Took advantage of a beautiful fall day to get out into the Teanaway area.  Trail to Pete lake is very wet and muddy in places.  At the start of the day it was all frozen so not a big deal but as it warmed up things got sloppy.  After arriving a Pete Lake took the Waptus pass trail, this trail is steep and rugged but passed by several very nice waterfalls.  After arriving at the top of the ridge the trail really deteriorated into a big mess.  Any flat section of trail held water, mud, ice or a combination of all three.  My decision to go with boots instead of trail runners was a good one for sure.  Some of the creek crossings were deeper than I was prepared for so I had to do some bushwacking to find different spots to cross on rocks or logs that were slippery with ice.  Difficult traveling through this section of trail with all of the water, streams had overtaken the actual trail for several hundred feet in a couple of places.  The hike up to Polallie ridge from Waptus pass was much better shape, snow overtaking the trail at about 5200 feet but only a couple of inches thick.  Pretty uneventful trip down the Tired Creek trail to meet up with the Pete Lake trail.  Not much in the way of big payoff views on this loop but if you are looking for a secluded day in the woods this is a great option.  I saw a total of zero people on this beautiful Sunday and the dog had a great time.

GPS stats

13.55 miles with 2885 of gain

I completed a really fun one-night backpack up to the Escondido Ridge / Summit Chief area off the PCT. This was my first trip to this location, and it exceeded all my expectations.

ROAD, CROWDS

I started at the Pete Lake Trailhead. The road in is paved to within two miles of the trailhead. The gravel road at the end has some potholes and rocks, but nothing too terrible so any car can make it. There were about a dozen other cars at the trailhead when I arrived at 10:30 AM on Sunday, and a bit less when I left on Monday afternoon.

In terms of people, almost everyone I saw was on the Pete Lake Trail, about 20 people and three horses on Sunday, and 10 people and two horses on Monday. I only saw one other hiker the entire trip, on the Waptus Pass Trail Sunday as I was ascending from Pete Lake. It's kind of wild having such a gorgeous area all to yourself, but such is the nature of fall hiking sometimes!

PETE LAKE

The trail to Pete Lake is mostly a nice forest walk. Plenty of shade for warm days, and a pretty well-groomed trail. There is one small blowdown about 1.5 miles in, and a larger one 3 miles in. There is about 400-500' of elevation change along the way, but Pete Lake is less than 200' higher than the trailhead, so the ups and downs are fairly equal. It feels harder on the way back if your legs are tired. There are some fall colors, but not a lot, and no real views to speak of until you get to the end. There is some mud along the way and a few creek crossings, but all are dry or low right now. There are good views of Chikamin and Lemah from the east end of the lake near the trail, and plenty of camp sites and day use areas. This section took me about 1:30.

WAPTUS PASS / ESCONDIDO LAKE

The signed Waptus Pass trail starts right by the east end of the lake. It's gradual for a few minutes, but then starts switchbacking up the steep slope. The switchbacks are a bit churned up due to horses, the but the grade is certainly manageable. It will still feel like a lot of work compared to the hike you just did to get to Pete Lake, gaining about 1000' feet in the first mile before mellowing out. The trail is very nice after this, as it slowly ascends toward Waptus Pass. After crossing the Cooper River, there is soon a sign for the Escondido Lake Trail, which climbs to your left. This trail is in need of some light brushing, but it's not too bad, and all the blowdowns seem to have been cleared recently - thank you trail crews! It's a bit more climbing to get to the lake, but the ascent is gradual.

As others have reported, the name "Escondido" or "hidden" is fitting for the lake, since the trail has no views of the lake! When you get to the big horse camps next to the meadow on your left, you'll want to take a left through one of the camps, and find the bootpath that heads south. It will take you across the outlet stream, then along the east shore of the lake. There are more camps along here, and lake access. It took me about 1:40 to reach Escondido Lake from Pete Lake.

From here, my mission was to ascend Escondido Ridge up to the PCT. If you keep following the boot path around the lake, it eventually continues southward up the ridge. The path disappears quite a bit, but is clearly visible at both the top and the bottom and you generally go in a straight line upward. There is a gully the path pops out of at the top, though I missed this on the way up and pulled myself up some rather steep duff a bit too far south. The brush along this ridge climb is not too bad, as it's mostly open woods. This climb took only about 0:20.

NOTE: If you're not interested in Escondido Lake, you can continue on the Waptus Pass Trail until you reach the Waptus Burn Trail, then turn left for about 1.7 miles to reach the PCT. Then turn left again (southbound) on the PCT. This is quite a bit longer than the route I used, but is on nice trail the whole way without any steep stuff or bushwhacking. This is the shortest "on trail" route to Escondido Ridge, and probably the one I would use on my next trip up there.

ESCONDIDO RIDGE TO PCT

Once you get up to the ridge, you will find an obvious boot path along the ridge line. In short, follow the ridge up and you will eventually intersect the PCT. The boot path will be more obvious in places where the ridge is narrower. If you lose it, don't worry, just keep heading up the route that looks easiest. It's not hard to stay on the ridge, since it drops off pretty steeply if you stray too far east or west. Most of this area was burned back in 1994, according to my research, so it's mostly just low brush and dead trees. There are lot of logs that need to be climbed over, but it's not too bad. I spent about 0:45 on this section, with quite a few stops for pictures. This part is where the views really open up, as you can see Mount Stuart and lots of stuff east, including Bears Breast and Daniel close by, along with Three Queens, Box Ridge, and Chikamin Ridge peaks in the other direction. Tons of fall color through the burn areas.

PCT TO VISTA TARNS

This is just a short section, but I wanted to include it since it's one of the more scenic parts. The fall color along the PCT here is incredible - mostly reds but there are some golds mixed in too. The red colors along with blue sky (if you're lucky), and all the white burned tree trunks and various rock outcroppings is quite dramatic. This section of the PCT is mostly flat, so it only took me about half an hour to reach the turnoff for Vista Tarns, though I am sure half of that was gawking at the scenery and taking pictures. If you have some spare time, when you first reach the PCT from Escondido Ridge, you can go right (northbound) for a few minutes to reach the Escondido Tarns area. I didn't do this, but it's supposedly a really pretty area. Camping is discouraged here by a very faded sign you might see.

As you round the corner of the ridge, you are presented with jaw-dropping views of the entire skyline from Three Queens to Chikamin to Lemah to Chimney Rock. Summit Chief is also visible, but partly hidden behind the ridge containing the Vista Tarns. The huge chasm between Chimney Rock and Summit Chief is really something. 

The turn to Vista Tarns is an obvious side trail just before a big switchback to the left, at around 5520'. There are some smaller side trails that will eventually get you there, but the main one is only about 150' from the first tarn.

VISTA TARNS

I camped on a mostly level slab of rock just to the west of the upper Vista Tarn, which I called "Vista Camp". It was a really spectacular camp site in terms of the view, but the amenities are nice too - a huge boulder serves as a perfect table, and there were enough flat rocks to make a stool to sit on. The upper tarn is only about 100' away, and there is a smaller tarn more like 20' away, which is very scenic. The smooth slabs make a nice base for your tent, though you may need to get creative with ways to hold your tent down - I put mine just on the edge so I could use my stakes on at least two corners. There is camping available closer to the tarns, but it's on fragile vegetation, which generally should be avoided, and is sometimes damp as well. The rocks were nice and dry, and it was cool to be able to get out of my tent in my socks without getting my feet wet or dirty!

There is a pretty decent boot path that leads along both tarns, then ascends up to the pass beyond the upper tarn. It then climbs up and over the high point on the ridge toward Summit Chief - I'm sure because this is the common climber's route to Summit Chief. I went up to this high point in the evening, taking about 20-30 minutes each way. Up here you get spectacular views of The Chiefs, but even more impressive views of Bears Breast Mountain and Mount Daniel to the east.

SUMMIT CHIEF LAKE

The next morning, I walked the ridge trail again to reach Summit Chief Lake. Once you near Summit Chief Pass at about 5750', there is an obvious large, grassy gully to the right that will take you to the lake. It's mostly solid rock and heather / grass, so pretty easy going. The lake is about 400' down and except for one or two place, you can't see it until you get close, due to the steep bowl it's in. Stay to the left on the way down or you'll get cliffed out on the SE side of the lake. The lake itself is deep and gorgeous, with a nice infinity pool effect on the east side looking toward Mount Daniel. Would be great for swimming, if one were so inclined!

On the way back, I decided to avoid the high point traverse, and instead follow along the ledge systems on the east side of the ridge. This was super cool, and not all that difficult. Tons of big flat areas with grass and some small tarns. There is a huge, basketball-court-sized flat area that would make an awesome camp site with views of the Waptus Valley and Bears Breast, and enough small tarns close by for water. Some of the ledges dead end, but with the nice solid rock, it's easy enough to climb up to the next one when needed. Just keep traversing at roughly the 5600' level and you'll make it back to the pass leading to Vista Tarns. I "rescued" a bright red helium balloon I found just on the east side of this pass. It took me about 1:00 each way, with lots of picture stops, so the ridge route and ledge route are pretty similar in terms of time and effort.

DESCENDING ESCONDIDO RIDGE

Let's get this out of the way first - I DO NOT recommend this option unless you really like bushwhacking. On the return, I descended back down Escondido Ridge the way I came up, but instead of going down to Escondido Lake, I kept going straight down the ridge line. While this was fine for a bit past the Escondido Lake path, all signs of a trail vanish after when the ridge flattens out. I probably spent an hour just going through mixed woods and brush to get back down to the Waptus Pass Trail right at the top of the switchbacks to Pete Lake. Going this route, it's only about 3 miles back to Pete Lake vs. the 7 miles if you go down PCT and the Waptus Burn Trail, but I estimate it only saved me about 30 minutes due to the much slower pace. It was pretty annoying having to step over all manner of blowdowns, holes, bushes, etc. and keep checking my GPS every five minutes to make sure I wasn't veering off course. Certainly not the worst bushwhacking, but compared with all the nice trails and open country on this trip, it sucked.

SUMMARY

I can't recommend this area enough. If you're going to do it all on-trail, then it's a workout to make it all the way up to Vista Tarns in one day with a heavy pack - about 11 miles and a bit under 3000' of gain. However, your pains melt away once you start seeing the amazing views up on the ridge. You could also do the ascent (or descent) via Lemah Meadows and come up from the west side. This is slightly longer, but would make a great lollipop loop option - pretty luxurious for the cost of only a single night.

Vista Camp would be an excellent base camp for a summit of Summit Chief, which is supposedly just a scramble. You can also climb up to Escondido Point or visit Escondido Tarns from here. It's fantastic country with some of the big name peaks in the ALW staring you in the face.

Three friends and I enjoyed a "lollipop" loop trail that used the Pete Lake Trailhead as our starting point while spending time on the PCT/Escondido Ridge/Spectacle Lake.  We did about 33+/- miles over three days/two nights using the following route:

Pete Lake Trail (Trail 1323) to Waptus Pass Trail (1329) to Waptus Burn (129.3) on to the PCT along Escondido Ridge down through Lemah Meadows and up to Spectacle Lake (1306) and then back down the PCT to Pete Lake trail (1323) out to the trailhead.

Observations on the trails:

* Pete Lake Trail (1323) - Trail is in superb shape with ample water available in multiple areas.

* Waptus Pass (1329) - From Pete Lake Trail it is pretty steep heading north towards the lake.  Ample water available and easy to follow.

* Waptus Burn (1329.3) - Trail is overgrown in some areas and has multiple blow downs over trail.  While we could always find the trail there were a few spots where we had to investigate before finding it again.  No water available.

* PCT from Waptus Burn to Spectacle Lake - Trail is overall in pretty good shape and easy to follow.  Please note that past Lemah Meadows the bridge is out over Lemah Creek and the lower crossing has a log you can use to cross the creek.  Ample water is available in multiple locations along this stretch.

*Spectacle Lake - Rough trail down to the lake.  Superb camping spots on the Peninsula.  Note that the "toilet" sign location is lying.  Go about 50 feet down from the sign and follow a small footpath to the actual toilet box if you need it.

If you are coming back from Spectacle Lake via the Pete Lake Trail note that the connector from the PCT will require you to ford the creek.  Maximum depth was about 2' deep.  One friend walked barefoot while others used sandals (I just walked through in my shoes).

Overall, we had a great time even with some rain and smoke.  We camped at Vista Lakes (West end of Escondido Ridge on PCT) and Spectacle Lake. I would highly recommend this loop!

What with nice, but cooler weather in the forecast, and a couple of unscheduled days, I decided on an overnighter to one of my favorite spots – Salmon La Sac. So I headed up the Cooper River trail, then up Tired Creek to Pollalie Ridge, finally down to Waptus Pass to hole up for the night (buggy, as usual, with a few fast disappearing snow patches, but dropped to 43 deg by morning). The next day I was up early and down to Waptus Lake by 8 am, before the long hike back to Salmon La Sac (ferocious bugs the first half – wonderfully gone on the second half).

    The Cooper River trail is well-used and delightful, with even a few swimming / fishing / picnicking spots as it approaches the Cooper Lake road. From there follow the road a few yards northwest to pick up trail 1327 through the Owhi Campground (soon just yards from Cooper Lake, waving to campers). Now go right into the boat launch parking to find the continuation of the trail to a big trailhead shortly beyond the upper end of Cooper Lake. This is a pleasant, flat trail, but with some confusing side trails in places (both to roads uphill and informal campsites toward the lake). There is also a rough, lakeside way trail to informal camping and fishing sites (you can easily bushwack up to the main trail if necessary).

    I seemed to be the first person to hike up the Tired Creek trail this year. The trail itself is well graded but with a few brushy spots near the start and a winter’s accumulation of fallen branches, etc. I cleared off the bulk of this myself, mostly with my two hiking canes, but occasional tree-fall was tougher. One substantial tree, over 2’ in diameter, had fallen across the trail both before and after a switch back at 3900’, leaving an enormous covering of broken off branches in between. Spent 10 to 15 minutes clearing all that so that you could easily duck / squeeze under the tree at both crossings. The cooler 60 to 70 deg temps really helped here.

    There’s good water from Tired Creek at 3200’ but nothing again until the first trickles above 4500’, one a substantial spring above 4900’, with some gurgles and a few lingering snow patches as you traverse past some luxurious wet meadows. Eventually you climb through this alpine wonderland to the trail junction at 5400’, with a 100’ elevation gain to the sweeping views from the old lookout site (from 3 Queens to the west past Daniel to the north and Stuart to the east). Rest amid, grasses, wildflowers, and a couple of old concrete foundation blocks. For the hearty, an up and down trail leads south on Pollalie Ridge past Diamond Lake (good rest stop) back to Salmon La Sac. Instead I headed back to the trail junction and down the steep switchbacks through thick forest to Waptus Pass. Again I did heavy clearing of the forest debris all the way to the Waptus Pass trail. A few hundred feet before that junction a substantial horse camp lies between Quick Creek and the large wet meadow that occupies the Pass. Here I was surprised that a few thin snowbanks lingered, but not surprised at the mosquitos, as I’ve passed this way on several occasions.

     The nice trail down to Waptus Lake already had been somewhat cleared. Just beware of route finding across the dry bed of old Quick Creek shortly after the easy crossing to today’s creek. Look for minimal tread heading downstream a 100’ or so, cross at a couple of small cairns, then spot similar tread heading back up. Before long the Quick Creek camp trail leaves to the left, with the first campsite coming only after several hundred feet. This popular site has a magnificent lakeside beach, with other campsites hidden behind in the woods or further up lake.

    From here to Salmon La Sac the trail is wide and well used – by both horses backpackers, with even more campsites on the north side of the lake (prepare to wade the Waptus River at the horse ford, but enjoy the jagged Pacific Crest peaks rising impressively to the west).  In addition, Waptus Lake is noted for the best mountain swimming in this region - cool but not frigid like most lakes - with many campsites having good beaches.

     The trail to Salmon La Sac crosses numerous creeks, so water is no problem even on a hot day. There are some flat stretches, but also modest ups and downs in between. As usual the bugs disappeared by the large and scenic riverside campsite by Hour Creek (3.4 mi from Salmon La Sac), but at one point people were putting on headnets in addition to bug dope, long sleeves, etc. – the worst I’ve ever seen it here.

     At the end of the hike, young people may be tempted to join the crowd with a dive and swim at the big pool in the Cooper River at Salmon La Sac. Instead I stopped for a cold beer and super deluxe burger at the first bar and restaurant you come to after Cle Elum Lake – the “Last Roadhouse”.

Had planned to go the Pete Lake -> Waptus Pass -> Escondido Lake -> Escondido Tarns -> Vista Tarns route, but ran into several downed trees that were impassable (especially with a dog) just after the turnoff for Escondido Lake. It was evident that a winter storm had hit this area. With that being the case, we decided to go the Waptus Burn -> PCT -> Escondido Tarns -> Vista Tarns route instead, although it (reluctantly) added a few extra miles. On the way down, we decided to try our luck on the PCT -> Lemah Meadows -> Pete Lake route.

On the way up there were some small patches of snow on the Waptus Burn trail, but nothing too difficult that didn't prevent us from finding the trail pretty easily. The views of Bears Breast & Mt Hinman were incredible near the Waptus Burn-PCT junction. We started to hit some more patches of snow near the Escondido Tarns, and then eventually the entire trail and about 90% of the Escondido tarn area was covered in snow still (GPS was necessary to locate the trail). After continuing on past the Escondido tarns, we were able to find the PCT again and still ran into some intermittent patches of snow, although they weren't too difficult to cross with no traction or snow gear. As we got closer to the Vista tarns, we hit more patches of snow. Again, not too difficult to cross, but GPS came in handy to locate the trail. The lower Vista tarn was just barely starting to thaw out and was mostly covered in snow, as was the outflow stream.  The surrounding area outside of the lower tarn & outflow stream was mostly snow free. We were pretty gassed at this point and didn't make it to the upper Vista tarn, but I suspect it was also mostly covered in snow still. We set up camp near the lower tarn and were immediately swarmed by mosquitos. The one silver lining - the views of Chimney Rock, Lemah, Four Bros, Three Queens, & part of Rainier were incredible (especially during sunrise).

We headed out the next morning and luckily the snow had hardened so we felt pretty comfortable walking across the snow covering the outflow stream of the lower tarn (no snow bridges, completely covered). Again, GPS came in handy for locating the PCT to get down to Lemah Meadows. Shortly after the outflow stream of the lower tarn, the PCT was entirely thawed and free from snow which was a happy relief. We were not free from any obstacles though, as there were a number of downed trees and stream crossings we had to navigate. Most of the downed trees were easy to hop over, but some did require some effort. As we got closer to Lemah Meadows, there were a number of streams intersecting the trail, one of which required us to take off our boots and put on our sandals to cross (likely wouldn't be the case later in the season). Lastly, one thing to note - I noticed a small crack running parallel with the trail on a number of the switchbacks on the PCT up near the Vista tarns (forgot to take photos). Likely not an issue this time of year, but with significant rainfall I would venture to guess that it could pose a serious issue (ie landslide). I plan on reporting this to the PCTA.

It was pretty smooth sailing once we reached Lemah Meadows and crossed our last major stream. The trail is pretty lush in this area with lots of vegetation sprouting up everywhere. The views of Chimney Rock were still pretty predominant and made this section very enjoyable. The rest of the trail was business as usual once we reached Pete Lake.

Long story short, there were many obstacles on this trail and required a lot of effort. In hindsight, I would advise waiting at least another month for the snow to fully melt and trees to be cut down before attempting this hike (at least if you plan to go to the Vista or Escondido tarns).