While always true for most trails, the Chatter Creek Trail is an exercise in fighting gravity both ways. As many have noted previously the first mile or so is a gentle warm-up in cozy forest, before the trail rockets skyward—if one doesn’t slow down before the pass, they are likely to be launched into the brilliant blue above. The hanging valley below Grindstone presents a much-needed rest from the incline before the rocky and brushy trail climbs steeply again to the pine filled notch on the ridgeline.

The fall foliage is fantastic (larch are medium-well to well done) and the glorious meadows on the east side of the range remain hidden until travelers have earned several thousand feet of elevation. I was drawn down and through the rolling meadows eventually stopping at Lake Edna for an unusually warm and windless night, a rarity for a lake famous for its cold and wind. For dinner I hauled my potatoes to Cape Horn and sat watching the setting sun. Like sinking ships, each ridgeline and mountain peak were slowly consumed by the blue ocean of shadow and haze. With fading light, I descended the perilously steep path to the main trail, and then further descended to camp in the dark rocky bench of the Lake Edna basin.

The next morning, I went on a satisfying journey to Ladies Peak, a short albeit steep walkup. A constant wind signaled a change in weather and the constant struggle of pressure systems floating around in the grand atmospheric circulation. After a traverse of the pine and fir dotted slopes in full sunshine, I returned to camp applying sunscreen—donning shorts and a t-shirt in October! —and prepared to head out.

With the larch meadows and tired legs slowing my pace, I regained the notch and succumbed to the gravitational pull of the Scatter Creek Trail. Rocky at first, brushy in the middle, and finally a soft carpet of needles to cushion your likely tired feet near the end.

Happy Fall Color hunting while it lasts.

My partner, my dog and I headed out for my annual birthday backpack and decided to make a loop starting at the Icicle Gorge trailhead and heading clockwise up Icicle Creek, up Frosty/Wildhorse, along Icicle Ridge and down Chatter Creek.

We got a late-ish start at 11 a.m. on Saturday and easily found parking at the Icicle Gorge Trailhead. The road is paved up until the last 3 or so miles, and the dirt road is in good shape aside from some washboarding.

We headed west along the Icicle Gorge Nature trail for as long as we could, and then bumped up to the road once we ran out of trail. After a short road walk we reached the Icicle Creek trailhead which was nearly empty. The Icicle Creek trail was in pretty great shape aside from the bridges. As the Hiking Guide mentions, there is a bridge out at 1.5 miles and 5 miles. The first bridge is totally out of commission, but someone has set a few fallen planks across the creek to form a makeshift crossing. The second bridge is cracked in half but sturdy enough to walk across. Being October, the water level was very low at both crossings, but it might be sketchy early in the season.

After turning onto Frosty, trail conditions degraded a little bit. The trail had clearly been logged this summer (thank you! also, if you’re missing a saw wedge, I found one in the valley below Frosty Pass) and there were almost no blowdowns. It gets pretty brushes in places, so pants might be a smart choice (I’m a shorts purist so my legs got a bit cut up).

At Frosty Pass we turned onto Icicle Ridge and continued to Lake Mary for the night. We had the entire lake to ourselves for the night — the only people we had seen all day were a dozen trail runners on their way out. It’s a quaint little lake with some lovely fall colors coming through (no larches, though). We didn’t check out the privy, but past reports mention it’s been destroyed.

The next morning, we bumped back up to Icicle Ridge and continued east. It’s a beautiful ridge walk with fall colors abound and sparse larches sprinkled around. We didn’t see another human until we reached Lake Edna — I was so surprised with how much solitude we found out here!

From Lake Edna onward, the trail explodes with larches! The entire stretch between Lake Edna and the pass is stunning. There were definitely more hikers and backpackers on this half of our trip, but it still never felt crowded. Heading down Chatter Creek was absolutely brutal on the knees (poles are so helpful!) but it didn’t feel too long. Once we made it down to the Chatter Creek trailhead, we had another .5 mile roadwalk to get back to our car at Icicle Gorge TH.

Four of us hiked a fantastic three-day backpack up Chatter Creek last week. The larches were mostly at their peak, with a few still a bit greenish.

I would say my favorite section of this trip was the Icicle Ridge Trail from Lake Edna to Lake Mary. This is Alpine Lakes Wilderness high alpine roaming at its finest. We visited seven lakes in three days.

We’ll definitely be back someday to do more exploring here. Lots of good peaks for scrambling, and at least two more lakes for us to visit (Alice and Sylvester). The way up Chatter Creek is definitely a grind, but you’ll forget all about that once you reach the other side of the pass.

TRAILHEAD / PEOPLE: No problems getting to the trailhead with any car. Keep an eye out for the large "Chatter Creek Trailhead" sign on the right - Google Maps will lead you past it. Two of us car-camped overnight before our hike to avoid a long morning drive, and shared the parking lot with only one other vehicle. There were 3 or 4 other cars in the lot when we returned, with room for probably 8-10 more. No facilities at the trailhead, so plan ahead and stop at one of the many campgrounds or portable toilets along Icicle Road.

We saw only six other people on our three-day hike: two near the top of Chatter Creek on Day 1, two near Lake Mary on Day 2, and two more ascending Chatter Creek on Day 3 as we were descending.

CHATTER CREEK: This trail gains a lot of elevation, no doubt. There is a nice warm-up section before you cross Chatter Creek the first time at 3200'. Then it's very steep until you reach the hanging valley at about 5000'. Then gentle until 5400' when you start the steep and scenic climb up the last 1300' to the top of the massive headwall of Chatter Creek. There are two very large blowdowns - one in the camp just below 4400', and the other a bit below 5800'. Both have detours around them.

In general, the trail is in good shape, but you will find it brushy in places with a few spots of trail creep. The climb up the headwall is probably the most technical section as the trail winds around cliff bands and boulder fields on a route that looks impossible but isn't.

Once you reach the top of the headwall at nearly 6700', you enter another world of high alpine meadows and endless views, and LARCHES. As others have described, the section between the Chatter Creek high point and Lake Edna is the best on-trail location for larch grandeur. It's set against colorful boulders and solid rock of many hues, and gorgeous fall colors on the side of Grindstone Mountain and Cape Horn.

ICICLE RIDGE: We joined the Icicle Ridge Trail about 1/3 mile before reaching Lake Edna. The section up to Lake Edna is beautiful with lots of larches and colorful fall vegetation. As you approach Lake Edna it gets more desolate, and at the pass above the lake on the side of Cape Horn, it's pretty much just rocks. On our way in, there was about 3-4" of snow on the north side of Cape Horn, a long and very steep side hill section of the trail. One of our party turned around here, one person went ahead with spikes, and the other two went ahead without spikes. The snow was soft so it wasn't a problem to cross it. Fortunately, the snow was gone two days later when we came back. It’s a steep dropoff until you get down near Ladies Pass, but the trail is nicely built with switchbacks.

To reach Upper Lake Florence, stay straight over Ladies Pass, dropping down into the upper part of Spanish Camp Creek and then over a minor ridge. Then drop again, and take the next unsigned fork downhill to the left - looking on your map you go past the lake then back to it on a long, gentle switchback. Upper Lake Florence is shallow but beautiful, with lots of interesting rock formations around. It’s similar in size to Lake Edna, but there are more trees so it’s not quite as desolate. There are several nice campsites here, but no privy as far as we could see. We also visited Lower Lake Florence, but there is no trail to that one. I wouldn’t recommend it for anyone but seasoned scramblers - there are lots of cliffs in places, and some unexpectedly brushy terrain in the avalanche slopes leading to the lower lake. It took us about an hour and a half round trip from the upper lake.

Continuing on past Ladies Pass, the views are excellent. Grindstone Mountain, Cape Horn, and Ladies Peak steal the show for the most part, but you can see distant peaks including Cashmere, Stuart, and Snowgrass. Once you pass Upper Lake Florence and reach Mary’s Pass, there are plentiful views of Mount Daniel and the Icicle Creek valley, along with Rainier and many peaks to the north including Glacier, Baker, Columbia/Kyes, Sloan, and Jim Hill, just to name a few. At some places you can see the Olympics and all the way down into Puget Sound on a clear day.

The trail is in excellent shape with beautiful scenery down past Lake Mary to the end at Frosty Pass. Lots of cool rocks, and wildflowers (not in season right now), and at various points you can see Lake Mary and Lake Margaret below. There are two trails down to Lake Mary - neither is really any better than the other, so take the first one you come to.

Lake Mary is small and shallow, but surrounded by pretty meadows and with nice views up to Snowgrass and Ladies Peak. There is one excellent camp near the pond along the outlet stream, and one smaller camp closer to the lake. We stayed at the large camp in three tents, and there would have been room for at least two or three more. As others have mentioned, the original pit toilet has been destroyed, but the FS dug a new one a bit uphill with a makeshift lid.

CHIWAUKUM CREEK: We hiked downhill from Ladies Pass on the Chiwaukum Creek Trail to our first night's camp at Lake Flora. This is horse country, so the trail is nice and gentle, with the occasional horse dropping along the way. There are some really scenic sections on this trail through meadows, a rock slide area, and a nice big grove of larch trees. Great views of Ladies Peak and Snowgrass Mountain too. Unfortunately, you can't really see either of the lakes below (Flora and Brigham) until you're almost right on top of them. Take the trail on the right at about 5700' for Lake Flora. 

Lake Flora has two very nice large campsites, one on either side of the outlet creek. There is also a privy in decent shape, though the trail to it is not obvious - look into the woods directly north of the eastern camp site. There is nice lake access from both camps, and a flowing creek nearby.

We briefly checked out Lake Brigham. There is a rudimentary trail leading here but it's a bit hard to follow, and disappears entirely near the lake outlet. We didn't see any obvious campsites at Brigham.

FROSTY-WILDHORSE TRAIL: On day 2, we dropped our packs at the junction for Lake Mary, and continued to the end of the Icicle Ridge Trail at Frosty Pass. We then hiked down the Frosty-Wildhorse Trail to Lake Margaret - the trail is in good shape down to the junction with the lake trail. The lake itself is a bit strange in that the water level seems to be about 12-15' below the high water line, surrounded by a massive pile of logs on the outlet end, and a huge expanse of muddy sand at the other end. It's reminiscent of Eightmile Lake or Snow Lake where they draw down the water level in the summer.

Lake Margaret has four decent-sized camp sites, two at each end, and a privy in decent shape.

CAPE HORN:  On the return, I climbed up the short summit trail on Cape Horn from the high point of the regular trail. This is mostly easy to follow and just class 2, but there's one fairly scary spot with some loose rock and a dizzying drop to the north. It's not really technical, but definitely a no-fall zone - I did fine with poles. It took me about 10 minutes to reach the top from the pass. Be aware that the trail splits in a couple places - I unintentionally ended up coming down a slightly different and more scary route on the way down for about 50'. Views are fantastic at the top of Cape Horn. You can see four lakes (Edna, Alice, Flora, Brigham) and too many peaks to name on a clear day.

Long one for a day hike! Bring a lot of water or a filter, layers, sun and wind protection. Consider carrying traction like microspikes.

We arrived at the trailhead at 7:30 am on a sunny but cold Saturday. We weren't sure what the snow was like at lake, but I assumed there would be some accumulation due to last week's weather. There were about 6 or 7 cars in the lot when we arrived. No bathroom or trash at the parking lot.

The first part of the trail is full of beautiful red vine maples, and you get a whole mile to warm up on a nice rolling trail before the climbing begins in earnest.

Due to the snow melt, there are intermittent flowing water sources for the first 3.5 miles, as well as partway up the climb to the pass. There is also a stream between the pass and the lake. This could fluctuate depending on weather conditions. We brought a filter in case we were out of water by the time we reached the lake and that would be a wise choice should the weather be dry and warm over the next week or two.

One tree down within first 4 miles that requires a very low crawl by a short person/walk way down and around and back up for all others. There is a large tree down at the camp area around mile 3.5, with an easy walkaround.

The trail is often brushy between miles 1 and 4, but the tread is mostly dirt with some rock. The climb up the pass gets rockier and more technical in some places.

There was no snow on the trail until the top of the pass. However, the other side had 3-6 inches depending on the spot. We used mircrospikes going down, but it wasn't absolutely necessary. It just helped us move faster and more surely. We didn't need them again until we were climbing back up this section later.

The stretch of trail between the bottom of the pass and the junction with Icicle Ridge is sometimes hard to follow, look for the cairns. Larches are just starting to hit peak time, with some still lime green but many a brilliant gold. Trail was getting muddy on the way back from melting snow.

Last section of climb before the lake was surprisingly taxing. Lake Edna was surrounded by snow. It does get quite windy and cold. The toilet has a great view and is in good shape.

The way back was just as pretty with the views of the mountains and fall colors. Descending didn't really start killing the knees until the last few miles. I appreciated that even with the extensive elevation gain, it was spread out in sections, so there were some spots for reprieve. We saw maybe a dozen groups all day. The mileage and elevation gain seem to be a bit more than indicated.

Snow and ice may not be an issue following melting this week, but this will likely change quickly. We saw several backpacking groups headed up, maybe four or five? Assuming they intended to camp at the lake or near the pass given it was later in the day. Finished around 5:45 pm. 

First off, ignore everything from 2022 and prior about there only being 2 other people on the trail all day. This trail has been discovered! I must have seen 20 trail runners, 20 day hikers and 10 backpackers each day. I shared camp at Lake Edna with 4 other people, and saw another couple hiking over Ladies Pass at 5pm Saturday evening, presumably to Snowgrass or Lake Florence.

The report from the previous day by Kidz Won't Hike and Ngie offer a better description than I could. I too tried Cape Horn and found conditions to be treacherous. I followed the footprints to where they ended, which GAIA showed to be 80ft from the summit, but being alone, with no helmet and not having told anyone I might scramble, it felt like a Darwin Award to continue. 

Temps at the lake overnight were in the mid-20s. I had my 0* bag and 5.4R pad, plus down booties, puffy and pants, so I was toasty. The cap on my filter froze, even though it was in my backpack, but the filter and water didn't freeze. There was a layer of ice over part of the lake Sunday morning. Microspikes were helpful for getting down to the basin/meadow and up to Ladies Pass. 

The larches are spectacular right now. In the basin at 6300ft, they are in all stages of turning, from green-gold to fiery gold to the last stage of orange-pink before their needles drop. Up at 6700, at the lake, they are mostly dried out and the needles are falling, though a couple are holding steady. Hopefully the decent weather this week/end will allow a few more people to see them before they are done. Really glad I did this one, instead of joining the Conga line for the Enchantments again. Nate did Little Annapurna and said Asgard was icy and treacherous, the core was inundated with thru-hikers, and the climb required breaking trail on boulders with 4ft holes in between where the snow hadn't compacted.