Builders of the Polallie Ridge trail evidently did not believe in switchbacks. The view of the trail going straight up the hill ahead of you will have you thinking you should have done more squats to prepare for this hike. Trail is in good shape and most blow downs have been recently cleared which was much appreciated. We had Diamond Lake to ourselves on night one. Day two was cloudy all day so we missed the mountain views. Lots of early wildflowers out. The trail gains and loses a fair bit of elevation on the way up from Diamond to the summit, then loses a bunch going down to Waptus Pass, which is marshy with many mosquitoes this time of year. Bug nets were necessary.
We dropped packs at the pass and after scouting about for a bit found the trail to Escondido Lake. Be warned that signs are posted high on trees, facing in one direction so you may not see them. GPS came in handy. The blow downs mentioned in a previous trip report have all been cleared. Trail to Escondido is in good shape. Again, there are meadows around the lake. Too buggy for this time of year, but it looks like hunters use the camps in the fall. There is one very nice hiker sized camp right at the lake. The trail takes you to the meadow not the lake. Cross the meadow to find the lake.
We came back to the pass and camped near a creek then headed down the Quick Creek trail in the morning. There are views on the way down. Trail is in good shape and clear and well switchbacked. Upon reaching Waptus Lake, we took the quarter mile trail to camps along the lake and stopped to enjoy the sun on the water. From there the Waptus River trail completes the loop. There are some gentle ups and downs with pretty river views along the way.
Probably won’t do this loop again as there are better ridge walks, but if you are looking for solitude this is the spot. We saw only 2 parties in the 2 days on Polallie Ridge. I would also go up Quick Creek trail to reach the ridge.
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