Ski tour with six of us from Stehekin. We left from the road at Tumwater camp above High Bridge (up the Stehekin valley road) at 5:00am, went past Coon Lake and headed up the switchbacks. Had to boot up at about 5,000' as snow was covering trail at that point. Hiked up into the snow, then skined up, walking on snow ending at Old Librarian's ridge. Gorgeous weather all day... great snow conditions as well... hard in the morning, soft around noon, and slushy-wet around 2-3pm. Got to descend about 2,000' from the ridge to where the snow ended in the gully. Some wildflowers at/below 5K'. Great day, skiing, people, and views.

This is an outstanding destination because the views get better with each step and the trail is in excellent shape (at least as far as we were able to venture before being turned back by the threat of missing the last shuttle). We took the 8 am bus from Stehekin to the end of the passable road. We started hiking at 9 am and walked behind the ranger station and outhouse and found the PCT North sign. We followed the trail for a short distance (less than a mile) before the PCT headed north and flat and we headed east and up. We passed by beautiful little Coon Lake and then simply followed the trail up up up. We hit snow at 4600’ and were still able to follow the trail until around 5000’ when we lost it and continued up. At 1:30 we realized that the snow was slowing us down so much that we would not be able to both summit and catch the shuttle so we chose the latter. The views were stunning! We could see Bonanza, Goode and all the way up the valley to Cascade Pass and Boston, Booker and Buckner. Amazing. We look forward to returning later this summer when the trail is snow-free to the top.

There's more water available on the trail than there normally would be at this time of year, and the trail is in great shape otherwise as well. Very little windfall, (almost) no snow. The only snow you'll experience is if you do the summit scramble - on the backside of the route, there's a small snowfield to cross and a small snow bank. The steps in the snow bank are off-camber, and the snow bank is hard as ice. Exposure is minimal, but I still decided to downclimb a short stretch of rock on the way down rather than test the steps a second time. Since there's no trail profile, and I'm usually the only one who reports on this trail, I'll say this about the scramble: it's not very technical, but it is very exposed. The footing is loose in places, and that's the biggest risk. The second biggest risk is rockfall - the start of the scramble crosses below a gully full of very loose rock. Either bunch up or space out if you're with a group. Otherwise, make sure there's no one below you when you go through this section. The progression is: scree, traverse to the right, traverse to the left, gully. This is one of my favorite trails around - incredible views, incredible alpine topography, great scramble. It's a big trail - 8 miles one way, 6,200 feet (from road end to summit) - but it's 800'/mile, incredibly steady. It makes for a great day. The only drawback: it's very hard to get to.

Everyone says this hike is "brutal." It's not! It may be long and climb a lot, but the grade is very consistent and not all that steep. The trail is in great shape, too - very few rocks or even roots. It is hard to get to - you either have to backpack to it, make special arrangements to get there or be in good enough shape to make quick work of it once you can take the shuttle bus up there. The upper portions of the mountain, though, are so worth it. From subalpine forest to apline larches and views unlike anything you'll get almost anywhere else - it's an incredibly rewarding hike. We saw a bear with two cubs and a deer with a yearling, in addition to the usual pikas and marmots and occasional eagle. The seasons change early up here - we got lightly snowed on above 7,500 feet, but so far as I know, the trail is still very much open and snow-free. Another plus - no bugs, except right in the vicinity of Coon Lake. All around, one of my favorite hikes in the state.

Our group had this planned for months and we were not disappointed. The 14 or so miles to where the scrambling starts is in excellent condition. Lots of switchbacks, but the elevation gain was even and very managable with good pacing. Once the trail ends, there are red arrows pointing the way to the top. It's a good idea to have a helmut as there is some lose rock and one can bump their head on the occassional overhang. Look for the antenna that sits at the summit when possible and you know you're heading in the right direction. We were lucky to have had a beautiful day with stunning views because the people who went the next day were greeted with hail and clouds.