We started the hike from the Esmeralda Basin Trail, shared with Lake Ingalls trail. The trail up to Lake Ann was in great shape and snow free. The variety of flowers, along the way, were amazing today with more Columbine and Shooting Stars than I have seen before. The flowers really were everywhere along the trail. The hike gets steeper and rockier as you head up towards Lake Ann.  About halfway to Lake Ann we passed another hiker who made it to the overlook but couldn't see the lake. Our timing was better as we made it to the overlook the lake was fogged in but shortly after it cleared up and we decided to head down to the lake for lunch. The trail down to the lake is pretty steep but there was no snow until the very end and on a fairly flat section, so no traction was required.  After a nice lunch at the lake, we headed back to the saddle. We were happy to see a mountain goat near the saddle and were able to get a couple pictures of him before heading to Fortune Creek Pass.  

As we approach the pass, we decided we would do the entire Esmeralda Peak Loop Trail. It's a long way around the loop but it was a great trail to hike.  We wanted to do the South Esmeralda Peak Trail after the jeep road, but never found the turnoff to it, so we continued on the DeRoux trail.. After getting home and checking some different maps, it appears that the Gaia trail may have had an early turnoff and the trail may actually cut back across the river, well maybe next time.  From the DeRoux Trail we went around Gallagher Head lake to the DeRoux trailhead and connected with the North Fork Teanaway Trail which took us back to the Esmeralda Basin parking lot. On the North Fork Teanaway Trail, we did run into a section of the trail that had some deep water and we followed a boot path to go around that, which was a mistake because we ended up getting into other boggy ground which was probably worse than just going through the water on the trail. 

All in all, a great hiking day with nice weather and amazing flowers and views.

Gaia had it at 15.2 and 3212 of ascent.

Road: Think washboard for the last 9 miles. Other than that, a few potholes, but nothing major.

Parking: 4 spots and road parking at De Roux TH. When I arrived on Saturday around 10am, 3 spots were taken. Same when I came back on Sunday around noon. There are a trail toilet and a few camping spots. Most people head to the Esmeralda Basin/ Lake Ingalls TH about 1.6 miles further up the road which seemed quite busy when I passed there on Sunday.  

Trail: Mostly in good condition, beautiful wildflowers, a few blue berries are already ripening. The first 2.5 miles are along the creek which can be heard but rarely seen. Relatively steep, probably 60% shade. The ATV road between Gallagher Head Lake and the cutover to the Esmeralda Basin is rough- real rough. Cutover itself and Esmeralda basin trails are fine, no shade on the cut over. The 1.6 miles trail between Lake Ingalls/ Esmeralda Basin TH and the De Roux TH is more of a horse trail, mostly dusty and rocky, with ankle deep mud in places. To access that trail, follow the main road from the Lake Ingalls/ Esmeralda Basin TH south, find a (vertical) sign maybe 200 yards down the road on the right-hand side. Easy to miss.  

Traffic: Several motorcycles between De Roux TH and De Roux Spur. Three people hiked past my camp site, other than that, didn't meet a single hiker on the trail until I reached the Esmeralda Basin trail, which had very little traffic between the cut over and the junction with the Lake Ingalls trail. 

Camping: Three camp spots along the De Roux creek, once the meadow is reached. Green Trails map makes it look like they are spaced out, in reality, they are clustered together, maybe 150 yard after the creek crossing/ reaching the meadow when coming up from the De Roux TH. As a hiker, don't aim for Gallagher Head Lake- the 4 spots on that lake were taken by overlanders and jeeps when I walked past on Sunday morning and they cater to car camping. Not appealing at all.

Water crossing: At this time of year, only a few minor water crossings. Two bridges help where the creek is wider. No water between Gallagher Head Lake and Esmeralda Basin.  

Summary: Great loop hike in the Teanaway, especially for those trying to avoid the crowds. Total ~ 12 miles/ ~2,660 feet ascent/ descent. Wild, rough country with plenty of scenery and diverse flora. 

I did this loop several years ago and always wanted to return. We parked at the De Roux trailhead next to five other cars and hit the trail at 8:30 am. We then followed the horse trail that parallels the forest service road. This trail was overgrown and we had to climb over at least 10 blowdowns, also marshy & wet. Would suggest a road walk instead to the Esmeralda trailhead.

The Esmerelda trail was straightforward and easy to follow. Some water on the trail but otherwise clear to the pass. At the pass the trees were flocked with a fresh layer of snow but it was melting fast as the sun came out. The trail down the other side of the pass was mostly clear except for a few short snow patches, which held our weight and posed no real problems. We took a break in the sun on the road to Gallagher Head, next to a large water crossing, and soon after hit significant snow. Someone had tried to drive through it and made it pretty far, so we followed their packed tracks most of the way. The snow was a little slippery but supported us. As we got closer to the lake the road turned into a creek bed. I was in trail runners and my feet got wet, so waterproof shoes would have been a better choice!

Once at the lake the snow subsided revealing meadows of alpine lillies and clear green water. The first 100 yards of the De Roux trail from Gallagher Head had some snow patches to cross but they were very manageable. After that the trail was in great shape: bare & dry. The hike down was lovely. We saw two people (our first of the day) setting up camp along the creek. Many great spots! We saw two more people near the trailhead for a total of four all day. Such a great hike!
Stats: 12 miles, 2,900 elev. gain, 5.5 hours.

Thanks to some prior trip reports from last year, I decided to piece this loop together.  Did it in the same direction, starting from the DeRoux campground, then walking upstream to the packed TH for Lake Ingalls.  It's peak larch madness time and as expected once all the Ingalls-bound hikers turned off things got very quiet on the Esmerelda Basin trail.  In fact, we saw ZERO hikers the rest of the day!  On a sunny Sunday.  We saw no on at all until we were at Gallagher Head lake, where a few guys on motorbikes were enjoying the scenery.  After chatting a bit, we headed down the DeRoux trail (very puffy and dusty) and came across one other motorbike group.  Everyone was very considerate and shut off their bikes to let us by in a narrow spot.

While it was great to be able to make a loop (~12miles), I would not do this again.  Once you descend the backside of Fortune Pass and hook onto the Jeep road, the climb up to Gallagher Head Lake was pretty awful.  Steep, dusty, rocky cobbles.  About a mile but you'll swear it's 3.  

On the plus side, I was really surprised that so many creeks were still flowing, at least a little bit.  Beautiful fall colors, interesting rocks, and weekend solitude were the highlights.

Overall: Great day hike for those looking for a nice long loop with some mountain view’s, fall foliage (not larches) and few crowds. Myself, my husband, and our two dogs hiked the loop clockwise from De Roux TH.

Road Conditions: Expect miles of washboard but nothing requiring high clearance

Details:

12.2 miles overall from point to point, no road walking required

2,800’ cumulative elevation gain

6 hours total time plus stops for pictures, snacks, and sniffs for the dogs

Arrived at De Roux TH around 7am with hardly another car in sight though we did see a handful heading to the Esmeralda TH further up the road. Brisk start (30 degrees) as the sun had yet to crest the mountains, but we warmed up soon as we gained the majority of the elevation in the first couple of miles. Evidence of dirt bikes and horses, but trail still in good repair.

The meadow was lovely with access to water and some top notch camp sites. We crossed De Roux Creek without difficulty and continued to Gallagher Head Lake, which was very picturesque in the early morning light. The road however was quite steep and showed evidence of LOTS of truck and OHV use, so we slowed way down and watched our footing as we skirted water filled holes and ruts and very loose rocks. We also warned some cyclists we met that this would be a very difficult and frustrating ascent as they were biking the loop counterclockwise.

The trail (1394) leading to the saddle above Esmerelda Basin was very well marked and the trail itself was easy to follow. The views from this section were some of the best of the trip as you gain excellent views of the larger peaks to the north and can look back down the valley from whence you came.

We encounter other hikers for the first time at the saddle and still more arrived as we ate lunch around 10:30. Again the route down was easy to follow and we continued to encounter more frequent groups of hikers, many with dogs of their own, as we enjoyed the gradual descent through the basin.

The fall colors were lovely and we certainly didn’t miss the throngs of people who we presume took the trail to Ingalls lake for a glimpse at the famed larches. When we got to Esmerelda TH and began looking for our adjacent trail along the river, we realized just how many people must have gone to the lake because cars were parked bumper to bumper on both sides of the road for almost a mile.

We arrived back at the truck around 1pm and didn’t see many cars on our way out. Altogether a very lovely way to spend the day.