08-11-22
John
joined me for a midweek after work hike up at Snoqualmie Pass. The week
before, we hiked up the Commonwealth Creek Trail to the PCT and on to
the Kendall Katwalk. This time we hike the Commonwealth Trail up to Red
Pond and Red Pass. We met at High Point at 3:20 pm and I drove on up to
the pass. We arrived at the PCT trailhead at 3:47 pm and were packed up
and on our way at 3:52 pm. The lot was mostly full but had more open
spots than the week before. The trail quickly turns off the PCT and
remains fairly flat. Then the climbing begins. Thankfully, it begins in
forest as the outside temperature was in the high 70s. It did not take
long to realize it was much more humid than the week before. I was
soaked in not time and it really slowed down my pace.
As we climbed up to the lip of the basin we passed a group coming down. It included Len Roughgarden. I have been a Facebook friend for more than half a dozen years. We both hike a lot at Tiger Mountain but had not run into each other yet. We like and comment on the other's hikes posts often. It is always fun to meet a virtual friend in real life. They were coming down from the Katwalk. We were going up in the heat of the day. The pace picked up a bit when we entered the more gently graded basin. One, two, three creek crossings and we reached the next climb. The lower part was still in forest. With the humidity any shade was helpful. The trail i smooth dirt in places. It is loose rocks in other places. There are a lot of short switchbacks going up the rising ridge. This trail had not had any work this year. We had more than half a dozen down trees to go over or under. Not hard but a bit of a pain.
As we rose some view appeared. A look over to Cave Ridge then up to Kendall Peak on the other side. As the forest thinned we began to see wildflowers. There were a number of varieties on the hike though most were past prime. One patch of purple Lewis Monkey flower was surprising.. I recall seeing lupine, penstemon, asters, Indian paintbrush, queen's cup, bistort, phlox, spirea, and more. We took a break when we reached the upper basin. A little food and water helped a lot. Now began the final push to the ridge top and then Red Pass. Last week we went up to the Kendall Katwalk and saw no snow on the trail. In the flat upper basin we found snow on the trail. That was unexpected. As the trail began to climb the snow ended. We looked down on Red Pond and it had a lot of water. I usually hike up in the fall for the berries and the pond is half empty.
We were now out in the sunshine but it was getting late and the intensity was much less. The humidity was still high. I was pleased when we reached the ridge top. It is forested but there is one level spot that makes a great break spot. Across the valley f the MF Snoqualmie River is Big Snow Mountain. The distinct point near the Cascade Crest is Mt. Thomson. To the right is Four Brothers. To the left are Chimney Rock and Overcoat. They still have snow on the south sides. The first thing I did was change into a dry shirt. The one I was wearing was soaked. There was a steady cool breeze blowing through. Much cooler than the hike up. We arrived around 5:56 pm. 2:04 was 18 minutes slower than our 2019 trip but I was not displeased with the humidity this year. That trip was in October and we came down in the dark. We had a lot more daylight in August.
Our break lasted until 6:31 pm. We headed on to the pass. More uphill and a final drop to the pass. It was in the shade so we did not stay long. We climbed up the trail and then scrambled up to a point just above the trail. This spot still had some sunlight. Darkness was still nearly two hours away but the bulk of Lundin Peak and the ridge to Snoqualmie Mountain put us in the shade. Kendall Peak was still mostly in sunshine. We stayed there until about 6:50 pm when we started down. The talus fields we crossed made for slow travel. Other than some photos our hike out was almost non-stop. We saw one guy descending as we neared the upper basin coming up and nobody else on the hike. We also managed to move two logs off the trail. We made it back to the car at 8:35 pm. It was past sunset but not yet dark. No headlamp needed this week.
Long summer days allows us to drive up into the mountains for after work hikes. Soon enough we will be back in the Tiger Mt. zone. It is nice to get more than a mile above sea level on an after work hike when you live 200' above sea level. On this trip I met Len, saw a good variety of wildflowers, and had great mountain views. I could have done without the humidity but it was a small price to pay for such a nice hike.
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Trips - 2022
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As we climbed up to the lip of the basin we passed a group coming down. It included Len Roughgarden. I have been a Facebook friend for more than half a dozen years. We both hike a lot at Tiger Mountain but had not run into each other yet. We like and comment on the other's hikes posts often. It is always fun to meet a virtual friend in real life. They were coming down from the Katwalk. We were going up in the heat of the day. The pace picked up a bit when we entered the more gently graded basin. One, two, three creek crossings and we reached the next climb. The lower part was still in forest. With the humidity any shade was helpful. The trail i smooth dirt in places. It is loose rocks in other places. There are a lot of short switchbacks going up the rising ridge. This trail had not had any work this year. We had more than half a dozen down trees to go over or under. Not hard but a bit of a pain.
As we rose some view appeared. A look over to Cave Ridge then up to Kendall Peak on the other side. As the forest thinned we began to see wildflowers. There were a number of varieties on the hike though most were past prime. One patch of purple Lewis Monkey flower was surprising.. I recall seeing lupine, penstemon, asters, Indian paintbrush, queen's cup, bistort, phlox, spirea, and more. We took a break when we reached the upper basin. A little food and water helped a lot. Now began the final push to the ridge top and then Red Pass. Last week we went up to the Kendall Katwalk and saw no snow on the trail. In the flat upper basin we found snow on the trail. That was unexpected. As the trail began to climb the snow ended. We looked down on Red Pond and it had a lot of water. I usually hike up in the fall for the berries and the pond is half empty.
We were now out in the sunshine but it was getting late and the intensity was much less. The humidity was still high. I was pleased when we reached the ridge top. It is forested but there is one level spot that makes a great break spot. Across the valley f the MF Snoqualmie River is Big Snow Mountain. The distinct point near the Cascade Crest is Mt. Thomson. To the right is Four Brothers. To the left are Chimney Rock and Overcoat. They still have snow on the south sides. The first thing I did was change into a dry shirt. The one I was wearing was soaked. There was a steady cool breeze blowing through. Much cooler than the hike up. We arrived around 5:56 pm. 2:04 was 18 minutes slower than our 2019 trip but I was not displeased with the humidity this year. That trip was in October and we came down in the dark. We had a lot more daylight in August.
Our break lasted until 6:31 pm. We headed on to the pass. More uphill and a final drop to the pass. It was in the shade so we did not stay long. We climbed up the trail and then scrambled up to a point just above the trail. This spot still had some sunlight. Darkness was still nearly two hours away but the bulk of Lundin Peak and the ridge to Snoqualmie Mountain put us in the shade. Kendall Peak was still mostly in sunshine. We stayed there until about 6:50 pm when we started down. The talus fields we crossed made for slow travel. Other than some photos our hike out was almost non-stop. We saw one guy descending as we neared the upper basin coming up and nobody else on the hike. We also managed to move two logs off the trail. We made it back to the car at 8:35 pm. It was past sunset but not yet dark. No headlamp needed this week.
Long summer days allows us to drive up into the mountains for after work hikes. Soon enough we will be back in the Tiger Mt. zone. It is nice to get more than a mile above sea level on an after work hike when you live 200' above sea level. On this trip I met Len, saw a good variety of wildflowers, and had great mountain views. I could have done without the humidity but it was a small price to pay for such a nice hike.
 Big Tree |
 John Crossing Creek |
 Third Creek Crossing |
 Monkey Flowers |
 Hiking Higher |
 Bright Paintbrush |
 Kendall Peak |
 Commonwealth Valley |
 Into Upper Basin |
 Snow? |
 Little Lundeen & Pass |
 Glare On Pond |
 John Crosses Talus |
 Red Mountain |
 Mt. Thomson |
 Big Snow Mountain |
 John Enjoys The View |
 Remaining Snow |
 Heading For Pass |
 Old PCT Logo |
 Red Mt. & Kendall Pk. |
 Kendall Close Up |
 Chikamin Pk |
 Guye Peak |
 Phlox |
 Lupine |
 Sun & Shade |
 Spirea |
 Thistle |
 Red Paintbrush |
 Hiking Out |
 Avalanche |
Trips - 2022
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