Content with a favorable weather forecast, I set off early this morning, determined to tackle Whittier Ridge again. Well. Apparently, the favorable weather forecast was extremely wrong. 

Getting there:

I arrived at the rather quiet Norway Pass Trailhead at approximately 7:15 this morning. Do yourself a favor, and make a good life decision: take FS 25 and 99 instead of Road 26. The former is a complete dream. (Complete dream [adjective]: a drive along Forest Service roads that does not consist of car-sized potholes, the road crumbling apart, or the road missing sections entirely.) That being said, the drive is still bumpy. It was hard to see dips/bumps in the dark, and even in the light, it is very difficult to see where the dips are until it is almost too late. So go SLOW. But I promise you that this combination is still way better than FS 26, where Google wants to take you.

To Norway Pass:

I was in the clouds, and I did not get out of the clouds for most of the day. Trail to Norway Pass in excellent condition. No drama.

To Whittier Ridge junction:

I continued to march, determined to find the sun that was supposed to be out. There is a trail washout before Bear Pass/Bear Camp that has garnered some controversy in recent reviews. Reviews vary from not even mentioning it to making it sound like one must leap across the Grand Canyon and then scale a cliff (if you survive the leap). It is important to note that everyone has different experience and comfort level. So take my opinion with a grain of salt. One cannot grasp the full extent of the washout until you see it from the other angle on the way back. But for me, it was easily passable with one careful step. The ground seemed firm for me. I did not hop or leap. It may come to that eventually, but for now, I had no issues. I included a picture.

Once I got to the Whittier Ridge junction, I was still completely in the clouds/fog and the wind was picking up. I very sadly had to abandon my plan. The ridge is not something anyone should be doing with no visibility. Since I was already there though, I decided to keep marching on the trail to Mount Margaret.

Mount Margaret:

Probably has epic views. I've actually never been to the summit of this one. Of course, I couldn't see a blessed thing. Trail was in excellent condition.

The return:

I hadn't seen anyone all day (understandably so, it was pretty miserable). On the way back, I started to run into a few people, but overall, saw less than 10. Heard/saw some elk. Clouds were starting to lift just a little. Yes, I was disappointed that I hadn't done the ridge or really seen much, but what I did see lifted my spirits and reminded me that this place is truly the most magical place on earth. (Sorry Disney).

With temps getting lower, today was a nice day for a rare visit to Mt. St Helens backcountry.

Getting There & Trailhead

Took 25 and 99 from Randil remembering how miserable 26 was a couple years ago. Roads seem to be sliding at a faster pace than being fixed, so even though they are paved, it’s a very bumpy ride. No kidding - there was a party on motorcycles riding in front of me, and one guy got almost ejected on a particularly nasty bump, which made them all turn around soon. Definitely watch your speed for suspension’s sake.

The trailhead parks about a dozen cars and was half empty at 10.30 am on this Sunday morning. There is an outhouse that stinks but is stocked and usable. There is also a sign for the pass pay station, but I haven’t checked if it is stocked.

Hike

One of the most well-graded hikes ever. The trail climbs steadily yet mildly for pretty much the entire distance between the trailhead and Mt. Margaret, turning into ups-and-downs only less than a mile from the mountain. Almost no switchbacks, just a meandering trail contouring ridges while ascending - what a delight for both legs and eyes.

Stretch to Norway Pass is mildly overgrown, and is a berry paradise right now. There is a single blowdown to duck under.

Past Norway Pass, alpine meadows begin to take over. Wildflowers are well past peak but are still abundant.

Once past Bear Camp, picturesque rock formations are a true treasure of this trail. The hike ends with passing under towering Mt. Teragram and final aggressive but very short climb to Mt. Margaret.

No huge views today due to clouds covering top of Mt. St Helens and hiding Mt. Rainier, although I was still able to spot little parts of it. Still, an extremely worthy hike for just views of rocks at the higher elevations.

Timing & Crowds

• Up: 2 h 15 min
  • 45 min from TH to Norway Pass
  • 1 h 30 min from the pass to Mt. Margaret
• 1 hr at the peak
• Down: 1 h 40 min
  • 1 h 5 min from the peak to the pass
  • 35 min from the pass to TH

Only encountered about 10-15 people on the entire hike.

The Mount Margaret loop has been on my list for a while so on a whim I checked for permits a few days before the weekend and found one last permit available for Dome Camp on Saturday.

Despite the forecast, my brother and I made the long drive out to Norway Pass TH in the rain and decided to power through. Road to the trailhead was honestly a lot better than I had anticipated - we were in a very low clearance car and it just took some careful maneuvering around some of the dips and cracks in the pavement. Parking lot was unsurprisingly quite empty.

We started hiking around 3 p.m. and were hiking in a cloud the entire time. Thankfully it had stopped raining at that point, but we still got absolutely soaked from all the wet brush along the trails. We booked it to Dome Camp (~6.5 in) and quickly set up camp to warm up and dry off. Dome Camp sits atop a little hill so it doesn’t offer much protection from the elements. The wind picked up at night and made for a loud evening.

The next morning - finally - we saw the sun and it was glorious. Mount St. Helens had been right in front of us the whole time! We had a long day ahead of us (18 miles) so we tried to get moving early and make the descent toward Coldwater. This stretch is so beautiful and it seems like folks have been maintaining the lower section recently as a lot of brush had been cut back and the corridors were wide. Once we reached the low point near Coldwater, we filled up on water as it was the first stream we’d seen since starting. The south side of this loop (including camp) is entirely dry so make sure you pack plenty of water.

After that it was a bit of an uphill slog to reach the lakes on north side. I kept my morale up by snacking on as many berries as I could find. This trail is absolutely loaded with them. We found ripe huckleberries, trailing blackberries, salmonberries, and the best thimbleberries I’ve had in my life. The lakes were nice and the rocks and lush valleys in this area feel so unique compared to other hikes I’ve done.

After one final climb to Bear Pass it was downhill the last few miles to the trailhead and we finally got to take in the mountain views we had missed out on the day before, including the iconic view from Norway Pass.

I took my 16 year old son backpacking for 2 nights in the Mt. Margaret backcountry, starting from the Norway Pass trailhead. We did the Whittier Ridge - Lakes Loop as a long day hike without our backpacks (see warning about Whittier Ridge below). It was a fabulous trip! The weather was cool, which made it great for hiking. Surprisingly, there were almost no bugs. There were wild flowers absolutely everywhere. It was really beautiful! And, there were tons of wild berries, especially near the lakes (Obscurity Lake, Panhandle Lake, and Shovel Lake). The huckleberries were plump and sweet and even the salmon berries tasted quite good. I've never see such abundance of delicious berries in the wild! With the exception of Whittier Ridge, the trail was in good condition, but overgrown in places. 

WARNING ABOUT WHITTIER RIDGE: As others have noted, this section of trail is steep and unmaintained. The exact trail can be hard to spot at times, but it follows the top of the ridge. The terrain is rocky and narrow and often involves scrambling up over rocks, or descending steeply. You will need to use both hands and you will need to take your time. The rocks and soil are loose in places, so be VERY CAREFUL! We really enjoyed it, but the difficulty of this section should not be underestimated. We passed a search and rescue team. They were looking for a couple that had been hiking the ridge. That couple was apparently daunted by the trail, so they tried to find an alternate route down the mountain. That proved to be a bad idea. 

That said, the views from Whittier Ridge were absolutely stunning! It rises high above the lakes to the south, and even higher above the valley to the north. The rouged terrain looks really cool, and we saw no less than 20 mountain goats on the slopes bellow us!

If you hike in this region, then I highly recommend taking the section of trail that leads to the top of Mt. Margaret. The views from the top are fantastic! From one location we had a clear view of Mt. Rainier, Mt. Adams, Mt. St. Helens, Spirit Lake, and much more! One unexpected feature was the incredible number of grass hoppers along the trail leading to Mt. Margaret. I've never seen so many in one place!

This is a great area for hiking/backpacking. Highly recommended (with caution regarding the ridge trail).

Sunday we hiked Norway Pass and were pleasantly surprised by the views and wildflowers along the trail.

HAZARDS/CAUTIONS:

The road up to the trail has some bumps and overgrowth along the way. You can definitely get there, just take it slow. It is a one-lane road in some places, so be cautious as you approach curves and keep your lights on for safety. The bugs were terrible - long sleeves and pants are recommended for all weather types as well as good bug spray, but it may not deter all of the biting flies and mosquitoes. There were also a significant amount of bees (the stinging kind), so as you pass overgrowth on the trail, be mindful not to swat at them. The trail has a couple of eroded spots you can step over (I used trekking poles to help maintain balance), and overhanging branches (my hiking partner bumped their head pretty good). 

HIGHLIGHTS:

Parking was plentiful, and the bathroom wasn't terrible. The wildflowers and views were spectacular! Definitely take moments at viewpoints to take it in. We even saw a couple of little strawberries growing on the side of the trail. There were plenty of butterflies too - so sweet! The recent work party did a great job of cleaning up the part of the trail they handled that day. I will come back to this hike for sure! #HikeaThon