We had planned a six day trip starting at the Lightning Creek Trailhead on Ross Lake, connecting with the PCT at Castle Pass and then circling back to the East Bank Trailhead. It rained much of the first three days and the trail past the start of the Wenatchee Wilderness is not maintained so we had very slow going over lots of blowdown and through vine maple that had overgrown the trail. It took us about five hours to get from the trailhead to Little Fish shelter (not a shelter)the first day and we had to stop there for the night to dry gear and because we knew we were not going to get all the way to Freezout Lake which was our intended destination. The second day it was also very rough going up to the ridge through lots of blowdown and rainy weather. We only saw a couple campsites the whole way from Little Fish Shelter to Big Face Creek. We could not see much more than a possible animal trail down to Freezeout Lake which is several hundred feet below the trail. It took us most of the day to get from Little Fish Shelter to Big Face Creek which had a good campsite on the far side of the creek. It rained all night so we made a decision to turn around at that point because we did not know if the bad weather and trail conditions (except for PCT) would continue and we were heading into higher elevations along the with colder temperatures and less opportunity to shelter out of the weather. We saw no other hikers past the start of the Wenatchee Wilderness or animals larger than a Marmot. The country was very beautiful despite the hard trail and bad weather so we all felt the trip was worth it and we learned a lot about travel in those conditions. One of our members knew how to start campfires from a little birch bark and wet fir twigs.

This point to point trip was in the plans for months - a two nighter fast pack from Harts Pass, up the legendary section of PCT to Castle Pass, then west over Trail 749. By all Green Trails appearances it looked like a great route. The entire way up the PCT was grand and the trail in great shape. Trail 749 reports unveiled 7 years of unmaintained trail and more descriptive challenges that we knew would only be compounded with time. Armed with this and our gear dutifully packed, we wanted to get through Trail 749 in one day. Lightning Creek camp and the pleasant waters of Ross Lake awaited.. We got to Harts Pass trail head at 8:45am on Friday. We signed in, said our prayers and hit the trail by 9:15. Beginning at 6,200 ft, the grandeur gets right with it. From the start to the end of our first day it was simply incredible. The majority of the time you are running along a slope or a ridge so the flora and views abound in all their incrediblness. Coming off of Lakeview Ridge we descended to Hopkins Pass and stayed the night at the lake. Day one took us just over 26 miles and we made it to camp by 7:45pm. This was the most beautiful camp I've ever stayed at. After and a bath in the lake, my oats and coffee, we were trailbound by 9. At Castle Pass we hung a left and the overgrowth appeared right away. At 4 miles from Canada this trail is remote and I assume its a challenge to get a work crew out here, but lets not forget why the CCC created this trail to begin with. The trail was scant in some areas and not there at all in others but yet you never felt lost. The hard to follow areas were challenging with overgrowth dropping down to Big Face Creek and we were hit and miss for the next 3 through dense growth. This proved to be actually fun. We were successful in navigating the map description and contours to navigate us up the saddle. It was climbing up the face we encountered our first black bear who bolted as soon as he saw us. The Hard To Follow section to Freezeout Lake is not bad. You simply follow cairins along the way and enjoy the views. After a few more miles the hard work begins. This was 3 hours of tough navigation, buscwhacking, blowdowns, whacks, pokes and bees. It was no doubt tough, but absolutely worth it! The views along this entire trail left me in awe. Once we got back in the North Cascades Park the trail changed immediately. We were at Lightning Camp in short order. Dinner dockside by 8. Ross Lake Resort Taxi picked us up at the lake at 9am and we were at the truck in no time. We hammered 54 miles in two days and made it safely. Trail 749 is simply unattended but navigable. Its worth it - just ready up because it will test your chops. Take your time at your leisure because there is a wonderful supply of incredible grandeur along this stretch. Happy times...