Started at 3:30 am. The lot was 1/3 full. The bathrooms are open, there was no tp in the morning but it was restocked by the time I returned in the afternoon.

To Lewis Lake

I was hiking in the dark until well above Lewis lake. The maple pass section of trail is easy cruising. That talus field is as much a pain the ass as advertised. There are cairns so it wasn't terrible to navigate, don't go to high or too low. There are a few sections of dirt path mixed in, but this is the least fun part of the whole climb for me. Straight boulder hopping 2/3 of the time.

Getting back on a dirt trail going around Lewis and up to Wing is a welcome relief. The only thing to note is that there are a lot of social trails to get turned around on here.

Wing Lake

Got to Wing lake to catch the sunrise on Black peak. The larches are at peak color and it's one of the best alpine sunrises I've had. The climb up to Wing is pretty chill winding up through groves of larches.

Gaining The Saddle

This is the hardest part of the climb in my opinion. After passing Wing I took the climbers pass to gain the saddle that leads to the final ridge scramble. Those last 500 feet are straight vertical up loose dirt and rock. A pain going up, and more of a pain going back down. A slip here would not be fun, poles highly recommended here. Also witnessed some rockfall off nearby cliffs so this is the time for helmets.

Ridge scramble

The ridge is snow/ice free. There are a few lingering patches but they aren't on the route. All the rock is dry.

The final scramble is super fun. Mostly class 2 up galleys with a few short sections of class 3.

The summit block has two options, I went for the standard scramble. It's the most technical part and does have one bit of exposure. It wasn't as bad as I'd been led to believe. This isn't a good beginner scramble though. Train up your scrambling and confidence, but it's very doable.

Summit

20^th highest peak in WA lives up to it's name. The 360 panoramic views of the north Cascades are jaw dropping. This is my favorite summit in WA to date. You can just see everything. Love looking back down on the lakes and larches from above. The view is so worth the climb!

The Return

I started descending around 10 am and ran into 3 other climbing parties. Wing lake was surprisingly uncrowded for being in prime larch season on a beautiful day. Same goes for Lewis. Going on a weekday really paid off to avoid the crowds.

Regaining heather pass is probably the most annoying part as climbing more is the last thing you want at the end of a long climb, but it's all easy downhill from there.

Lot was full when I returned at 3 pm. Car lining the highway on both sides.

Amazing climb, top climbs in WA for sure!

Bottom Line:

A simply amazing larch and alpine lake hike that is a difficult spur off the Heather-Maple Loop trail; the spur is quiet and remote - the loop is obviously a madhouse during larch season (patience and expectation management needed until you get to the spur); Lewis and Wing Lakes are spectacular, both emerald colored and surrounding by larches, all at peak; Black Peak with its snowfield and huge waterfall frame Wing Lake; clear air and skies, and warm sunshine lit up the endless larch groves; a stunner - go now!!

Stats:

• Distance: 12-1/2 miles
• Duration: 6-1/2 hours
• Vertical: 3300 ft
• Road/Parking: Approached from Mazama to the east; there is some smoke on the road from the Blue Lake fire (CAUTION), but it is very localized and not impacting air quality for the area hikes; the parking for both Blue Lake and Heather-Maple & Cutthroat Pass had already overflowed onto the highway at 9:30am on a Thursday; larches are visible on all the ridge tops, and down to the road as you navigate the hairpin curve passing the Kangaroo Pass trailhead; the drive up from Mazama was a treat itself!
• Weather: Sunshine, 70s, crystal-clear skies, light wind at the trailhead but none up top; much cooler in the shade; this is a morning hike, with the sun setting over the southern ridges in the afternoon, casting Lewis Lake, and eventually Wing, into the shade; the coming weekend should continue to be spectacular, although I cannot imagine how busy the loop will be - another reason to come early!
• Trail: Hiked Heather-Maple Loop trail counterclockwise to Heather Pass, and then took the spur (see Gaia) out to first Lewis, and then Wing Lake; one has to manage expectations if considering H/W Pass in larch season - it is busy, and today was no different - but once you take the spur to Wing Lake, there are few people and you leave the hordes behind; the trail is in excellent condition apart from two washouts on the boulder traverse over to Lewis Lake, the second particularly sketchy; the boulder field is long and difficult and really keeps this trail quiet relative to H/M-loop; I lost a leg up to mid calf in a rock hole at one point and could have easily broken something - took some gymnastics to get out (CAUTION); the trail descends from Heather Pass through a long boulder field, and then eventually climbs modestly again to Lewis Lake; despite reports to the contrary, there is a fairly well-defined (although primitive) trail the whole way to Wing Lake, and cairns help one through the easiest sections of the boulder field; Lewis Lake is BEAUTIFUL and this is a destination unto itself if that is as far as you want to go; the hike from there up to Wing is mostly uphill, but you will have left the bouldering behind; leave "gas in the tank" for the boulder field on the return, which will then be uphill and even more work; larches are peak and simply fantastic (in the late afternoon, the whole forest was glowing); H/M-pass is OK larch-wise, but this trail definitely takes it to another level with the volume of trees and the neverending groves that line most of the spur; Wing Lake is fantastically beautiful - what can I say, WOW! I could have sat there in contemplation for hours! The final ascent to Wing passes an old glacier cirque with a huge morraine - the landscape telling a story of a definitely bygone era
• Water: Seasonal streams are dried up so the only real water on the trail is at the lakes themselves where silt might clog up filters a bit
• Takeaway: Perhaps my new favorite Hwy 20 larch hike; it has been on my list for a number of years, but I had no idea it was this incredible; the boulder field should not be taken lightly - this trail is tough despite the moderate distance and reasonable vertical; with the low traffic, you would not want to get injured out there (satellite distress beason recommended); camping at Wing looks wonderful - next time

The attached 4K video will take time to upload and convert to high definition.

If coming from the west side, the brewery down in Mazama has good beer and food and is not that far away if you want to hit it before heading home.

<<Will finish this report late - the mountains are calling!>>

Conditions: Off trail, Rocky, Great!

We did a one night hiking trip to Wing Lake, back to Heather Pass, then up to the high point near Frisco Mountain, then back down via Heather Pass.

The trail to Heather Pass is quite easy and in good shape except for one spot in the lower "U" that looks as if it will fall away any day now.

Heather pass is a beautiful meadow, but only 1/4 mile up Wing Lake Trail you hit a really sucky field of boulders. We had overnight gear with us which made it harder. the boulder field goes for 1/2 mile. Someone gave us the very bad advice of staying high to avoid losing then regaining elevation, but it's far easier to stay as low as possible even though you are forced to regain the elevation to get to Lewis Lake.

The boulders end just before you reach the outflow from Lewis Lake. Then you get 0.35 miles of regular trail before you hit another smaller boulder field on the NE side of Lewis Lake.

On the north side of Lewis lake there is one spot where a Mountain Ash Bush almost pushes you off a low clif into the lake. And there is one other spot on the west side of Lewis Lake where the trail gets close to a cliff, but only for a few steps.

The trail from Lewis Lake is mostly boulder-free and in good shape. It's just brutally steep, rising 1,195 ft over 0.94 miles.

The Black Peak Trail is not too bad until you reach the NW side of Wing Lake. After that it becomes an extremely challenging "trail".

On our second day we backtracked to Heather Pass, hating every step of that boulder feld. Remember to water-up at the outlet of Lewis Lake.

The trail up from Heather Pass is a cakewalk compared to the trail to Lewis or Wing Lake. It's steep but essentially a wide smooth sidewalk. There are a couple parts that you might not like if you don't like heights, but only a few yards of cliff walking.

Another hiker gave us the very good advice to not stop a Maple Pass and at least go up to the overlook at 6,682 ft. She was right. We ended up going even further than that, to the high point, and little bit up the Frisco Mountain Trail. But she was right that the view was not much better than at that 6,682 point. If I were to do this as a day hike I would just hike up to that point and back which would be 3.38 miles one way and 2,040 ft.

We chose to go back down the way we came rather than complete the loop via the steeper switchbacks of the eastern ridge between Lake Ann and Rainy Lake.

There are so few trip reports for this lovely hike, so I figured an update would be helpful.

Highlights: gorgeous, incredible views, stunning lakes, mosquitoes ate us alive.

Details:

My friend and I started out from the Maple Pass Trailhead around 3pm Friday afternoon.  We managed to snag a spot in the parking lot surprisingly, likely due to the later afternoon hour and it being Friday.  First two-ish miles on the Maple Pass Loop were just lovely, gentle grade, lovely views, trail in good condition. At Heather Pass, we split off toward Black Peak and the lakes.  Here the mosquitoes began in earnest.  My friend and I were getting bit like crazy basically from when we first crossed Heather Pass until we came back over the next day. 

Trickiest part of the hike is the talus field between the pass and Lewis Lake. The dirt trail leads you much farther down than you really need to go, but traversing the talus field is its own challenge so choose your preferred struggle. We followed the dirt trail on the way out and mostly stuck to the talus field on the way back. 

Lewis Lake is incredible, a beautiful, brilliant greenish-blue. We didn't see many campsites, just one right off the trail that a group was setting up in.  We stuck to the right side of the lake, again following the dirt. Without avalanche danger, going left along the talus would probably be easier but either way works.  

Up to Wing Lake is just a grind, not tricking technically if you stick to the trail, just work.  The views make it much more enjoyable, as well all the pikas and marmots scurrying around. Wing Lake was breathtaking.  Took us about 4 hours to get there, very much meandering. Only saw two other groups Friday night and barely saw them at that.  I definitely second some other comments I've seen online about establishing a latrine if traffic continues to increase. 

Saturday morning we debated doing Black Peak, but it looked rather formidable, and we decided to just head down. We saw at least six groups start up the peak as we were packing up and passed many more people heading up on the way down. Tons of people on the Maple Pass Loop as expected, cars all along the highway as we left. Took a detour to Winthrop before heading back, highly recommend Sheri's Sweet Shoppe for post-backpacking ice cream. 

Overall, gorgeous overnight, planning on coming back to do Black Peak either as a day hike or another overnight once we're in better shape.