Mount Pilchuck Winter Ascent

A perfect day for an ascent of Nanga Pilchuck. The snow isn't deep at all, the avalanche danger is low, the trail is easy to follow as long as you stay on the most heavily travelled tread. Less used side trails abound in many directions, leading who knows where.
We climbed up via the north slope trail, fairly easy going if you have treking poles (which I had) and yak traks or microspikes (which I didn't). There were a few slippery spots, but nothing too dangerous, and we made the last pitch up a fairly steep chute with no problem. From there it's an easier scramble through snow and boulders to the lookout.
The view was, well, Pilchuck. Sticking out 30 miles from the main massif of the Cascades, a 360 degree panorama of Western Washington unfolds before you. You can see three National Parks, from North Cascades to Olympic to Mount Rainier, and in between literally hundreds of peaks in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. In the west is a shining path of water...the Salish Sea (or Whulj or Puget Sound), the San Juan Islands, the city of Everett (where we live). Every resident of the Pugetopolis metroplex should hike here at least once, if only for the perspective.
We decided to follow the south slope route on our descent, following along the ridge to round the shoulder of Little Pilchuck until we rejoined the main trail on Mount Pilchuck's north side, because it wasn't as steep and was less icy thanks to a day in the sun.
I worry about some of the people I saw on the hike, folks with tennis shoes, cotton pants and (maybe) a kmart booksack on their backs with (maybe) 1 to 3 of the ten essentials. One father with three teen daughters, thus equipped, was heading up as we were coming down at 2:30 in the afternoon. What would happen if someone were to twist an ankle, or if they underestimated their time and were still slipping and sliding down the now icy trail at nightfall? Dad said something about not wanting to "waste all the effort we've already invested" and continued up. I hope I don't read about them in the paper tomorrow, but they weren't alone, because an alarming number of people were headed up a mountain in winter dressed for a day at Safeco Field. I'm sure most of them will be fine, but hey, sometimes shit happens, and I often feel compelled to attempt to gently dicourage them from heading into harms way. It is a compulsion I usually resist out of politeness, except in egregious cases where little kids are in tow.
For those with adequate clothing and gear, however, the weather right now is perfect for Pilchuck.

North Fork Sauk & Red Mountain

These three short hikes make for a great day trip, a sort of Sauk Valley sampler, all accessed by the same route, FS road 49.
The first hike, North Fork Sauk Falls, is less than two miles after the turn off from the Mountain Loop. We had to approach from Darrington because Barlow Pass isn't open yet, turning on to FS 49 just before Bedal Creek campground. The trail is very short, maybe 1/8th mile with a drop of 100' to the falls, which are thundering and misting mightily with snowmelt on this warm sunny weekend. Watch out for the rickety stairs and loose hand rails near the bottom.
FS Road 49 ends 1/2 mile before the trailhead for the other two hikes due to a washout. There's just room enough to turn around and park abot 200' before the washout. Crossing the gully can be done on the uphill side, an easy leap in you're athletic or a short scramble if you're not.
The trailhead is an easy 1/2 mile later at Sloan Creek campground. After pausing to pay our respects to a grove of ancient cedars and sign the trail register, we walked about 200 feet and took the trail to the left for Red Mountain. In a steep (800') mile, you'll come to a former FS lookout site with great views of Sloan Peak and the Cadets. The trail keeps going uphill, but unless you're out to explore deeper into the backcountry, this is a good turn around.
We returned to the valley and headed up the North Fork Sauk trail. We followed the river for 2 1/2 miles through swaths of huge old trees surrounded by carpets of wildflowers, from huge skunk cabbage to dainty calypso orchids. There's an avalanche chute to cross, along side of a creek at 2 miles, so watch out for hollow spots beneath otherwise hard packed snow. The FS web page said there would be deep snow after 1 1/2 miles, but we only saw small patches in the shade, so it's probably clear to Red creek at 4 miles, at which point it will be August before you can ford there and continue up the valley.
We did all three hikes in six hours, but that includes lunch, photo ops and 45 minutes just gazing from the lookout. This would be a great introduction to the Cascades for out of town friends or young explorers.
This is also a great place to hike if you're tired of the crowds at more popular hikes like Lake 22 or Mount Index. On this warm, sunny Sunday, Memorial Day weekend no less, we found only 4 other cars when we arrived at noon and only passed one couple on Red Mountain and one family on the North Fork Sauk River trail. If you seek beauty and solitude, these hikes in the Glacier Peak Wilderness offer the best "bang for the buck" sweat to scenary ratio in the Darrington Ranger District.

Thunder Creek

The Thunder Creek trail is in the North Cascades National Park, beginning at the Colonial Creek Campground and going as far as Lake Chelan in central Washington, via Park Creek Pass & Cascade Pass. We followed the first 6 1/2 miles along Thunder Creek to McAllister camp, an easy, kid friendly stretch that is 13 miles round trip, 700' elevation gain through huge old cedars and firs.
The trail is in good shape. We did encounter numerous blowdowns from last winter, maybe 30 trees that we had to go over/under/around, but none were major obstacles. Considering it was a Sunday in early May with temperatures in the low 70's, I would have thought that this fairly low elevation (1200'-1900') trail would have been packed, but we only saw one other hiker all day. I don't know if solitude can be found here once school lets out for the summer, but right now it's very peaceful. If you're afraid you'll be lonely, don't worry, you'll have plenty of mosquitoes to keep you company.
The trail starts along Diablo Lake for the first mile, then a bridge crossing takrs you to the north side of Thunder Creek, where the trail climbs above but within earshot of the creek for the next 5 miles. You'll cross Neve Creek and a dozen other unnamed tributaries, some on bridges but most by scrambling over logs or hopping stones. The forest is a mix of age classes, from towering old growth to areas cleared by fire and avalanche. The patches of new growth also afford teaser views of local peaks, including Colonial Peak for which the creek and campground are named (pictured above).
McAllister camp is a good spot for lunch and turnaround for day hikers. Backpackers may want to forge on to Tricouni Camp 2 miles away to avoid the tourists and to peer into the Great Dismal Swamp. The trail then takes of up hill for Park creek Pass, the Pacific Crest Trail and Lake Chelan.
I love Thunder Creek for its color, ranging from torquoise ble to emerald green; for its lovely spring wildflowers; and its tasty huckleberries and blueberries which line the trail in August and September.

Know Your Limits!

We had set out to snowshoe to Artists Point on Koma Kulshan (Mount Baker) on a rainy February day, hoping to climb above snow level, and ended up getting more than we bargained for. It was snowing lightly when we got to the ski area parking lot, the trailhead for our hike, so we strapped on the 'shoes and headed out. Within 1/2 hour the weather had changed dramatically. Visibility dropped to 1/2 mile, then 1/4 mile and finally to 1/10 mile. The wind rose and blew the snow almost horizontally, making it hard to see 100' ahead.
We didn't have a topo map, hoping to follow the tracks of other snowshoers and relying on a GPS tracker to retrace our steps if need be. What we didn't count on was that there would be snowshoers going in many directions, or that the wind and snow would quickly obliterate their tracks and ours. Well, this was only our second snowshoe hike, and we obviously have much to learn.
After gaining a few hundred feet in elevation we encountered a sign with ominous warnings like "rescue may not be possible" and "your heirs may be fined $500". My heirs? That got my attention. So did the experienced skier who warned us that avalanche danger was increasing as the day wore on and oh, by the way, the trail we were looking for was on the next ridge over. We decided that discretion is the better part of valor and made a gradual retreat back to the truck.
If the weather was sunny our hike would have been just fine, and we plan to go back (with a topo map next time), but good judgement is as important as good gear in the backcountry, and forging ahead would have been a potentially fatal mistake. If you're unsure whether you can safely procede, don't. There's always another day. Besides, being too goal oriented is linear thinking at its worst. The journey is the destination, and we had a lovely if brief stroll through a winter storm at 5000' in the North Cascades, got a chance to test our winter gear under severe conditions (we stayed warm and dry) and got some nice pictures.

Sauk Mountain

Sauk Mountain is one of my favorite local hikes, a short but steep trail with panoramic, 360 degree views of the North Cascades. To get there, follow Highway 20 to just past Rockport State Park (great salmon fishing and winter eagle watching here) and turn left onto Forest Service Road 1030 for a twisy/bumpy 7 mile drive to the Sauk Mountain trailhead (trail #613).

The first 1/4 mile is mostly level, but the trail starts to climb quickly as you follow over two dozen switchbacks to gain 1200' in less than 2 miles. It's a good idea to keep your eyes and ears open for falling rocks disloged by hikers uphill from you. Views of Mount Baker and the Skagit river valley begin to emerge as you climb. As you near the top, the trail winds around to the east side of the mountain for more views of the North Cascades. A side trail from here will take you to Sauk Lake 1200' below for some good trout fishing, or continue on another 1/4 mile to the summit for great views of Mount Baker and the confluence of the Skagit and Sauk rivers.