Over the July 4th weekend, we did a clockwise hike starting and ending at the the Purple Pass TH in Stehekin. Overall, the weather was amazing, wildflowers were blooming, and the scenery was top-notch. However, we made the mistake of hiking on the upper section of the East Fork Fish Creek trail (#1248) between the Chelan Summit Trail and the lower section of the Fish Creek Trail. To be clear, there is no trail anymore due to a large burn area and the most blow-down I've ever hiked through, plus a significant amount of Slide Alder overgrowth. DO NOT TAKE THIS TRAIL :). For context, my partner and I typically hike 2-3.5 mph, and we averaged nearly .5 mph in this 5 mile section (we got off the Chelan Summit Trail at 1pm and didn't make it to the lower section of the Fish Creek Trail until 9:30pm). The better move would be to take the North Fork of the Fish Creek Trail.

Besides this brutal section, this is an amazing hike. The Chelan Summit trail has some of the best views I've seen of the Glacier Peak Wilderness. We'll definitely be back in the fall.

WTA website: Disappointing that trip reports won't sync from the mobile app, and I can't seem to add photos inline through the website in Firefox.

First of all, thank you to the friendly local rangers in Chelan for as much information as you had about the condition. As promised, here is a report.

Road
There is a reason Summer Blossom doesn't seem to be a popular access point to the Sawtooths - it's a VERY long access road. We took Grade Creek Road via Atilon Lake as recommended by the ranger station. Google won't route you up Grade Creek Road this way, but it's open. The road was in reasonable shape up until South Navarre Campground where it is in terrible shape and we barely made it in a Toyota Camry (it was dicey). Even with the lower section being in a state of good repair (minus occasional rock fall) it's very slow going. Measuring about 25 miles long it took us an hour and a half going up and two hours going down (so as not to let our momentum carry us over the ever present edge). The road has scenic views over the lake, and would be a fun place to mountain bike. The other way to access the trailhead (that Google tires to send you on) is in worse shape apparently as we met a couple of guys in a Jeep who said they were only about to do about 15 MPH the entire way (we were able to do 20 MPH on the way up in a Camry by comparison).

Maps
We used Green Trails and the USGS topo layer in Gaia GPS. The default Gaia GPS layer seems to be missing a number of key trails in the area for no apparent reason. The USGS tended to be optimistic about the presence of trails, Green Trails a bit pessimistic, and Gaia GPS just incomplete. 

Trails
Summer Blossom Trail: The trail starts high and stays high resulting in great views the entire length. Despite what it looks like on the topo, there is some significant up and down along the way, including right after the trailhead where you climb over North Navarre Peak (on some impressive legacy CCC rockwork trails). Sadly, at some point most of the valley below (Safety Harbor area) burned and that fire also caught some of the forest along this trail. The trail itself is slowly fading away into the meadows and eroding slopes, but still fairly easy to follow for the most part. There was water before North Navarre and again in a meadow at 48.1534, -120.3597, but otherwise it's pretty dry. I imagine the question you're probably asking yourself is whether it's worth it to access the Sawtooths from Summer Blossom. On the one hand, it's a high lonesome ridge with rewarding views. On the other hand, the access road adds a lot of time, the burned section is sad to look at, and the exposure would make it very hot mid-summer.

424: out of curiosity I went to see if 424 could be found from the ridge, but I couldn't find a trace of it.

417B: The old trail over to Sunrise Lake from Summer Blossom (shown on USGS but no Green Trails) is steep but easy enough to follow to the saddle. From the saddle down however the old trail completely dissapears into erosion and steep snow fields. It's a submlime approach to the lake, and hopefully can be restored sometime.

Camp - Sunrise Lake: There was lots' of snow remaining around the lake (and it snowed on us the next morning), but one of the campsites was thawed out (as was the lake itself).

417 Angel's Staircase: It was cloudy and windy the next morning as we ascended Angel's Staircase, but even so the alpine meadows were pleasant and the few views we did get very rewarding. Looking down the trail towards Cooney Lake, there was a lot of snow still, but probably doable later in the day when the snow gets soft if you feel comfortable with snow travel.

1259 to Middle Fork Prince Creek: felt like the first section of trail maintained to common widths and standards although evidence of motor bikes seems to be rutting out parts of it. 

1259 to Chimpmunk Pass: This was a delightful surprise. The trail reverts to less maintained state seemingly common in the southern Sawtooths, but still easy to follow. But the views were gorgeous and you quickly break through the treeline and traverse around a ridge with views down to Cub Lake and beyond.

1259 to Prince Creek: Some pretty meadows early on just after Chipmunk, and then a pretty standard walk along a river. A number of blow downs in this section, but all are manageable on foot (not sure about horses though).

Camp - Prince Creek Valley: Both the USGS and Green Trails seem to think the campsite is earlier than it actually is. There is an Appalachian Trail style open shelter here with a toilet. The camping was sheltered from the chilly wind we had been experiencing higher up and there are some nice meadows nearby. If we were to do this trail again, I don't think we would stay here unless the weather was particularly nasty, given other nicer campsites in the area.

Day hike to Indian Head Basin: Beautiful views and meadows on the way up. The arm above Surprise Lake and the pass above Indian Head were highlights of the trip. We went down into Indian Head Basin where just after the wetland we found an old trail Forest Service Trail 1250.2 – Cascade Camp Trail, that doesn't appear on any maps I've been able to find other than this USFS recreation map https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/okawen/recarea/?recid=57149, that takes you to the saddle SW of the basin. The saddle has views out to Glacier Peak Wilderness areas. I'd love to know the history of 1250.2 and where it goes (it seems to dead end into the high meadow).

Hike out: After a second night in Prince Creek Valley we marched back to Summer Blossom Trail head diverting from our original path only to use Dead Man's Pass rather than goings through Angel's Staircase/Sunrise Lake. Dead Man's still had quite a bit of snow on the north side, which made the steep climb challenging.

Overall, it was a glorious trip filled with solitude and sublime vista, charming meadows, and babbling streams (there was a lot of water available for the most part). The weather was cold and windy, but this seemed to keep the bugs at bay so a trade worth taking.

WTA trip report technology: Disappointing that trip reports won't sync from the mobile app, and I can't seem to add photos inline through the website in Firefox.

First of all, thank you to the friendly local rangers in Chelan for as much information as you had about the condition. As promised, here is a report.

Road
There is a reason Summer Blossom doesn't seem to be a popular access point to the Sawtooths - it's a VERY long access road. We took Grade Creek Road via Atilon Lake as recommended by the ranger station. Google won't route you up Grade Creek Road this way, but it's open. The road was in reasonable shape up until South Navarre Campground where it is in terrible shape and we barely made it in a Toyota Camry (it was dicey). Even with the lower section being in a state of good repair (minus occasional rock fall) it's very slow going. Measuring about 25 miles long it took us an hour and a half going up and two hours going down (so as not to let our momentum carry us over the ever present edge). The road has scenic views over the lake, and would be a fun place to mountain bike. The other way to access the trailhead (that Google tires to send you on) is in worse shape apparently as we met a couple of guys in a Jeep who said they were only about to do about 15 MPH the entire way (we were able to do 20 MPH on the way up in a Camry by comparison).

Maps
We used Green Trails and the USGS topo layer in Gaia GPS. The default Gaia GPS layer seems to be missing a number of key trails in the area for no apparent reason. The USGS tended to be optimistic about the presence of trails, Green Trails a bit pessimistic, and Gaia GPS just incomplete.

Trails
Summer Blossom Trail: The trail starts high and stays high resulting in great views the entire length. Despite what it looks like on the topo, there is some significant up and down along the way, including right after the trailhead where you climb over North Navarre Peak (on some impressive legacy CCC rockwork trails). Sadly, at some point most of the valley below (Safety Harbor area) burned and that fire also caught some of the forest along this trail. The trail itself is slowly fading away into the meadows and eroding slopes, but still fairly easy to follow for the most part. There was water before North Navarre and again in a meadow at 48.1534, -120.3597, but otherwise it's pretty dry. I imagine the question you're probably asking yourself is whether it's worth it to access the Sawtooths from Summer Blossom. On the one hand, it's a high lonesome ridge with rewarding views. On the other hand, the access road adds a lot of time, the burned section is sad to look at, and the exposure would make it very hot mid-summer.

424: out of curiosity I went to see if 424 could be found from the ridge, but I couldn't find a trace of it.

417B: The old trail over to Sunrise Lake from Summer Blossom (shown on USGS but no Green Trails) is steep but easy enough to follow to the saddle. From the saddle down however the old trail completely dissapears into erosion and steep snow fields. It's a submlime approach to the lake, and hopefully can be restored sometime.

Camp - Sunrise Lake: There was lots' of snow remaining around the lake (and it snowed on us the next morning), but one of the campsites was thawed out (as was the lake itself).

417 Angel's Staircase: It was cloudy and windy the next morning as we ascended Angel's Staircase, but even so the alpine meadows were pleasant and the few views we did get very rewarding. Looking down the trail towards Cooney Lake, there was a lot of snow still, but probably doable later in the day when the snow gets soft if you feel comfortable with snow travel.

1259 to Middle Fork Prince Creek: felt like the first section of trail maintained to common widths and standards although evidence of motor bikes seems to be rutting out parts of it.

1259 to Chimpmunk Pass: This was a delightful surprise. The trail reverts to less maintained state seemingly common in the southern Sawtooths, but still easy to follow. But the views were gorgeous and you quickly break through the treeline and traverse around a ridge with views down to Cub Lake and beyond.

1259 to Prince Creek: Some pretty meadows early on just after Chipmunk, and then a pretty standard walk along a river. A number of blow downs in this section, but all are manageable on foot (not sure about horses though).

Camp - Prince Creek Valley: Both the USGS and Green Trails seem to think the campsite is earlier than it actually is. There is an Appalachian Trail style open shelter here with a toilet. The camping was sheltered from the chilly wind we had been experiencing higher up and there are some nice meadows nearby. If we were to do this trail again, I don't think we would stay here unless the weather was particularly nasty, given other nicer campsites in the area.

Day hike to Indian Head Basin: Beautiful views and meadows on the way up. The arm above Surprise Lake and the pass above Indian Head were highlights of the trip. We went down into Indian Head Basin where just after the wetland we found an old trail Forest Service Trail 1250.2 – Cascade Camp Trail, that doesn't appear on any maps I've been able to find other than this USFS recreation map https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/okawen/recarea/?recid=57149, that takes you to the saddle SW of the basin. The saddle has views out to Glacier Peak Wilderness areas. I'd love to know the history of 1250.2 and where it goes (it seems to dead end into the high meadow).

Hike out: After a second night in Prince Creek Valley we marched back to Summer Blossom Trail head diverting from our original path only to use Dead Man's Pass rather than goings through Angel's Staircase/Sunrise Lake. Dead Man's still had quite a bit of snow on the north side, which made the steep climb challenging.

Overall, it was a glorious trip filled with solitude and sublime vista, charming meadows, and babbling streams (there was a lot of water available for the most part). The weather was cold and windy, but this seemed to keep the bugs at bay so a trade worth taking.

August 12, 2019

Day One (8/9/19) - Four of us took the Lady of the Lake and got dropped off at Prince Creek trailhead.  We hiked leisurely to More Point and settled for first night.  The campsite was far from the creek so we got water from the lake.

Day Two (8/10/19) – We followed Fish Creek Trail and continued to North Fork Fish Creek Trail then turned left to Chelan Summit Trail.  We camped at Camp Comfort.  Water was plenty from the creek below the campsite.  Signs of animal gathering at the Camp site were visible, but we didn’t see any. 

Day Three (8/11/19) – We continued on Chelan Summit Trail to Juanita Lake Camp, the only campsite that we needed a permit from North Cascade National Park issued by Lake Chelan National Forest Ranger Station.  There was not really running water at Juanita Lake Camp as the little creek was drying out but enough for survival for animals and humans.     

We did not see any hikers or backpackers on the trail in the first 4 days.  Surprisingly, the trail was quite visible all the way.  There was only a short portion of North Fork Fish Creek was somewhat overgrown, where we got some salmon berries   

Climbing Reynolds Peak

Day Four (8/12/19) –Sung and I got up at 3:00am and left Camp at 4:00am to climb Reynolds Peak.  Our plan was to cover the main trail in the dark, then scramble up Reynolds Peak by daylight time.  Just about 20 minutes from Juanita Camp, we reached War Creek Pass junction.  After three days of backpacking, some of the details of Reynolds Peak route were fading away from my memory.  We turned right at the junction and hiked down the valley for about an hour.  While waiting for Sung to cross a big log with thick branches I looked at my GPS.  Apparently the Biulder Creek Trail was way up and we were deep down in the valley.  We hiked all the way back, worst of all, all uphill.  By the time we reached Reynolds Camp, it was about 9:00am.  From Reynolds Camp we were trying to find a booth path to Reynolds and saw none.  I recalled one of the reports on WTA the author mentioned ‘following the creek’.  We hiked past the creek about 100 yards and still did not see any booth path, so we decided to start at an open spot not too far from the creek.  We tried to stay close to the creek while taking advantage of the ridge as bushes were thinner.  After a short while, we reached a meadow and if I remember it correctly Camel Humps was partially in view.  We felt good!  We took a short break then proceeded further up where we saw a beautiful peak in the front of us and Camel Humps was on the right.  We looked at our GPS and thought the peak in front of us was Reynolds Peak.  We followed the creek (no water at the upper part) until we reached the boulder.  From the distance, we saw two potential routes - climb up on the far right and traverse back along the ridge or follow the gully.  We decided to check out the gully first.  We started climbing up the gully.  It was extremely difficult to climb up, no stable foot and hand holds.  Near the end of the narrow gully, I was struggling to make my last move to safety.  I pressed my left knee hard against the dirt covered rock and somehow pulled myself up.  Then Sung’s turn, no difference; but she somehow made it to safety.  I didn’t clarify with Sung, but we were apparently at a smaller and shorter gully.  The one we saw from the distance was the bigger and longer one in the front of us.   We decided to climb down to that big and long gully.  It was less steep and climbing up was pretty easy.  We took a short break then climbed up quite a bit on stable rocks.  It got steeper and we started to wonder if it was class 3.  We didn’t have helmets.  We also got confused if it was Reynolds.  My Gaia Topo map showed Reynolds was to the north at 8300 ft.; and my Gaia USGS Topo showed two Reynolds Peaks and this one was at 8500 ft.  It was already 4-ish in the afternoon.  We were about 100-150 ft. from the summit.  We decided to climb down.  Back down to boulder, we looked at our GPS map again.  At this point we thought the peak was not Reynolds.  We decided to follow the route that I had plotted.  We climbed up the ridge to the left of the peak and saw another peak.  We said huh here it is… We summited the peak.  It was mostly class 2; the last portion to the summit was about class 3-.  The view was very good, especially looking at the peak that we had just climbed. 

We got back to Camp about 9-ish pm.  Trang and Saphina did a short day hike on Biullder Creek Trail.  Saphina was somewhat worried about us, but Trang told her it happened to me all the time. 

Day Five (8/15/19) – Hiking down to Stehekin from Juanita Lake wasn’t bad at all.  We got to the dock by the time the Lady Express was blowing her horn.  We upgraded our tickets and jumped on. 

More peaks to climb, I couldn’t find time to write a report until now (10/18/19) sitting in the Discount Tire store waiting... 

Summary: Depends on which direction you are coming from - If you are coming from Juanita Lake, hike past Reynolds Campsite until you see a water running creek, then follow this creek up.  We stayed on the left and away from the creek.  On the way down, we decided stay close to the creek, and it was more open in fact.  If you are coming on the opposite direction of Juanita Lake/War Creek Pass, you will see the creek before Reynolds Camp. Taking a look at Reynolds Peak again, it appears that the one we gave up was the right one; and the one we summited was Reynolds Peak (north). I will come back, hopefully next year.  I will bring helmet, perhaps rope and harness as well. 

Foggy Dew Ridge Trail to Stehekin, July 23-July 25

Day 1, Two friends, Nick & Julia from Connecticut joined us for this remote trip.   A third friend, Jamie who had scouted this trail from the road to the ridge earlier in the summer drove us to the “trailhead” on the Foggy Dew Creek Road. (Coordinates: 48.19050358862389, -120.23466192453884).  It was 11am.   The Gold Creek branch off the Methow River Road was paved while the dirt Foggy Road was in good condition.  The “trailhead” location was at elevation 3000 feet at the last switchback in the road, it was not at the end of the road where the Foggy Dew River Trail starts.  There was not signage.  Nick and Julia mentioned that training in Connecticut topped out below 3000 ft.  The “trail” began as an old road, but quickly transitioned to a stiff trail reaching the ridge at 4600 feet.   We were all working hard on this dry slope.  The views were great as we now followed the ridge upward to nearly 7000 feet.   The trail deteriorated due to lack of foot traffic, but the open ridge was easy to follow through beargrass.  Our original plan was to have lunch at Cooney Lake!  This was not going to happen, I was whooped and the ridge continued on and on.  Finally the route dropped onto the south side of Foggy Dew Ridge and into a marshy basin with plentiful water at 6900 ft.  After a long rest drinking lots of cool water it was decided Cooney Lake would be today’s goal.   Eventually we got going and traversed thru a 6900 foot saddle and side hilled NW to meet a valley trail about a mile below beautiful Cooney Lake.   We hadn’t seen anyone since leaving the car and had Cooney Lake to ourselves.   Surprisingly the bugs weren’t bad.  We were tired after the 8.5 mile and 4800 ft elevation gain day.

Day 2, Trail continued up almost 1000 feet before dropping down the Staircase to the upper East Fork of Prince Creek and a junction with the Chelan Summit Trail.   The trail was excellent and views spectacular.  We now followed the Summit Trail north past junctions to Horsehead and Hoodoo Passes.  Here we saw our first hiker, a woman walking southbound.  High meadows and great views as we spread out along the trail.  At one point, I began following a horse trail toward a basin below Baldy Mtn. only to come upon several horse who were tied with a high line near a big camp.  Fortunately a woman with the horses redirected me back to the trail where shortly thereafter I came upon our group patiently waiting for me at the 7400 pass.   They had been a bit worried since I had been second in line while hiking, but thought I could take care of myself for a bit since I was our supposedly experienced leader!  After eating a bit of crow, I led off northward on the excellent trail.   We passed the junction to Fish Creek Pass and Star Lake.   Originally our plan had been three nights with a camp at Star Lake.   But we pushed on to an excellent camp in Horseshoe Basin below Tuckaway Lake with a cold stream nearby.  It was a long day with 18.5 miles and 3600 feet of elevation gain.

Day 3,  Light packs and an easy trail brought us to Juanita Lake for lunch.   We were really motoring now.  The long dry descent from Purple Pass into Stehekin seemed to take forever.   During out descent we could see a fire shooting up behind a ridge across Lake Chelan.  Cold drinks on the deck in Stehekin finished this portion of our trip.