I was hiking section K of the PCT and needed to use the Cady Creek trail to bail out due to a phone issue.  The Cady Creek trail is not terrible, but it isn't great either.  It is fairly overgrown in places, enough so that I was soaking wet (like, could wring out my shorts and had water squelching in my shoes) by the time I finished, but was never difficult to follow and the elevation loss was pretty mild.  You are in the trees the entire time so pretty boring as far as views go as well.  There are multiple points of water access, which was a pro over Cady Creek.

The next morning I elected to hike up the Cady Ridge trail, even though it would mean missing 4 miles of the PCT.  There is about 0.5 miles that is very steep, but otherwise the climb is nicely graded.  The trail is not at all overgrown, and there are much better views than on the Cady Creek trail.  The climb did take me a bit longer than expected since I was carrying extra water (there is none on this trail) and 8 days of food.

Overall, if you are desperate to use Cady Creek to create a loop, it's totally doable, but I would just as soon recommend using Cady Ridge as an out-and-back, especially since the trail junctions on the PCT are only 4 miles apart from each other.

My excuse for this day hike was to break in my new overnight backpack that I purchased to replace my 15-year old pack from Boy Scout trips.  The weather was typical for the end of September.   Raining at the pass, bright sun at Lake Wenatchee, foggy at the trailhead, misty on the ridge, with two periods of epic rain nearing the PCT.   It is a reminder to bring all your gear even on a day hike.  
12 cars in the parking area, but I only saw one person during the day.   The rest room was open ((with a full supply of paper).   
The road into the trailhead from Lake Wenatchee is suitable for all vehicles given basic care.   The last two miles of dirt road are 5-10 mph roads.  Potholes and ruts but none like the west side that can submerge small sedans. The ~6 miles of single lane before dirt were 25-30 mph roads.  There is more danger from oncoming traffic around the curves than potholes.   

The trail is in very good condition.   There are some brushy patches early but you can always see the trail and your feet.   There are also one or two “step over” trees that should not pose any problems.   There is no water on the ridge so load up at the parking area.   
There are lots of berries higher up on the ridge.  I started seeing full bushes of berries above 5100’ elevation.   

I did not make it all the way to the PCT.   about a mile shy but there were no epic views in the pouring rain.   I reached my turnaround time so it was back down the trail and back home in time for dinner.   

Seems like every time I do Cady Creek it’s full of morning dew or right after a rain. The moral of the story is always be prepared to get sloshed on this very overgrown trail. Great loop though, and the PCT section was worth it. 

Did a 2 night solo backpack trip over Labor Day weekend.

Road to the trailhead of Cady Creek Trail was fine until the last few miles where it was rough. Fine if you go slow. 

Cady Creek Trail to campsite night 1. I got on trail at 5pm and hiked in 3.5 miles. The WTA said there were campsites and I was driving in after work from Seattle so this was perfect. The Cady Creek trail was indeed brushy, but the wet campsite so close to the trailhead made it worth it to me. I wore shorts and a tank top and was fine, thankful there are no ticks up here. I was all alone and didn’t see anyone and the campsites are right on the river.

Camp to Upper Blue Lake night 2. I hiked the rest of Cady Creek up to the PCT and on to Lake Sally Ann for lunch. There is some water on Cady Creek, but none on the PCT until you hit Lake Sally Ann. Berries are abundant. The hike up was not too steep and grade was pleasant. After a break at Lake Sally Ann I continued north on the PCT to Dishpan gap, again no water really in this section except a few trickles. You can manage with those if need be. No water at dishpan gap, but there are some campsites if you want to dry camp. I turned left onto Bald Eagle trail and decided to take the lower route around to Blue Lakes. When you hit the turn off (Pilot Ridge Trail) to descend to the lakes, it is steep and rocky, but fine other wise. You’ll hit an unnamed tarn with great campsites before hitting the lower Blue Lake. If it’s a busy weekend, I’d suggest staying here. The last mile to upper Blue Lake has about 500ft elevation gain which was tough for me after a day of hiking. I arrived around 3pm to pretty much full campsites. I grabbed water and stayed about 0.1 back on the Pilot Ridge in a small clearing. Lake was gorgeous and cold. Privy was completely full. There is a great dry site up the high trail about 0.2 if you want to carry water up a ways. 

Blue Lake High Trail to Cady Ridge trail to trailhead. Day 3 I planned to take the high trail back up and over the saddle out of Blue Lake. 100% recommend this. It’s steep climbing and loose rock, but free of any snow. Once you reach the saddle on a clear day you get stunning views, including Mount Rainier. What a pleasant surprise. Coming down the trail back toward Dishpan gap wasn’t too bad, a little sketchy with loose rock, but totally doable. At the fork, there is a great view of Glacier as well. At Dishpan, went south on the PCT to the Cady Ridge trail. Again, only trickles of water on the PCT and a few on the Ridge trail. I cameled up at Blue Lake just in case, but would’ve been able to fill up if necessary. The Cady Ridge trail is nice, but less of a ridge than expected. I had lunch with a view of Glacier which was amazing. There are a couple campsites if you want to hike in water at the top of the ridge. The climb down was very steep for a while, then nice long switchbacks. At first I was regretting coming in via Cady Creek, but I don’t know if I would’ve wanted to hike water up that steep section that was a mega dusty adult sandbox. 

Overall, this was a good loop for those who like loops as opposed to out and backs. There are lots of dry camping options with great views. The established campsites were crowded, but could find space. No snow on trail. Wear sunscreen!

Did a multi night work party on Cady Ridge. We cut down the vegetation around the trail all the way to the PCT and on the PCT. Beautiful trail with views of Glacier, Baker and Rainier. Very few people on the trail. Blanca Lake trail head, which is very close, was packed. Cars parked far out of the parking lot. Cady has no close lake, but it does have a LOT of blueberries and lovely views. 

The navigation to the trail head is wrong. I would follow the Blanca Lake directions and then continue on the road past the Blanca parking lot until it ends.