A cold night out at Silesia Camp, one of the most accessible views of the Pickets and North Cascades. It's exciting that the full Copper-Chilliwack Loop is now open, and I'll look forward to completing it on a future trip.
We originally planned to camp for several nights, but due to the forecast for relentless rain and bitter cold, we changed our reservation to a one-night stay at Silesia before the government shutdown. We slept in our vehicle at the trailhead the night before our hike, and found it busy, with cars coming and going throughout the night, as well as alarming noise from rockfall. The parking lot area is much colder overnight than the approach trail to Hannegan Pass, being in a shaded area, not affected by the sun that warms most of the valley. The road to the trailhead proper is now open; in previous years, I've parked behind the washout and walked a short distance through the forest to the original trailhead and bathroom.
We thoroughly enjoyed the hike out to Silesia and onward toward the Copper Mountain Lookout, though it took us most of the day, including a side trip for water to Egg Lake. The water source streams at Hannegan Camp and Boundary Camp were flowing with clear water, but the smaller streams I had encountered in previous years along the trail, including two solid blue lines on the Gaia map, were completely dry. We were glad to find that the outlet of Egg Lake was also flowing clear, with enough space to use both a squeeze and a pump filter (with a hose).
We took a minute to explore the campsites at Egg Lake, including two separate toilets -- one on each side of the lake -- and spoke to two groups spending the night, who confirmed their tents were coated in ice that morning from the frigid temperatures.
We only encountered a few other groups on the trail, headed for Copper Lake or back to Boundary Camp, in addition to the groups camping at Egg Lake. Everyone was adhering to the permit reservation system, even though the government shutdown made access advice unclear. We also encountered one solo hiker who had turned back from an attempt on Mt Challenger - and now that's on my radar for another year.
Our Silesia Campsite was roomy enough for two tents and flat, with stunning views of the sunset, stars, and moon. The bear box had ample space for multiple groups' food and scented items. The only downside was having to carry water. We didn't see any sign of bears or other wildlife, except for chipmunks and small birds. We enjoyed copious ripe blueberries right from the trail, which surprised everyone so late in the year.
This hike is so enjoyable that I often forget I logged over 20 miles and 6,000' of elevation gain for the overnight. Hope to return again soon!
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