Smithbrook, Lake Janus and Grizzly Peak — Tuesday, Jul. 30, 2002

Central Cascades > Stevens Pass - East

The avalanche debris that was blocking the road at the trailhead is gone/melted. The Smith Brook road is driveable at least to Rainy Pass. I headed up Smith Brook trail from the new parking lot and trailhead at 1:30 pm. There has been a lot of maintenance done to this trail lately and it is in overall good shape. There are a couple of blowdowns on the way to Union Gap. The trail to Janus Lake (PCT) is somewhat muddy and watery in spots, but is passable. The lake was very scenic and well worth the effort. I heard plenty of marmots whistling in the many rockslide areas. There were a few patches of snow near Janus Lake, no problem to find the trail. The weather was perfect for hiking, clear, dry, cool, and slightly breezy. The mosquitos were very bad whenever I stopped, but otherwise the bugs weren't a problem. I left the lake at 7:30 pm, got to Union Gap at 9 and was back at the car in the dark at 9:40. On the drive up to Stevens Pass around noon, right where they are repaving, I saw a small black bear eating a dead deer on the side of the road. There were highway workers and flaggers only 50 ft away, but they seemed unconcerned.