08-08-25
Gary
and John were heading to Easy Pass for a Friday hike. I was not sure I
could get away and finally signed on at 8:00 pm Thursday evening. Back
in 1992, the third hike Gary and I did together was a backpacking trip
to Easy Pass and Silent Lakes. I hiked to the pass for a larch trip in
2019. Now it was time to to return together for the first time in 33
years. We met at Ash Way at 6:25 am and headed north. It is a long
drive. We passed Diablo Lake and continued east to the trailhead just
off Highway 20. There were three other cars in the lot. We were packed
and on the trail at 9:06 am. The numbers for this hike are not
indicative of the difficulty. The first half is a walk in the woods on
a nice dirt trail. The second half is mostly out in the open on a rocky
trail that becomes almost all rocks on the climb to the pass. The route
drops a little from the trailhead to cross a big log bridge. Soon we
were climbing in forest. There were few flowers left in the forest.
Higher up there were wildflower though most were past prime. We saw a
few saprophytes, and one patch of twinflowers. Next were a few
foamflowers and some fireweed.
Wee reached the crossing of Easy Pass Creek and found wet rocks or a bunch of narrow branches side by side just upstream. we went for the branches. It was easier than it looked. The trail wound around in some brush before breaking our of the forest and brush. At a few small stream crossings we saw pink Lewis monkey flower. A little higher we saw one patch of yellow monkey flower. Once out of the brush we had views north to peaks north of Highway 20. Those views improved as we kept ascending. A long traverse gave way to switchbacks. The trail only became rockier. In addition to some more fireweed and columbine, we began to see patches of western anemone at the fuzzy seed head stage. I enjoy seeing them most years. Easy Pass was now in sight above us. We still had lots of climbing to go.
The sun was getting hot but we had a little breeze. A few clouds also provided intermittent shade. I brought my chrome dome umbrella for the long section out in the sunshine but did not use it. It was quite warm but not too hot. There were a few snow patches tucked into the north wall of the ridge but none near the trail. In the forest below we had seen some ripe blueberries. In the grassy meadow above we found more. Our progress was markedly slowed by sampling the berries. The grassy meadows gave way to the rocky slope. Footing was not terrible but we were careful where we stepped. Not long ago, there was a terrific display of partridgefoot. It was nearly finished now. White pearly everlasting was filling in nicely. The last few switchbacks seemed to drag on and we reached the pass at 11:54 am.
The trail splits. The main trail goes right and soon drops down the south side of the ridge to Fisher Basin. We went left to a place where we could see up the basin to Fisher and Black Peaks. It was a good spot to rest and have lunch. The pass is largely forested so it takes a bit of work to find clear views out. Good views are around the trees in many spots. Some of the trees are larch as I saw on my 2019 trip. The views from 6500' of the North Cascades are pretty impressive. Down the valley to our right we could see the glaciers atop 9087' Mt. Logan. At one point we heard voices but did not see the people. We hiked all the way up with solitude. At 12:48 pm we followed a trail heading towards the main trail but losing a little elevation. We had some good views but decided to reverse course before descending further. Now we went back to the junction we found when arriving at the pass and took the main trail ahead. On the ridge top we found a couple groups of hikers and climbers. They were up for multiple days of climbing.
We found another great spot with views east, south, and west. To the right of Mt. Logan we could now see the top of Eldorado and Klawatti Peaks. Farther down the ridge we saw the summit of Mesahchie Peak. Way to our left was Graybeard Peak. We had a view into upper Fisher Basin and our scramble route to the Silent Lakes in 1992. On group passed by on their way to climb Mesahchie and Katsuk Peaks. We were in no hurry to leave this place but we still had a rocky hike and long drive home. At 2:02 we started back. Now we had the views to the north laid out in front of us. I would have looked more if not for the need to keep my eyes down so as not to slip on the scree and rocks that made up the trail. It was not as bad as I feared and we had no problems on the descent. We had fewer berry stops on the way down. As much as I loved the views, I was glad to go back into the forest. It was more humid as we dropped. Soon the rocky trail was done and we were back on dirt. This really helped us speed up. The last mile seemed drag on for me. We passed several groups on our descent. It as too warm for me to want to be in the open on the upper slopes.
We finally reached the bridge and quickly rose up to the trailhead, arriving at 4:22 pm. The lot as now mostly full but with room for a few more cars. One of the benefits of this trip was that we saw few bugs. No repellent was necessary. Though we did see other hikers, it was never crowded at all. That is a great benefit of taking a Friday off work to go hiking. It was a long drive home but traffic was not much of a problem. With a food stop in Arlington, I was home right about 8:00 pm. When you only do a hike twice in 33 years it's easy to forget just how beautiful this area is. It is not a easy trail but the payoff or only a 3.5 mile hike up is spectacular. It is well worth the effort. Just down the highway at Maple Pass the crowds are hard to believe. We had solitude and views from 6500'. It was time off well used.
Click on thumbnails to get
larger pictures.
Trips - 2025
Home
Wee reached the crossing of Easy Pass Creek and found wet rocks or a bunch of narrow branches side by side just upstream. we went for the branches. It was easier than it looked. The trail wound around in some brush before breaking our of the forest and brush. At a few small stream crossings we saw pink Lewis monkey flower. A little higher we saw one patch of yellow monkey flower. Once out of the brush we had views north to peaks north of Highway 20. Those views improved as we kept ascending. A long traverse gave way to switchbacks. The trail only became rockier. In addition to some more fireweed and columbine, we began to see patches of western anemone at the fuzzy seed head stage. I enjoy seeing them most years. Easy Pass was now in sight above us. We still had lots of climbing to go.
The sun was getting hot but we had a little breeze. A few clouds also provided intermittent shade. I brought my chrome dome umbrella for the long section out in the sunshine but did not use it. It was quite warm but not too hot. There were a few snow patches tucked into the north wall of the ridge but none near the trail. In the forest below we had seen some ripe blueberries. In the grassy meadow above we found more. Our progress was markedly slowed by sampling the berries. The grassy meadows gave way to the rocky slope. Footing was not terrible but we were careful where we stepped. Not long ago, there was a terrific display of partridgefoot. It was nearly finished now. White pearly everlasting was filling in nicely. The last few switchbacks seemed to drag on and we reached the pass at 11:54 am.
The trail splits. The main trail goes right and soon drops down the south side of the ridge to Fisher Basin. We went left to a place where we could see up the basin to Fisher and Black Peaks. It was a good spot to rest and have lunch. The pass is largely forested so it takes a bit of work to find clear views out. Good views are around the trees in many spots. Some of the trees are larch as I saw on my 2019 trip. The views from 6500' of the North Cascades are pretty impressive. Down the valley to our right we could see the glaciers atop 9087' Mt. Logan. At one point we heard voices but did not see the people. We hiked all the way up with solitude. At 12:48 pm we followed a trail heading towards the main trail but losing a little elevation. We had some good views but decided to reverse course before descending further. Now we went back to the junction we found when arriving at the pass and took the main trail ahead. On the ridge top we found a couple groups of hikers and climbers. They were up for multiple days of climbing.
We found another great spot with views east, south, and west. To the right of Mt. Logan we could now see the top of Eldorado and Klawatti Peaks. Farther down the ridge we saw the summit of Mesahchie Peak. Way to our left was Graybeard Peak. We had a view into upper Fisher Basin and our scramble route to the Silent Lakes in 1992. On group passed by on their way to climb Mesahchie and Katsuk Peaks. We were in no hurry to leave this place but we still had a rocky hike and long drive home. At 2:02 we started back. Now we had the views to the north laid out in front of us. I would have looked more if not for the need to keep my eyes down so as not to slip on the scree and rocks that made up the trail. It was not as bad as I feared and we had no problems on the descent. We had fewer berry stops on the way down. As much as I loved the views, I was glad to go back into the forest. It was more humid as we dropped. Soon the rocky trail was done and we were back on dirt. This really helped us speed up. The last mile seemed drag on for me. We passed several groups on our descent. It as too warm for me to want to be in the open on the upper slopes.
We finally reached the bridge and quickly rose up to the trailhead, arriving at 4:22 pm. The lot as now mostly full but with room for a few more cars. One of the benefits of this trip was that we saw few bugs. No repellent was necessary. Though we did see other hikers, it was never crowded at all. That is a great benefit of taking a Friday off work to go hiking. It was a long drive home but traffic was not much of a problem. With a food stop in Arlington, I was home right about 8:00 pm. When you only do a hike twice in 33 years it's easy to forget just how beautiful this area is. It is not a easy trail but the payoff or only a 3.5 mile hike up is spectacular. It is well worth the effort. Just down the highway at Maple Pass the crowds are hard to believe. We had solitude and views from 6500'. It was time off well used.
 Bridge |
 Saprophytes |
 Foamflowers |
 Fireweed |
 Brushy Trail |
 Lewis Monkey Flower |
 A Little Snow Is Left |
 View Across Valley |
 Pass Almost In Sight |
 Columbine |
 Yellow Monkey Flower |
 Fun On The Trail |
 Western Anemone |
 Below The Pass |
 Tower Mountain |
 Rocky Slopes Above |
 Slow Progress |
 Berries! |
 Bee On Aster |
 View North |
 Getting Rockier |
 Switchback |
 Pearly Everlasting |
 Mt. Hardy |
 Very Rocky Trail |
 Nearing Easy Pass |
 Indian Paintbrush |
 Fisher Peak |
 Gary & John At Lunch |
 Mt. Logan & Larch |
 Peaks & Clouds |
 Scramble Route |
 Some Flower |
 On The Move Again |
 Graybeard Peak |
 Fisher Basin |
 Better Mt. Logan View |
 John & Gary At Work |
 Eldorado Close Up |
 Mesahchie Peak |
 John & Jim |
 Heading Down |
 Trail? What Trail? |
 Butterfly |
 Better Trail |
 More Anemone |
 Very Few Yellow Flowers |
 Back On Good Trail |
Trips - 2025
Home