Iron Goat Trail

Although I've hiked sections of the Iron Goat Trail before, today was the first time I hiked the whole trail in one day. What a great workout!
This is an interesting haunted hike, a spooky halloween treat, with gorgeous bits scattered in between.


I parked at the Scenic trailhead, taking the lower trail to Martin Creek, then the upper trail to Wellington, returning to Scenic by the Windy Pass cutoff. The nice thing about the Iron Goat is that since it follows the old railroad route, and the steam trains could only handle a 4% grade, the trail from Marten Creek to Wellington is as easy and level a path as you can hope to find in the vertical landscape of the Cascades.

The trail is dry right now, even as you pass by pretty little creeks and waterfalls (as of friday, maybe not) and free of blowdowns. The section from just past Windy Pass overlook to Wellington is smooth enough to be bike and wheelchair friendly, a great place to take the very young, very old and very lazy to stretch their legs and get some fresh air.

I stopped at the viewing stand at the site of the Wellington avalanche disaster of 1910 (96 dead, the nations worst avalanche ever) and, in the spirit of Halloween tried to conjure up some ghosts, but the only luck I had was hearing the ghostly sound of trains in the background, courtesy of the modern BNSF and Amtrak routes that still run through the valley below. I saw an informal path leading from the viewing stand to the disaster site, but decided it would be morbid and disrespectful to intrude on whatever twisted remains lay beneath the screen of trees.

Because of the gentle grade and great condition of the trail, the whole 12 miles only took 5 1/2 hours, including two 15 minute breaks.

If you want a dose of history to enhance your Iron Goat experience, check out the book "White Cascade" by Gary Krist.

Pinnacle Lake

Good news! The road to the Pinnacle Lake/Bear lake trailhead is repaired and open. From the turnoff where FS Road 4020 splits from the Boardman/Ashland Lakes road, it's in great shape if a bit narrow, with a brand new bridge.


The trail itself is another matter. Pinnacle has always been a challenging route of rocks and roots, but it has been little used and neglected as of late, and it shows. The small bridge just after the Pinnacle trail splits off from Bear Lake is missing planks, slick & slimey and leaning at a precarious angle. I crossed OK on the way up, but slipped and bent the tip of one of my trekking poles on the way down. Use caution, or better yet find another way across the creek.



The trail soon turns into a rut which is probably a stream during wet weather. It is very narrow and deep in many places, and doesn't improve much until after the first mile, when the grade lessens as you follow the spine of a forested ridge. Look for nice "teaser" views of Three Fingers, Dickerman, Glacier Peak and Mount Baker.

Close to the top there is a somber note, a small sign memorializing the two hikers, Susanna Stodden and Mary Cooper, who were killed here in a senseless and as yet unsolved crime. Pay your respects, but don't let the bastard(s) take even more by making you fearful to visit. It was a tragic but isolated and random incident, and you are safer here than you were in your own neighborhood or on the drive up I-5.

When the ridge finally levels out, you'll come to some seemingly permanent mudholes, but please just slop on through. The wallows seem to get bigger each year as people try to skirt the edge and end up widening them. If your boots didn't get sucked off, you'll round a corner to a lovely tarn surrounded by huckleberries, now in nice fall colors. Many visitors mistakenly believe this is the lake, but it's still 1/10th of a mile away. Just follow the well worn track around and beyond the pond, and you'll be rewarded with a good sized trout filled lake with some level granite slabs to sit on while you watch the fish jump and admire a big hunk of Mount Pilchuck rising up from the other end of Pinnacle Lake.

If you didn't stop by Bear Lake on the way up, be sure to take the detour when you get down. It's a nice tranquil spot to relax and maybe fish before climbing into your car for the bumpy ride back to the Mountain Loop road.

Mount Pilchuck Early Autumn

 A Trip Report in 3 Haiku's...

Foggy Everett

                                                 left behind, Pilchuck beckons

              a crowded trailhead

Cool trees warm boulders

                   feeling summer and autumn

                   warm colors abound

A rocky descent

round, angular, boot snaring

gotta watch those feet