Perry Creek — Saturday, Sep. 3, 2011

North Cascades > Mountain Loop Highway

Note: The mileage in the hiking guide and online description DOES NOT include the additional 3 mi. round trip from the Mt. Dickerman parking lot to the old Perry Creek Trailhead. The total round trip distance for this hike should be 11, not 8 mi. Finally, some berries are ripening! Along the way, we sampled huckleberries, thimbleberries, salmonberries, blackberries, and rasberries. If you know where to look, they are plentiful along the short section of trail that follows the now blocked Perry Creek Road. Blueberries were found a bit higher on the trail, perhaps a mile beyond the old Perry Creek trailhead. Not a lot, but enough for a taste anyway. We hiked to the falls and back today, from the Mt. Dickerman parking lot, about 7 miles round trip. The trail is in fine condition and looks as thought it has been groomed lately. Brush has recently been cleared from the upper portion of the trail and blow downs on the lower portion between the parking lot and Perry Creek road cut and moved off the trail. Washouts have been filed in with gravel and the trail smoothed in spots. We really didn't notice bugs until we were almost to the falls. At that point the mosquitoes came out and with them, small biting flies. A good coating of DEET kept most of them away. Creek crossings up to and just beyond the falls are minimal. The creeks are low enough now that you can hop across a few strategically placed rocks and keep your feet dry. A set of hiking poles makes it even easier to keep your feet out of the water. I have to say that I think the falls are particularly unspectacular from the trail. Yes, it is a deep gorge, but I wish there was a trail down to the bottom of the falls. Maybe there is and I just wasn't aware of it.