I originally completed this trail in late September 2014, when fall colors were beginning to show and elks bugled non-stop through the night. Unfortunately, this area is in the Norse Peak Wilderness, and the entirety of this route is currently on fire. I am heartbroken to see that the wilderness as I knew it is gone and thought I would share our trip here, as a way to preserve the memory. There weren't too many trip reports from this area and hopefully this is useful in some roundabout way. Many more details on my blog here.
The trail began on dusty switchbacks for several miles. It popped out to a scenic valley with Goat Lake in the distance. We continued on towards Basin Lake, with a side trip to the old shelter in Big Crow Basin. We took a false junction then made it back on track to Basin Lake.
We slept at the beautiful Basin Lake overnight, saw tons of goats and heard many elk. In the morning we climbed out of the basin and to Scout's Pass. The fall colors were phenomenal and we saw our first view of Mt. Rainier. We continued on the PCT, and back down the dusty switchbacks that plagued us on our way back.
More pics and details on the blog: http://everytwopines.com/2017/09/20/looking-back-big-crow-basin/
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