Day 2
Sunday morning began with just as much wind. We chose to stay in our
tents until the sun reached them. I did look outside and snap a few
early morning shots of Glacier Peak. It was finally out of the clouds.
Our dinner spot was no longer out of the wind. Another search turned up
one spot for cooking breakfast. Behind the tarn was an overhang of icy
snow. Beneath it was calm enough to get the stoves working. We decided
to let the sun dry out our gear before heading on. Fortunately, single
walled tarptents dry pretty quickly with a sponge to help. We were
packed up and ready to go at the crack of 10:00 am.
The day was much less cloudy than Saturday. We crossed the ridge and dropped back to the main trail. Great views out to Sloan Peak and the Monte Cristo peaks. Kyes Peak is on the far left end. Hiking towards Johnson we met a backcountry ranger. He was carrying a full sized shovel. He had cleaned out the White Pass toilet among other tasks. He seemed to be enjoying this time in the high country. From the Johnson Mountain junction towards Blue Lake the flowers were outstanding. The meadows were full of white and purple colors. With our late start it was already getting warm. From the low point we climbed up to Blue Lake. It is a good sized lake. At one end there is still some ice floating near shore. There were a number of campers. Some were out of sight. We took a break at the lake. It was already 11:30 am.
Now came the steepest climb of the trip. The Blue Lake High Route climbs 750' in short order. There was only one very short bit of snow to cross. More great views from the Cascade Crest. The drop down on the west side is steep and narrow. We met two hikers coming up with day packs. Before reaching the Pacific Crest Trail we stopped at a small ridge top meadow. Great views and no Crest Trail crowds. Right in front of us was Glacier Peak in some clouds and Indian Head Peak. Exactly one year earlier we were up on Indian Head. It took us just a few minutes to reach the Crest Trail.
As expected we began to meet more folks. Lots of folks. Hard to blame anyone for backpacking to this beautiful area on a holiday weekend. Wildflowers are still blooming all along the trail. Not at their peak but still pretty good. We still had a good distance to cover to our next camp at White Pass. Last year we headed up Kodak Peak. This time we chose to pass on by. Just before reaching Kodak we ran into Geo Tom, Dani, and Jasper. That was not the first time we have met in the mountains. Nice to see friends unexpectedly. They were doing the loop in the opposite direction.
Just north of Kodak Peak is a stream that had plenty of water for filtering. That would easily last us until White Pass. From there is was all down hill to Indian Pass. The Crest Trail is mostly wide and smooth though it does have some deep ruts in places. Indian Pass had amazing wildflowers one year earlier. This year they are mostly finished. It is mostly uphill from Indian Pass at 5000' and White Pass at 5900'. We saw a number of PCT through hikers. They will reach Canada very soon. As we ascended the forest thinned and the meadows expanded. Views improved and the wildflower display became much improved.
Closer to White Pass the flower show was really excellent. Fields of white and purple from far above to well below the trail. One of the highlights of the trip. The lowering afternoon sun really made the lupine glow. Too beautiful to pass by quickly. We slowed way down and enjoyed the views. Many photo opportunities presented themselves. White Mountain finally looked close. It was near 5:30 pm when we finally dropped down the trail from the pass to the camping area. As expected there were lots of folks camping on the next to last day of the holiday weekend. We had to look around for bit but eventually found a space large enough for our three tents.
We set up our tents, hung the food, went down to the creek to fill water bags, and finally cooked dinner. We could hear the wind behind the curtain of trees over the NF Sauk Valley. It was blowing a short ways on the other side by the creek. We on the other hand, had just a breeze. That made for open tent doors and a whole lot less condensation over night. It was also much less chilly though it was again below 40 degrees. We had a late start and a leisurely day of hiking. The totals were about 11 miles with 2600' of elevation gain.
The day was much less cloudy than Saturday. We crossed the ridge and dropped back to the main trail. Great views out to Sloan Peak and the Monte Cristo peaks. Kyes Peak is on the far left end. Hiking towards Johnson we met a backcountry ranger. He was carrying a full sized shovel. He had cleaned out the White Pass toilet among other tasks. He seemed to be enjoying this time in the high country. From the Johnson Mountain junction towards Blue Lake the flowers were outstanding. The meadows were full of white and purple colors. With our late start it was already getting warm. From the low point we climbed up to Blue Lake. It is a good sized lake. At one end there is still some ice floating near shore. There were a number of campers. Some were out of sight. We took a break at the lake. It was already 11:30 am.
Now came the steepest climb of the trip. The Blue Lake High Route climbs 750' in short order. There was only one very short bit of snow to cross. More great views from the Cascade Crest. The drop down on the west side is steep and narrow. We met two hikers coming up with day packs. Before reaching the Pacific Crest Trail we stopped at a small ridge top meadow. Great views and no Crest Trail crowds. Right in front of us was Glacier Peak in some clouds and Indian Head Peak. Exactly one year earlier we were up on Indian Head. It took us just a few minutes to reach the Crest Trail.
As expected we began to meet more folks. Lots of folks. Hard to blame anyone for backpacking to this beautiful area on a holiday weekend. Wildflowers are still blooming all along the trail. Not at their peak but still pretty good. We still had a good distance to cover to our next camp at White Pass. Last year we headed up Kodak Peak. This time we chose to pass on by. Just before reaching Kodak we ran into Geo Tom, Dani, and Jasper. That was not the first time we have met in the mountains. Nice to see friends unexpectedly. They were doing the loop in the opposite direction.
Just north of Kodak Peak is a stream that had plenty of water for filtering. That would easily last us until White Pass. From there is was all down hill to Indian Pass. The Crest Trail is mostly wide and smooth though it does have some deep ruts in places. Indian Pass had amazing wildflowers one year earlier. This year they are mostly finished. It is mostly uphill from Indian Pass at 5000' and White Pass at 5900'. We saw a number of PCT through hikers. They will reach Canada very soon. As we ascended the forest thinned and the meadows expanded. Views improved and the wildflower display became much improved.
Closer to White Pass the flower show was really excellent. Fields of white and purple from far above to well below the trail. One of the highlights of the trip. The lowering afternoon sun really made the lupine glow. Too beautiful to pass by quickly. We slowed way down and enjoyed the views. Many photo opportunities presented themselves. White Mountain finally looked close. It was near 5:30 pm when we finally dropped down the trail from the pass to the camping area. As expected there were lots of folks camping on the next to last day of the holiday weekend. We had to look around for bit but eventually found a space large enough for our three tents.
We set up our tents, hung the food, went down to the creek to fill water bags, and finally cooked dinner. We could hear the wind behind the curtain of trees over the NF Sauk Valley. It was blowing a short ways on the other side by the creek. We on the other hand, had just a breeze. That made for open tent doors and a whole lot less condensation over night. It was also much less chilly though it was again below 40 degrees. We had a late start and a leisurely day of hiking. The totals were about 11 miles with 2600' of elevation gain.
 Morning Glacier Peak |
 Gary & John |
 Icy Kitchen |
 Cloudy Valley |
 Mt. Daniel |
 Sloan & Pilot Ridge |
 Western Anemone |
 Lots Of Flowers |
 Purple & White |
 Pilot Ridge |
 Gary At Blue Lake |
 Leaving Blue Lake |
 Blue Lake |
 Blue Lake High Route |
 Steep Climb |
 Looking Back Down |
 Descending East Side |
 Indian Head Peak |
 Lunch Spot |
 Shades Of Green |
 More Colors |
 Nearing Kodak Peak |
 A Touch Of Yellow |
 On PCT |
 Vast Meadows |
 Nearing White Pass |
 Lots Of Lupine |
 More Lupine |
 Lit Up Hellebore |
 Afternoon Light |
 White Mountain |
 Foam Basin View |
 Spire Above Foam Basin |
 Shaded Lupine |
 White Pass Camp |
 Setting Sun Day Two |
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Pilot Ridge - NF Sauk Report
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