• Access: drove our little hatchback up to Foggy Dew trailhead; this is a pretty tame gravel road that any type of car could navigate. Some large rocks and potholes to avoid but very doable.
• Route: We took the Foggy Dew Creek trail up to Sunrise Lake, stayed overnight, then hiked up past Cooney Lake the next day before rejoining the Foggy Dew Creek trail via Martin Creek Trail. 
• People: three other cars at the trailhead on a Saturday in August (pleasantly deserted compared to other trails!) We passed two hikers on our way up to Sunrise Lake and there were two other parties camping at the lake. Shared the trail on day two with a few dirt bike parties. 
• Bugs: not much of an issue, even at the trailhead
• Trail: Had to navigate 3 big deadfalls but other than that the trail was dry & pristine. Very well maintained and marked, beautifully built. 
• Wildlife: Only encountered the usual various forest rodents (chipmunks, marmots etc.). One of the people we spoke to up at Sunrise Lake said he had seen two bears eating berries by Foggy Dew falls two weeks prior. 
• Campsite: There were 3-4 established tent spots on the outflow end of the lake, with plenty more space available at the other end, although less established. We settled in a spot right above the log jam/outflow. There was a firepit and log seating built up; unfortunately it looked like someone had recently had a fire in the pit. 

Overall this was a gorgeous outing! Will certainly return to this trail system to explore further. 

Be prepared to deal with bugs! We hiked midweek, Monday thru Friday and only encountered two mountain bikers on the way to eagle lakes on the first day. Very buggy so we moved to Boiling lake on the second day. The bugs were not as bad but still annoying. Day hiked to Hoodoo Pass and Chipmunk Pass the 3rd day. On the 4th day hiked to Cooney Lake. Beware of confusing trail signage, The Green tails map #115 has you taking trail #1255.1 out of boiling Lake to trail #1259.3, and then trail #1259.32 off the valley to the ridge for to access Coney Lake. Wrong. The trail from Boiling Lake to Cooney Lake is signed on the trail as; Angel's Staircase with a different trail number. This is the same trail, take it! The views from up here were incredible. Take this trail about 1.5 mi. up to the saddle, traverse east-north-east along the rise and then descend down to the lake. We were advised by a mountain biker to camp at the upper lake (tarn) for a better breeze to help deal with the bugs.

Completing the loop back to the Crater Lake Trailhead we descended about 1/2 mi. to Cooney Lake just past the horse camp and came to a Tee marked as # 429 Martin Lake Trail. Go left. There is no indication which way leads to the trailhead. The other way descends to the Foggy trailhead.

We hiked the Chelan Summit Trail from Angle's Staircase to Purple Pass and down to Stehekin over 4 days. The trails are generally in good shape, except for three sections.

* Below 6500 ft in Prince Creek

* The traverse between Courtney and Gray

* North Fork Fish Creek

These three sections have considerable blow downs, maybe a few dozen per mile. Nothing impossible to get through, but definitely annoying.

Purple Pass is a little overgrown and has some blowdowns, but is not too bad.

Lots of running water, and lots of mosquitoes.

It was 42 miles and 11k ft gain.

For the entire trip report, see https://climberkyle.com/2021/07/10/chelan-summit-trail/.

C2c scramble of Switchback peak, Martin peak and Mount Bigelow, following the loop clockwise. 6,350ft gain over 20.5mi in 16.5h, on a social pace with summit naps! No snow gear needed. Used helmet going up loose boulder field to Bigelow and down the steep and loose gully and boulder field on the other side. The three peaks roughly represent type 1, 2 to 3 fun lol. From an easy trail to Switchback, to some boulder hopping to Martin, finally to a loose boulder & scree field to Bigelow and down a steep and loose gully on the other side. Kidding ... no real type 3 fun anywhere, but each peak was more scrambly than the previous one in the order we did in my opinion. 

Gpx: https://caltopo.com/m/VM1F

Road was in good condition except for some potholes in the last ~5mi. Passable by lower cars if you take it slow. Trailhead has a toilet. Large parking lot.

Switchback

A few stream crossing by hopping on rocks, balancing with poles and holding onto the tree branches. Crossed two short snow patches at around 7,350ft shortly after leaving Cooney lake. Soft snow and deep boot tracks made it an easy walk.

Timeline

Midnight trailhead

0345 Cooney lake

0500 Switchback

0630 Martin

0830 Boiling lake

1100 Bigelow

1315 Upper eagle lake

1530 loop junction

1630 trailhead

Highlights

• Plenty of water sources. A few lakes conveniently located on the route and between the peaks, and you only need to carry water for 1/3 of the route or ~7mi max. Cooney lake -> Switchback -> Martin -> Boiling lake -> Bigelow -> Upper Eagle lake -> stream at the motorcycle camp. We were planning to refill at the lakes, but surprised to find fast flowing streams (from the lake or snowmelt) before all the lakes, and often more streams right after the lake. We felt comfortable drinking the running water without filtering, which saved time.
• Loop trail provided different scenery throughout the day, which means no turnaround though lol. 
• Running streams and lake provided some cool breeze on a warm day.

Lowlights

• Mosquitoes and flies were absolutely terrible and were out even before sunrise on a warm day, and were on the entire route including the summits, except for a few shaded / windy areas.
• Need to come back during the larches season!

Gear

• Bug repellent
• Trail runners / approach shoes
• Poles
• Helmet (loose gully down from SE side of Bigelow)
• Sunscreen, hat
• Optional: water filter

Campsites

(Both are by the lakes and have plenty of logs as seat.)

• Cooney lake
• Upper eagle lake

Recommendations in Twisp, WA

• Idle-A-While motel. https://www.idle-a-while-motel.com/. We had a cabin with two beds and a pullout couch, and a nice kitchen. You'll receive the access code for the keyless entry door lock via text message on the check-in day. No worries about late check-in or early check-out, so perfect for climbers! The AC was already turned on by the time we arrived and that's all we needed on a 100F day.
• Linwood restaurant. https://www.linwoodtwisp.com/. Open 4-8pm on Thur-Sun. Check their Instagram page for daily updated menu: https://www.instagram.com/linwoodtwisp/. Thai food has always been my comfort food for after the climbs. Many vegetarian options. We loved their veg lo mein, pad thai, yellow curry and tofu pad see ew.

Started around 7am Friday morning from Crater Creek Trailhead, with a handful of cars in the parking lot, we passed a few folks (backpackers & day runners). The first day is always the longest & heaviest, taking the loop clockwise, the trail was clear & well maintained all the way to Cooney Lake, no snow or obstacles on the trail. We took our time and arrived at Cooney to camp at around 3pm, but boy were the mosquitoes a nuisance! It had us questioning if we really enjoy the outdoors - hundreds of them with their faces pressed against the mesh of our tent as we huddled inside to eat dinner. 

We started up towards Angel's Staircase around 9:30am to let the snow soften a bit for the ascent - a steep staircase it was! Luckily pretty short-lived, offering great views. You can already see the wildfire smoke come in from Canada, so it was a little hazy. This is the only portion of the 22 mile loop that has snow remaining, and may even be gone by the time you read this. Enjoyed a nice snack of pickles & jerky at the summit, and then it's all descent from there. The change in landscape is spectacular throughout this leg of the trip - so soak it all in. Plenty of butterflies, marmots, and wildflowers throughout.

After you pass a few alpine meadows, there are about 3-4 trees that have fallen on the trail, they are difficult to climb over, especially with a pack, so you may opt to go around. Other than that, the trails are well maintained! Thanks to the trail riders in the area - I heard they have special racks for their dirtbikes to hold chainsaws - love that. We passed another couple on the way, they had mentioned the bugs were way better on "this side" of the ridge aka the Boiling Lake side. Our original plan was Eagle Lake for night #2, but decided to take their advice and what a difference it made! The bugs were nothing like Cooney Lake and we even opted to have a swim! It was much more enjoyable. There is a burn ban in place - that didn't stop our neighbors from having a fire - so keep an eye out.

The ascent in the morning was pretty mellow for our sore legs, and once you reach the saddle it's smooth sailing from there, no obstacles on the trail - just more people using the trail. As we passed by the small unnamed lake just below Upper Eagle Lake, the main camping area is "Under Restoration" so Eagle Lake may be your only option on this side of Horsehead Pass. Made it back to the car with plenty of time to catch some burgers in Methow & enjoy golden hour over highway 20.