept saying – look at that, isn’t that just the prettiest sight. She was right. We did this seven-mile loop in a clockwise direction. This took us up the steepest part and down the more gradual sloping trail. We find that this is better for our feet, ankles and knees. Most other hikers went the other direction. We heard lots of pikas and got good looks at one of them. At the top of the ridge, a dark falcon went whizzing by us at top speed. It was so close we could almost feel the wing beats.

This is a lot of images. You should see what I left out!

Mountain ash
Climbing
Oh, it’s SO beautiful!
Lake Ann, one of two small mountain tarns we saw along the way
Red huckleberry foliage along the trail.
Ice crystals that emerge from the ground on cold nights.
Western larch needles. Larch is the only conifer I know that loses its needles every year.
Views, views, and more views.
See the tiny pika on the rock? Pika is the smallest member of the rabbit family. They live in talus fields like this and gather dry grasses, making little hay piles under the rocks, to eat in the winter.
You can see the downhill part of the trail above Lake Ann
The last stretch to the top
We walked up all those switchbacks.
Glacier Peak in the distance
Like being on top of the world!
Perfect lunch time view
And it was National Black Dog Day!
Already going downhill. The elevation slips away quickly on the downhill side.
Even Sky seems impressed by the color
The trail up was just on the other side of that ridge.
Last light on the peaks.
Still Smiling!

Blue Lake This Week

It seems crazy to have two posts in a row about hiking to Blue Lake. And what if I said that I’d been there another time in between these two hikes? Getting to the Blue Lake trailhead is an easy drive, all on pavement and the trail is not too long – less than three miles – to a superb destination. It’s pretty heavily used but if you time it right, it is a sweet spot.

Highway 20 to the west of us had been closed due to a wildfire at Newhalem in the North Cascades National Park. That meant that most of the traffic across Rainy and Washington Passes was non-existent! Ken wanted to go this weekend and even though I’d already been there twice in the last two weeks, it seemed like a good idea. Weather had moderated and our lives were returning to normal as the wildfires burning all around us were becoming contained. The highway opened while we were hiking.

It seemed too chilly to have her in the water very much. She was disappointed.
Stuff grows out of rocks
More stuff growing out of a rock
Stuff grows out of old wood
What is she saying to me?
Chipmunks on her mind
Smaller larches are already changing color
Fall
I like this rock
Last flowers
Willow gall
Fireweed
Fireweed
Two trees had fallen over the trail in this weekend’s heavy wind storm
Baby grouse at the trailhead as I arrived at the parking lot
Grouse – Dusky or Sooty? I think Sooty.

Blue Lake Two Weeks Ago

On a Sunday, two weeks ago Marcy and I decided to take a late afternoon hike to Blue Lake. The parking lot was overflowing with cars but we managed to find a spot at the trailhead. We had timed it so that people were leaving as we were arriving. All the way up, folks were walking down and when we got to the lake, we had the place to ourselves. Sky was ecstatic to jump in the water repeatedly and I was happy she wasn’t bothering anyone with all her commotion. It was a warm day but we were there late enough that the sun dipped behind the rocky crags above us and it cooled off quickly.

It was a nice diversion from all the news about this summer’s wildfires. Just three days later the Twisp River fire broke out and our lives were pushed back into the tumult of evacuations and uncertainty.

Gray Jay otherwise known as camp robber

Cedar Creek Falls

I should have been working today but my boss (me) gave me the day off for fun and exercise. Too much time in front of the computer is not good for any of us. You do know that, don’t you?

MA suggested the Cedar Creek Falls trail near Mazama. I’ve only hiked it once before and remembered it as being dusty and at the falls I never got a good view. I think it must have been earlier in the summer with higher water because today we easily got to the top of the falls and the cascades and with some effort, we were able to get to the bottom of one of the tall waterfalls. It looked like there was another below us but it was steep and we didn’t want to let the dogs get close to it. It was worth the dust and horse poop on the trail. The cool mist off the falls felt really refreshing! I wish I could bottle that feeling to use for the rest of the summer.

For these photos I was using a gorillapod tripod and Lumix super zoom camera. Not the best gear for moving water but it worked.

Part of the upper cascades
Looking down over the edge of the tall waterfall
These yellow flowers were growing out of the cliff to the right of the falls.
All of us in one photo!