Having never been to the Pasayten Wilderness, my partner and I decided to take a long weekend to see as much as we could. After camping along the road out to the trailhead on Thursday night (multiple official campgrounds and plenty of dispersed camping options), we started at Thirtymile trailhead around 9am. We got about 20 miles in on day 1, taking the Chewuch River trail up to the Lesamiz trail to the Boundary trail. Each turnoff was signed and easy to spot, and the trails were well maintained. Elevation was gradual until about mile 15 (we jogged a lot of it) and then climbed a few miles up into a meadow. The bugs were ever-present but manageable - until we got to our planned camp spot at Upper Cathedral Lake. Mosquitoes were EVERYWHERE - looking back we should have just camped a little further up the trail at the pass where there was a breeze and open space, but we were tired, so we just spent some time in the tent before being lulled to sleep early by the sounds of incessant buzzing. 

Day 2 was a long one - from Cathedral Pass on the Boundary trail and then onto the Windy Peak trail at Sunny Pass, about 25 miles. Water is plentiful at the moment, until the climb to Windy Peak, we never carried more than 1.5L at a time on a hot/sunny day and never felt worried about running out (some of the smaller creeks may dry up as summer continues). The wildflowers were INCREDIBLE, especially near Sunny Pass. The bugs were still pretty bad - unless there was a breeze, we weren’t able to stop and rest for more than a minute or 2 before deciding it wasn’t worth it and moving on. We had originally planned to stop at Horseshoe Basin, but because we thought the bugs would be better higher up, we continued to the saddle just north of Windy Peak. The last 2 miles were a SLOG, but it was worth it - the breeze picked up and we were able to head up to the peak for sunset and views. 

Day 3 we started down the Windy Creek trail. FYI the fork on the Gaia track is slightly off, follow the signpost and you’ll be on the right path. There are some blowdowns and areas of overgrowth, but it's pretty easy to stay on track. Made it to the Cathedral Driveway trailhead to connect back to the Chewuch trail to finish the loop at the Thirtymile trailhead. We were especially glad to have made it to Windy Peak the night before as this meant we only had a 13 mile, all downhill day and were able to have lunch in Winthrop before heading back to Seattle. 

 It was also really interesting to see the different stages of forest recovering from fires. Wildlife was plentiful (goats, grouse, elk, etc…no bears) and humans were few. All in all, a beautiful loop, and despite the bugs, worth it for the wildflowers, plentiful water, and lower fire risk than later in the summer.

A truly delightful hike along the Windy Creek trail (#362) to Windy Peak. Enjoy the sounds of Windy Creek flowing along the trail. Marvel at the devastation caused by a forest fire around year 2006 (as I was told) and the forest returning with new pine trees standing 3-12 feet tall. Spot the many animal tracks and scat piles along the trail and use your skills to identify them. Deer? Elk? Horse? Sasquatch? You decide.

Road: As reported by others, the 20 mile drive on Toats Coulee Road and FR-39 is mostly paved, with short sections of gravel. There are some potholes and a few areas of washboarding, but nothing to dissuade an average car. Also take care to avoid the cowpies left on the road by some of the many free-range cattle you will pass. The last 3 miles on FR-39-300 is all gravel, but it is in excellent condition. There is a vault toilet at the trailhead for the Windy Creek and Cathedral Driveway trails.

Trail: The Windy Creek trail is in excellent condition and easy to follow. The tread is generally smooth and soft and almost all blowdowns have been cleared (hikers have beaten a gentle path around two nested blowdowns). The trail crosses Windy Creek about 5 times, which means there are plenty of opportunities to restock your water supply, but also some muddy sections to trudge through. Water along the trail is available up to about 7400 feet elevation.

Somewhat surprising to me, the route was slightly different that that on my Gaia GPS App and on a Forest Service map I downloaded. From the trailhead, the trail goes north up a sandy bank and then northwest through a new growth forest, before crossing Windy Creek at about 3/4 mile. From there, the trail generally runs along Windy Creek, crossing a few times before deviating north of Windy Creek for about the last mile before Windy Peak. This last mile is also the steepest, with about half of the elevation gain of the hike. But push on as the views at the top are worth the effort.

Some numbers: 43°F at the trailhead at 7 a.m. and no other cars. Encountered 2 hikers on the trail during my return leg, and spotted 2 elk and 1 ground squirrel on the hike. At 1 p.m., it was 62°F at the trailhead and there were 2 other cars and a truck/horse trailer parked along the road.

Also, because this hike involved a very long drive, I elected to drive to the area the afternoon before my hike and camp at the Long Swamp Campground 3 miles from the Windy Creak trailhead. The Long Swamp campground had just the basic facilities -- a clean and stocked vault toilet, a bear-proof garbage can, and two picnic tables – but this was sufficient for my needs. On the down side, mosquitos were abundant and annoying at the campground.

Per the Forest Service, the Windy Peak trail (#342) is open from the trailhead near the Long Swamp Campground.

Went up Windy Peak on the first full day of summer via the Windy Creek trail. I think this would be the better route, given the shorter distance compared to the Windy Peak trail and the abundant access to water along the trail. I found where Windy Creek (currently) emerges from the ground at around 7700m elevation, this may dry up later on but I imagine the creek persisting in the basin year round.

I don’t have too much to add onto Kidzwonthike’s excellent recent TR, but the blowdown he noted has all been cleared, save for one small log. Thanks to whomever completed this work. There was intermittent snow starting to appear closer to the trail junction along the ridge, and right below the summit the path was more substantially covered in places. I ultimately chose a short scramble up the west face at the end rather than fuss with the snow. Views were impressive in every direction. With so few day hikes in the Pasayten, I feel like this is an underrated peak, especially considering it’s a Bulger/Top 100.

I topped out on the summit in under 3 hours, so descended and headed north along the ridge to Topaz Mtn just to the northwest (second pic is view from Topaz summit). A trail runs almond the ridge to just below the summit block. If you enjoy some Class 2/easy Class 3 scrambling it’s a worthwhile add on. Total for both peaks was about 16 miles, 7 hours moving time.

Excellent trip up to Windy Peak up in the Pasayten. Windy Peak is #94 on the Washington Bulger list, and there is pretty much a trail all the way to the summit. 

Toats Coulee Road is paved most of the way, with sections of gravel, and is in great shape. Very scenic drive. There is some free range cattle up there, so be careful of them, as some of them don’t like to move out of the way of the cars.The last 2 miles to the Cathedral Driveway trailhead is all gravel, but is super smooth, with nary a pothole.

Windy Creek trail is clear of blowdowns to the first creek crossing. After this, there are about 30 trees across the trail. Most are small, but about 5-6 of them were hard to get around. Trail runs through a burn zone, so there are a lot of dead trees. There was a slight breeze, and a few came crashing down around me. Kind of scary, and put on high alert! There is lots of new pines growing in the burn zone, which is a great sign. There are also quite a few ups and downs on this section of trail. Nothing super steep, but with about a 100ft of extra gain each way, the inclines on the way back were tiring. Lots of water sources now, but that could possible change, as we get into summer

Once you get out of the burn zone, the grade steepens, and the soil becomes sandy, which at times makes the ascent a bit more difficult. Up near the top where the Windy Creek trail intersects the Windy Peak trail there is some sporadic snow, which caused me to lose the trail a few times. I didn’t use spikes or gaiters, and did just fine. The summit block is snow free, and if you choose the right line, it is just a walk up.

Some sweet views up and around the summit, especially of Remmel, Amphitheater, and Cathedral Peaks. You could also look out north into Canada.

Great place, but it was a long day. 5 hour drive each way from Bellevue, with a 5 hour hike. The hike to the summit was 10.3 mile RT, with 2956 ft gain

The area closure due to the Crater Creek Fire ended on Sept 7 so I decided to hike Windy Peak via the shorter Windy Creek Trail. The route is through an old burn and follows the creek making several crossings along the way. Windy Creek gently ascends the valley until arriving to a grandstand position in the eastern Pasayten country. 

The trail is in good condition with only a few blowdowns. 

10.2 miles RT and 2746' gain.