9-30-23
Gary
was back from his trip to Spain and wanted to go on a fall color hike.
I was in full agreement. He suggested Excelsior Peak north of Mt.
Baker. I had never done it and to my surprise neither had Gary. I have
done two snowshoe trips up to nearby Welcome Pass but not Excelsior.
This is a long drive so we met in Lynnwood at 6:25 am and headed north.
We arrived at the trailhead at about 8:20 am. There was only one
parking spot left. There were also two big horse trailers in the lot.
The lot is small and it was clear that an early start was needed just
to get a parking spot in the lot. It was cool at around 40 degrees. We
were on the trail at 8:28 am. It is only about 4 miles to
Excelsior Peak and another .40 miles to the peak. The gain is 3450' to
the pass and 3850' to the peak. It is a steady steep grind. The lower
trail is in great shape. It is smooth with few steps or rocks and hikes
very easily. The last mile is a little more challenging with rocks and
some big steps. Not awful, just a little harder.
With the recent rain I hoped to see a lot of fresh mushrooms. We did see them but not a lot. It was clear that there was some snow in the mountains above 5000'. How much we did not know. I brought my high top heavier boots to be safe. That added a little more work than the light boots I used all summer. We set a steady pace. The cool weather was fine with me. I did not sweat much. After a mile or so we heard noises below us. It was the party with about six horses. They mentioned stirring up hornets. We passed by without noticing any. The horses were quickly out of sight. Another hiker caught up and passed us. A little later we caught up with the horses. That was not expected. It seems that one of them stepped off the edge of the trail and rolled over. It rolled over a rider too. Neither of them seemed to be injured. Still, the group decided to head back down. We managed to drop off the trail while the horsed turned around and headed down.
The other hiker was stopped by the horses and after then left he took off out of sight quickly. The trail was still in good shape as we switched back and forth up the slope. For such a steep average grade, we seemed to have quite a few flat sections. I'm not sure how that worked. We did take a break around the half way point. Our 5:30 am breakfasts were wearing off. Time for some food and water. We stopped at a point with a little sunshine getting through the thick forest. A little warmth felt very good. As mentioned the last mile was rockier and had some big steps. That was not appreciated. For the last half mile we broke out of the forest. We also found a thin layer of fresh snow. It was not too slick and it provided a nice contrast to the fall leaf colors and the bright blue sky. We slowed way down as the cameras came out. The leaves appeared to be a little past prime. Still a lot of them but some were falling off. The sun was not in the right place to provide backlighting. The colors were good but a little muted. I have not seen much fall color this year and this was the best so far.
The trail headed off to our left and climbed up towards Excelsior Pass. My trips up to Welcome Pass were on many feet of snow and I had not seen the meadows and colors of fall. A few more groups went by us. One group had on shorts and short sleeve shirts. The temperature was still likely in the high 40s. My pants legs were zipped on all day and I stayed with a long sleeve shirt. It was much nicer in the sunshine however. We soon reached the pass. There was just enough wind that we put on another layer. A windshirt was enough for me. The shorts brigade had put on jackets. We now had some pretty good views. Mt. Baker was behind us. The summit stayed in clouds all day though most of the peak was visible. To the north we could see peaks in Canada. To the west the top of Church Mountain rose above the ridge. The High Divide Trail goes off to the east. Welcome Pass is some five miles away. A trail also heads west towards Church Mountain. Another trail drops to the north down to Damfino Lakes and another trailhead. That one is several thousand feet above the trail we took. We hoped the ridge and peak would not be crowded with folks coming up that way. Some did but it was never crowded.
We quickly found the fifth trail which leads steeply up to the summit of Excelsior Peak. As mentioned, it gains 400' in only half a mile. The trail follows a forested ridge to the top. The ridge top and ridge to the summit were covered with a few inches of snow. It was just enough to make the trail slick. We carried light Yaktrax just in case but never put them on. In short order, we topped out on the summit of Excelsior Peak. The top is bare and the views are terrific. To the northeast we could now see all of 7439' Tomyhoi Peak. Just to the right was Canadian Border Peak. Our ridge dropped down the east side and climbed to another lower high point. It was very snowy and it looked like winter. Just north of that ridge was Goat Mountain. We saw a fantastic fall color display on that peak years ago. To the right of the ridge we saw 7191' Mt. Sefrit, 7115' Ruth Mountain, 8004' Mt. Degenhardt, and 7073' Icy Peak. Farther right was 9131' Mt. Shuksan. The summit was in the clouds but did pop out occasionally. The big peak is farther right and nearly straight south of us. 10786' Mt. Baker dominates the skyline.
The wind was sometimes calm and sometimes blowing a little. I was fine with my hood on. We arrived on top at 11:35 am and stayed until 12:22 pm. We had lunch and just took in the views. At 5699' Excelsior is not the highest peak around but is tall enough to provide great views in all directions. Ten days earlier I was sweating in 75' heat hiking up Tiger Mountain. Now the ground was white with snow and it was in the 40s. Winter is not here yet but it sure looked like it. We had great conditions as most of the ascent was on dry dirt but the ridge top and surrounding peaks were coated in a thin layer of white. People came and went and we had the summit to ourselves for a while too. We finally packed up and headed down the east ridge. This was a shorter drop and easier than the way we came up. We continued up the next bump on the ridge then turned around. The High Divide trail contoured around Excelsior Peak on the south side and dropped back down to Excelsior Pass. Along the way we had some more good red leaf colors. Again, we could not get the leaves backlighted so they were a bit muted. The trail dropped with long gentle switchbacks. We arrived back at the pass at 1:04 pm.
We still had some time before we needed to head down. We had hiked 5 miles so far with 4 miles to descend. We decided to follow the trail to the west. We climbed up and over one high point and dropped We headed up another. The next point ahead as much steeper. The extra elevation gained on this side trip took us over 4000' of gain. After half a mile we turned around. That would add a mile total and bring us up to 10 miles for the day. With a long descent to go, we were ready to head down. Back at the pass we took off a layer and started down. The first part was past the colorful leaves on the hillside and our progress was very slow. While we were disappointed by the seemingly muted colors we found some good contrast with green grasses and yellow leaves. Viewing the photos at home on my big computer screen they turned out better than I thought. I'm glad we took the time to view the colors and take more photos. Once in the forest we were about done with sunshine. Clouds had been moving in too.
That first mile was slow with some loose rocks and those big steps. After that it was much better for most of the descent. We passed a couple groups still heading up. Part way down is a short drop to a creek that falls down a steeply sloped rock slab. It is a neat feature and we stopped to take a look. I started seeing more mushrooms on the descent. We stopped for some more photos of them. Though the descent from the pass is only four miles, it seemed like about six. We were still feeling pretty good but the trail seemed to be endless. I was glad to see the parking lot once again. There were only a few cars left when we arrived at 4:19 pm. It was still pretty early but we had a long drive home and darkness now arrives just after 7:00 pm. Traffic was not much of a problem and I managed to get home right at 7:00 pm. From leaving home at 5:45 am to getting home at 7:00 pm, it was a long day.
It was a very enjoyable day too. It is not often that Gary and I both do a trip for the first time. Especially as we have done so many other trips north of Mt. Baker. It as a cool but mostly sunny day. The views were spectacular. The fresh snow really lit up the peaks, many which were bare just a week ago. The fall colors were not ideal but were still pretty good. This was only my fifth day over 4000' of gain so that was a plus. Hopefully we can get in a larch hike in the next couple weeks but this sufficed for a good fall leaf color hike.
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Trips - 2023
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With the recent rain I hoped to see a lot of fresh mushrooms. We did see them but not a lot. It was clear that there was some snow in the mountains above 5000'. How much we did not know. I brought my high top heavier boots to be safe. That added a little more work than the light boots I used all summer. We set a steady pace. The cool weather was fine with me. I did not sweat much. After a mile or so we heard noises below us. It was the party with about six horses. They mentioned stirring up hornets. We passed by without noticing any. The horses were quickly out of sight. Another hiker caught up and passed us. A little later we caught up with the horses. That was not expected. It seems that one of them stepped off the edge of the trail and rolled over. It rolled over a rider too. Neither of them seemed to be injured. Still, the group decided to head back down. We managed to drop off the trail while the horsed turned around and headed down.
The other hiker was stopped by the horses and after then left he took off out of sight quickly. The trail was still in good shape as we switched back and forth up the slope. For such a steep average grade, we seemed to have quite a few flat sections. I'm not sure how that worked. We did take a break around the half way point. Our 5:30 am breakfasts were wearing off. Time for some food and water. We stopped at a point with a little sunshine getting through the thick forest. A little warmth felt very good. As mentioned the last mile was rockier and had some big steps. That was not appreciated. For the last half mile we broke out of the forest. We also found a thin layer of fresh snow. It was not too slick and it provided a nice contrast to the fall leaf colors and the bright blue sky. We slowed way down as the cameras came out. The leaves appeared to be a little past prime. Still a lot of them but some were falling off. The sun was not in the right place to provide backlighting. The colors were good but a little muted. I have not seen much fall color this year and this was the best so far.
The trail headed off to our left and climbed up towards Excelsior Pass. My trips up to Welcome Pass were on many feet of snow and I had not seen the meadows and colors of fall. A few more groups went by us. One group had on shorts and short sleeve shirts. The temperature was still likely in the high 40s. My pants legs were zipped on all day and I stayed with a long sleeve shirt. It was much nicer in the sunshine however. We soon reached the pass. There was just enough wind that we put on another layer. A windshirt was enough for me. The shorts brigade had put on jackets. We now had some pretty good views. Mt. Baker was behind us. The summit stayed in clouds all day though most of the peak was visible. To the north we could see peaks in Canada. To the west the top of Church Mountain rose above the ridge. The High Divide Trail goes off to the east. Welcome Pass is some five miles away. A trail also heads west towards Church Mountain. Another trail drops to the north down to Damfino Lakes and another trailhead. That one is several thousand feet above the trail we took. We hoped the ridge and peak would not be crowded with folks coming up that way. Some did but it was never crowded.
We quickly found the fifth trail which leads steeply up to the summit of Excelsior Peak. As mentioned, it gains 400' in only half a mile. The trail follows a forested ridge to the top. The ridge top and ridge to the summit were covered with a few inches of snow. It was just enough to make the trail slick. We carried light Yaktrax just in case but never put them on. In short order, we topped out on the summit of Excelsior Peak. The top is bare and the views are terrific. To the northeast we could now see all of 7439' Tomyhoi Peak. Just to the right was Canadian Border Peak. Our ridge dropped down the east side and climbed to another lower high point. It was very snowy and it looked like winter. Just north of that ridge was Goat Mountain. We saw a fantastic fall color display on that peak years ago. To the right of the ridge we saw 7191' Mt. Sefrit, 7115' Ruth Mountain, 8004' Mt. Degenhardt, and 7073' Icy Peak. Farther right was 9131' Mt. Shuksan. The summit was in the clouds but did pop out occasionally. The big peak is farther right and nearly straight south of us. 10786' Mt. Baker dominates the skyline.
The wind was sometimes calm and sometimes blowing a little. I was fine with my hood on. We arrived on top at 11:35 am and stayed until 12:22 pm. We had lunch and just took in the views. At 5699' Excelsior is not the highest peak around but is tall enough to provide great views in all directions. Ten days earlier I was sweating in 75' heat hiking up Tiger Mountain. Now the ground was white with snow and it was in the 40s. Winter is not here yet but it sure looked like it. We had great conditions as most of the ascent was on dry dirt but the ridge top and surrounding peaks were coated in a thin layer of white. People came and went and we had the summit to ourselves for a while too. We finally packed up and headed down the east ridge. This was a shorter drop and easier than the way we came up. We continued up the next bump on the ridge then turned around. The High Divide trail contoured around Excelsior Peak on the south side and dropped back down to Excelsior Pass. Along the way we had some more good red leaf colors. Again, we could not get the leaves backlighted so they were a bit muted. The trail dropped with long gentle switchbacks. We arrived back at the pass at 1:04 pm.
We still had some time before we needed to head down. We had hiked 5 miles so far with 4 miles to descend. We decided to follow the trail to the west. We climbed up and over one high point and dropped We headed up another. The next point ahead as much steeper. The extra elevation gained on this side trip took us over 4000' of gain. After half a mile we turned around. That would add a mile total and bring us up to 10 miles for the day. With a long descent to go, we were ready to head down. Back at the pass we took off a layer and started down. The first part was past the colorful leaves on the hillside and our progress was very slow. While we were disappointed by the seemingly muted colors we found some good contrast with green grasses and yellow leaves. Viewing the photos at home on my big computer screen they turned out better than I thought. I'm glad we took the time to view the colors and take more photos. Once in the forest we were about done with sunshine. Clouds had been moving in too.
That first mile was slow with some loose rocks and those big steps. After that it was much better for most of the descent. We passed a couple groups still heading up. Part way down is a short drop to a creek that falls down a steeply sloped rock slab. It is a neat feature and we stopped to take a look. I started seeing more mushrooms on the descent. We stopped for some more photos of them. Though the descent from the pass is only four miles, it seemed like about six. We were still feeling pretty good but the trail seemed to be endless. I was glad to see the parking lot once again. There were only a few cars left when we arrived at 4:19 pm. It was still pretty early but we had a long drive home and darkness now arrives just after 7:00 pm. Traffic was not much of a problem and I managed to get home right at 7:00 pm. From leaving home at 5:45 am to getting home at 7:00 pm, it was a long day.
It was a very enjoyable day too. It is not often that Gary and I both do a trip for the first time. Especially as we have done so many other trips north of Mt. Baker. It as a cool but mostly sunny day. The views were spectacular. The fresh snow really lit up the peaks, many which were bare just a week ago. The fall colors were not ideal but were still pretty good. This was only my fifth day over 4000' of gain so that was a plus. Hopefully we can get in a larch hike in the next couple weeks but this sufficed for a good fall leaf color hike.
 Horses In The Parking Lot |
 Starting Up The Trail |
 A Big Mossy Rock |
 Wildflowers |
 Into The Snow |
 Nice Fall Colors |
 Open Colorful Slopes |
 Mt. Baker In Sight |
 A Little Muted Colors |
 Excelsior Pass |
 Gary At The Junction |
 Summit Trail On The Left |
 Summit Ridge To Top |
 Color On Summit Ridge |
 Tomyhoi Peak |
 View West |
 Mt. Baker Zoom |
 Ridge To The West |
 Mt. Shuksan |
 Ridge Heading East |
 Tomyhoi & Larrabee |
 Excelsior Pass Below |
 Gary Heading Down |
 Looking Back To Summit |
 On High Divide Trail |
 Muted Colors |
 Steep Slop To Summit |
 Better Colors |
 Open Slopes |
 Winter Meets Fall |
 Ridge Walking |
 Canyon Lake |
 Much Better Color |
 Bright Sunshine |
 Photo Time |
 Better Than Expected |
 Nice Contrast |
 Sky, Clouds, & Colors |
 More Color |
 Below Meadows |
 Big Mushroom |
 Small Mushrooms |
 Waterfall |
 Last Mushroom Shot |
 Ground Cover Is Back |
 Mossy Trail Border |
Trips - 2023
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