North Fork Sauk River — Monday, Sep. 22, 2003

North Cascades > Mountain Loop Highway

I wasn’t sure I would post a trip report on this trip but after heading up toward Red Pass my mind was made up to write one. After being asked if I wanted to head out for a 4 day/3 night trip to the Glacier Pk area I couldn’t pass up on the trip. This is one of the most spectacular areas in the state. If you haven’t seen the area mentioned in this trip…GO…GO RIGHT NOW before the color fades and winter blankets the area. The trip was set as a 1 way trek which meant arranging for a car shuttle. We parked on car at the N. Fork Sauk TH and then drove on to the White Chuck River TH to start the trip. Day 1 had up only hiking the 5+ miles to Kennedy Hot Springs. I had been to the TH once before so I knew what we were in for. Driving down the road to the TH you catch brief glimpses of Glacier Pk and already your spine starts to tingle as you get excited for the trip yet to come. The trail is relatively flat to the hot springs. It winds through old growth forest that brings visions of Hansel and Gretal to mind as the forest is dark, dense, and at times a bit foreboding. We arrived at the hot springs in time to find a nice campsite along the river. Better yet, we had time to soak our feet in the spring and chat with other folks out for day trips. Two young guys from the Seattle area, two young women also from Seattle…one of who had her very friendly black lab Scout along who like to surprise us in the dark with kisses, and three young hikers who said they planned to climb Glacier Pk the next day (I wonder if they made it). Day 2 had up hiking up trail 643.1 to the PCT. It’s a bit steep at first but then levels off as it approaches the PCT. Once at the trail junction we headed south on the PCT. The trail is flat and winds through more old growth forest crossing several creeks along the way. We were headed for the area below the White Chuck Glacier. It was so nice to take out time and enjoy the views on this trip. No peak bagging was planned. Just a trip to enjoy the wilderness, the solitude, and the beauty God placed in our backyard. There was an interesting stretch of trail after we crossed Baekos Ck that winded through very dense and dark forest, crossed a footbridge, and climbed a few switchbacks and squeezed itself through two small bumps. On the other side of the bumps a gorgeous meadow was before us full of all the colors of fall. It was absolutely amazing. Lots of great campsites here. Something to keep in mind for a future trip. The trail continued to climb slowly through the forest and then opened up in the valley to the east and below the White Chuck Cinder Cone. We continued up the PCT and then cut off to the cinder cone and set up camp next to the tarn below the cone. It was a great campsite. It was a nice quiet spot with interesting places to explore. We even saw some fresh bear scat and bear tracks. It looks like the bear took a dip in the tarn as the tracks could be seen at the water’s edge and just below the waterline. After setting up camp we found a high spot to watch the alpenglow on Glacier Pk and the surrounding mountains. Wow…what a way to spend an evening. On Day 3 we broke camp and headed back north on the PCT a short distance, maybe a mile at most, until we saw a trail junction. We were looking for the boot path that lead up to the base of the White Chuck Glacier. The junction is easy to find, you can actually see the trail head off across the valley and up along the edge of the waterfall on the other side. We made camp at a nice spot next to a waterfall at about 5900’. After setting up the tents we headed up along the drainage, eventually up over the large moraine, and into the basin area below the White Chuck Glacier. The glacier itself has retreated considerably but there are still nice views of the ice. From here there is a very ominous view of Glacier Pk to the north. It really is a very stark view of the mountain. It was windy and cold so we didn’t stay too long. There is a pretty good boot path that leads up to the glacier. None of the trail up there is all that hard to find. After getting back to camp we took some time to explore the upper basin and again watch the sun set on the mountains. For the second night in a row we had a great view of Mars rise into the SE sky. Day 4 found that a light rain had fallen early in the morning. Low clouds hung in our campsite. We broke camp and headed back to the PCT and up to Red Pass. From a distance the trail looks like a real quad burner but it’s actually a nice long rising set of switchbacks that wind through scarlet meadows of juniper, heather, and ripe & juicy huckleberries. This is one awesome stretch of the PCT. All I can say about this stretch of trail is WOW. At Red pass we met two through hikers who started in Mexico on April 19 and we continuing on to Canada. The trail after the pass continues on a long traverse toward White Pass. Just before White Pass though is a junction that takes you down a real steep section of trail that loosed 3000’ in less than 3 miles. The decent finally eases when you reach the Mackinaw Shelter at 3000’ but still over 5 miles from the TH. We were both ready to get back to the car and after a short break at the shelter made the last stretch of trail in 2 hours. The last stretch of trail from the shelter is relatively flat with very short stretches of gain of 20-30’. We were back at the TH by 3:30. Enough time to drive back to the White Chuck TH and fetch the other car and get back to Seattle in time for a late dinner. Stats: 32 miles, 9000’ gain, 4 days