We had a great gentle hike up to Camp Handy, the sun was shining even though the weather report had been of some concern! There was a chill in the air and we were delighted that three nice young men left us a toasty fire in the pit next to the new shelter. (plenty of wood and kindling left by the crew that put the new shelter together). No sooner had we gotten ourselves organized for the night it started snowing, big fluffy flakes, oh joy! After breaking up the ice on the tents the next morning we headed up to Boulder Shelter. We were so suprised to see the devastation of the last avalanche and equally suprised to see that the incredible beauty of the surrounding peaks and meadows survived. We only encountered a bit of snow before the shelter and the entire trail is clear and delicately lined with friendly nodding heads of calypso orchids. The hike to Camp Handy is a great day hike for kids and many campsites are hidden among the trees.

Eleven adults and LNT certified scouts from Vashon Troop 294 spent July 1-3 hiking in the Buckhorn Wilderness, making the most of a 2-car shuttle for a loop trip from Tubal Cain to Marmot Pass (840) then out to Dungeness (833). The rhododendrons were blooming on the Tubal Cain trail. We took a side trip up Tull Canyon to see the B-17 crash site. Part of the Tull Canyon trail was difficult to follow because of water. We continued on the Tubal Cain trail and spent the first night at Buckhorn Lake. There are really only two campsites there, which was difficult for our large group. We had nice views when the clouds cleared. The trail to Marmot Pass is strenuous but the wildflowers are in bloom. Try to catch the view when the clouds clear and before the weather changes, it was impressive. The junction with #833 is obscured by snow, although the trail up Buckhorn Mountain is visible and misleading. We hiked up and around the snow, then descended the hillside to #833. We encountered a difficult snow patch before reaching Marmot Pass. We used an ice axe to make steps and a hand rope to cross midway down the snow slope. Two more snow fields required rope and ice axe between Marmot Pass and Boulder Camp. The trail from Boulder Camp to Camp Handy was downhill and hard on the knees and toes. There are many campsites at Camp Handy where we spent our second night. The trail from Camp Handy to the trailhead on the Dungeness is nearly flat and pleasant hiking. This was a challenging hike for us and we learned some wonderful skills traversing the snow.

The Royal Basin access via the Upper Dungeness Trailhead (US Forest Service) is not presently open due to major washouts on the Forest Service roads into that area. There is no anticipated date of opening. The lower Graywolf Trailhead is accessible, however the Forest Service trail has blown out in many sections. This means that the Gray Wolf and Cameron Creek areas of Olympic National Park will remain less accessible due to the additional problems on the Gray Wolf Trail. Access to the park via the upper Gray Wolf trails from Slab Camp is unknown at this time due to snow.