Washington State Hikes

Gabi and Li-Tal Hikes in WA

Table of Content:

1. Mt. Baker
2. Mt. Adams
3. Burroughs Mountain
4. Mt. Pilchuck
5. Lake 22
6. Talapus and Olallie Lakes
7. Mailbox peak
8. Scenic Hot Springs
9. Ozette Loop
10. Tonga Ridge
11. Big Four Ice Caves
12. Crater Lake, Oregon
13. RattleSnake Ledge Trail
14. Enchantment lakes
15. Orchas Island
16. Desert Hikes (eastern WA) - Ancient lakes and Black canyon
17. Mount Si
18. General Information

Score Table:

* The scores are out of 10. To get 10 in scenery it really has to be once in a lifetime, mind-blowing trek! Even such superb treks as Milford and Tongariro Crossing in New Zealand, Torres del Paine in Chile, and Everest base camp in Nepal got only 9.5.
** As for the difficulty grade: for example climbing Kilimanjaro is 9. The grade of 3 and below is suitable for children.

Mt. Baker via Coleman glacier - 09-10 July 2011:

• I climbed Mt. Baker via Coleman glacier (glacier route)
• Links:
•     http://www.stephabegg.com/home/tripreports/washington/northcascades/baker
• Map

Mt. Adams - 31 July - 1 August 2010:

• We climbed 2 days via the famous South Spur, with overnight at lunch counter.
• Links:
  • http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/recreation/mount-adams/
  • http://www.summitpost.org/mountain/rock/150198/mount-adams.html
  • http://www.kayakcam.com/gallery-mount-adams.html
  • http://www.traditionalmountaineering.org/Trip_Adams_Chance.htm
  • http://www.seeyououtside.com/mtadams.htm
• Map
• Our route map1, map2, GPS coordinates.

Burroughs Mountain - 25 July 2010:

• http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/burroughs-mountain
• Sunrise, Mt. Rainier National Park
• 7.4 miles loop, 1000t elevation gain.
• Very beautiful loop with superb views of Mt. Rainier and Emmons glacier.
• One of Reviews on localhikes describes it like this: "Of all the hiking I've done around Mt. Rainier, this is my absolute favorite. The view sitting on Second Burroughs is simply stunning. Words can't adequately describe it..."
• Map

Mt. Pilchuck - 11 July 2010:

• http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/mount-pilchuck
• Mountain Loop Highway
• 5.4 miles roundtrip, 2200t elevation gain.
• Incredible views from the old fire lookout. Uninterrupted views in all directions: Mt. Baker in the north, Glacier peak in the east, Rainier in the south and Widbey and San Juan islands in the west. Too crowded with people.
• Bathtub lakes - http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=525114
  • Depending on snow conditions it is possible to continue from the peak towards a complex of lovely small lakes - the so called Bathtub lakes. You should be able to see those looking towards east, on the right side of the ridge. If the snow cap has melted it should be a wonderful place to rest and enjoy. For that, you need to descend the south-east-wards gully that starts from under the top, and at about two thirds of gully's length, look for a yellow paint marking that points to the start of a traverse to left, that gets on a saddle on the ridge. From there a trail leads over the ridge eastwards and then makes to the right keeping under ridge; follow it to the lakes.

Lake 22 - 22 May 2010:

• http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/lake-22
• Mountain Loop Highway
• 5.4 miles roundtrip, 1350ft elevation gain.
• Nice hike to a beautiful alpine lake.

Talapus and Olallie Lakes - 16 May 2010:

• http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/talapus-lake
• Exit 45 on I-90
• 2 miles to Talapus lake (800ft elevation), another 1.2 miles to Olallie lake (400ft elevation).
• Very nice hike for cloudy day - the lakes are a very good reward on the day when the visibility in other places is not great.
• Map1, map2.

Mailbox peak - 18 April 2010:

• http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/mailbox-peak
• Exit 34 on I-90
• 2.5 miles each way, 4100 feet elevation gain (from 800ft to 4900ft).
• 2:40 up, 1:40 down. Almost constant elevation gain.
• Great views, good conditioning hike. Nothing challenging like it says on the entrance warning sign.
• Map (local copy)
   

Scenic Hot Springs - 07 March 2010:

• http://scenichotsprings.blogspot.com/
• Around one hour easy walk off Highway 2.
• Very cool hot springs.
• Must contact to ask permissions and directions.

Ozette Loop, Olympic National Park - 21 February 2010:

• Also known as Cape Alava - Sand Point Loop.
• A nice loop from Ozette lake to Cape Alava (3miles), from Cape Alava to Sand point on the beach (3 miles) and from Sand point back to lake Ozette entrance (3 miles).
• Easy walk - one hour board walk to the beach and one hour fro the beach and arodn2 hours on the beach including lunch. Watch for tides (can check tides times here).
• Need to pay Olympic national park entrance.
• Links:
  • http://www.nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/ozette-loop.htm
  • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/lake-ozette/
• Sleep:
  • There is a campground on lake Ozette.
  • Additional nearby camp and cabins at Hobuck Beach Resort,Neah Bay - http://www.hobuckbeachresort.com/cabins.html
  • It is also possible (and advised) to sleep on the beach at Sand Point or at Cape Alave, but this requires reservation.

Tonga Ridge - 30 August 2009:

• Nice walk on a beautiful ridge while picking huckleberries. Lots of huckleberries along the way and on the pass
• 400 feet elevation gain, 1.5-2 hours each way.
• 1.15 hours drive from Redmond, near Stevens pass.
• We missed the Mt. Sawyer side trip turn. It is about 2/3 way from the trail head to the pass, turning right from the narrow ridge trail. The turn is marked with a small pink tape.
• Links: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/tonga-ridge
• Nearby camp - Lake Wenatchee state park camp http://www.parks.wa.gov/parks/?selectedpark=Lake%20Wenatchee&subject=camping

Big Four Ice Caves - 23 August 2009:

• Short walk to ice caver near Big Four mountains. Almost no elevation, 30 min each way. 1.15 hours drive from Redmond.
• Cool caves!
• Nice picnic areas and campgrounds along the road..
• Links: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/big-four-ice-caves

RattleSnake Ledge Trail - 19 July 2009:

• It is a short one day hike 30 miles from Seattle, on I-90 past North Bend (exit 32).
• Lovely walk, one hour up, 1/2 hour down, 2miles, 1100 feet up. Mostly walking in a shadowed forest, but the peak is completely exposed to the sun.
• Beautiful views from the peak of the Rattlesnake lake and the surrounding mountains.
• Nice picnic area near the lake after the hike. Bring your swimming suit in a good weather.
• Links:
  • http://www.eskimo.com/~captain/page240.htm
  • http://www.weekendhike.com/2009/02/rattlesnake-mountain-rattlesnake-ledge.html

Enchantment lakes - 03-05 July 2009:

• We have decided to use the long 4^th of July weekend for a long multi-day hike. I picked the Enchantment lakes since I heard about it long time ago and it is a very famous WA trek.
• Permits:
  • Since the trek is so magnificent and popular, there is a limited amount of permits available for camping at the lakes. The permits are to be reserved in advance and the applications for July to be submitted by March!!! This was not an option of course, since we wanted to go this week, not next summer.
  • The other option is to arrive at the Leavenworth ranger station by 7:45AM. They divide camping permits for 5 people every day, on a lottery basis. This is the option we choose. We left Redmond at 5:00 AM, arriving at Leavenworth via highway 2 at 7:20 and were the first ones to be drawn in the lottery.
  • The camping costs 5$ per day per person.
  • Other option is to camp only at Snow lakes and go to Enchantments and back to Snow lake in one day. However, camping at Snow lake is also limited and requires a permit (but it might be easier to get this one).
  • Yet, a last option is to do the trek in one day, as described here. This is however a very difficult and long one day trek of 18 miles and climbing from 3300 feet to a maximum of 7800 feet.
• Trail: We started the trek from the Snow lake trailhead (1400 feet). On the first day we climbed to the Snow lake at 5400 feet, a total of 6.5 miles, and camped at the far end of the lake, right by the waterfront. There was an enormous amount of flies and mosquitoes at the lake, and even the REI bugs spray wit 17% DEED did not help too much (we should have bought the 100% DEED like for Alaska). The lake is very beautiful and the water is nice for swimming. The next day we climbed up to the Enchantment lakes basin. The climb to Viviane lake took us 1:45 and it is quite steep (to 6800 feet), with climbing on big boulders. The lakes are magnificent!!! Viviane, Leprechaum, Perfection (with little Anapurna reflection), Inspiration, Isolation. Some lakes were still partially covered by snow, which only made the views even more special. We climbed to the Prusik pass (short climb with great views on the other side lakes). Near Perfection lake we also met a lot of wild goats, which also came later to visit our camp. We camped on the cliff above the Perfection lake, where it connects with Inspiration lake, with amazing panoramic views of the Perfection lake. The next day we continued to the upper lakes basin (Isolation lake, which was almost fully covered by snow), finally to the to the Aasgard pass. We descent from the Aasgard pass to the Colchuck lake took us around 1:30 hours and it is very steep and not easy! Walking around Colchuck lake is also not easy, since you need to walk on boulders and the water in the lake was cold (trust us, we jumped in!). We went out to the Colchuck parking lot at around 16:00 and I got a ride (hitchhiked) to the Snow lake trailhead, where we left our car. We finished with soaring muscles, mosquitoes bitten, sub burn, but extremely satisfied and with the thought that this is one of the most beautiful places in WA, definitely a true competition to New Zealand best hikes!
• Our pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/gkliot/WAEnchantmentLakes#
• More information:
  • There is a very good description of this trek in the Lonely Planet "Hiking in the USA" book. There it is described as "one of the most magnificent backpacking trips in the Northwest". Indeed!
  • On wta.org: Enchantment Lakes, Colchuck Lake, Snow Lake:
    • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/enchantment-lakes
    • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/snow-lakes
    • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/lake-stuart
    • This is the description of the trek as done in one day. We did it the same trail, in the opposite direction, in 3 days: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/trip-reports/trip_report.2008-09-29.7366388134
  • More links: http://www.psbl.com/hiking/enchant.htm

Orchas Island - 27-28 June 2009:

• Orchas island is one of the San Juan islands located between WA state inland and Victoria island.
• We spend two days in the Moran State Park located on the Orchas island, on Li-Tal's birthday.
• Moran State Park Map
• I have reserved a campsite via https://secure.camis.com/WA/MoranStatePark the day before. It was very wise, as when we arrived the next day to the park the ranger told us he was turning the people down for the last number of hours, since all the spots were taken. Thanks' Gili Shklarsky for this great tip!
• On 27th we drove to Anackortes (1.5 hours) and took a ferry to Orchas (1 hour, 43$ per car + 1 person, 13$ per additional person, this price is roundtrip)
• On the island we drove to Moran park (~20 miles). The road passes through the small town of Eastbound, and there is a nice book shop and a grocery store.
• In the park we camped at "the primitive campground". What makes is "primitive" is that you cannot drive-in next to your spot: you park 50 meters away at the parking lot. Also, there is no showers. But there is running water, toilets, and private fire place. I would consider it a luxury campground rather than primitive.
• We still had some time before the evening, so we walked a short trail to the Cascade falls. Very nice falls.
• The next day we drove to the Mountain lake, parked there and went to the hike. We combined Mountain Lake loop, Twin lakes and from there went up to Mount Constitution. From there we came back via Cold water and Little Summit.
• Mount Constitution lookout is definitely the highlight of this hike - the views from the top are great (only in a good weather of course)! It is possible of course to drive up all the way to the Mount Constitution lookout, but doing by foot makes the place much more special.
• The way down from Constitution to Cold water is also very nice - with beautiful views of the sea.
• We drove back to the ferry (leaves at 16:20 and 19:00), arriving more than 2 hours before the ferry. It was definitely too early, as we were between the first ones in the line. It would have been enough to arrive one hour or even less.
• It was an excellent birthday celebration, on "almost un-inhabitant" island.

Desert Hikes - East WA - 24-26 May 2009:

• On the memorial 3 day weekend we decided to go eastern WA to see some desert (we also figured there would be snow on most of trails on the west side of the mountains).
• Sources of information:
  • Great Desert Hikes at wta: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/seasonal-hikes/spring-destinations/great-desert-hikes
  • Great Book - "Best Desert Hikes: Washington":
    • http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0898865379/ref=olp_product_details?ie=UTF8&me=&seller=
• We drove over state highway 2 via Leavenworth (nice town, too much people) and from there to Wenatchee. At Wenatchee the state campground was full. The same was at some campgrounds on the river going north - all full. Eventually we found some park where the ranger agreed to let us camp on the grass in a non designated spot (after all, we only had a small REI 2 people tent, not like al those gigantic RVs)
• The next day we went on 2 hikes from the book:
• Rock Island Creek:
  • The spot itself is nice, but we did not actually found the trail. It is not as much a hike but rather a nice lookout point on a ridge.
• Ancient Lakes:
  • This hike was AWESOME!!!
  • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes-of-the-week/ancient-lakes
  • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/seasonal-hikes/spring-destinations/waterfall-hikes
  • Located near Quincy, around one hour easy walk in the desert to the lakes.
  • Lakes and waterfall with cold mountain water in the middle of desert! Absolutely amazing!
  • The whole hike with walking around the lakes, lunch, and swimming in the lake took us around 4 hours.
• We camped at Yakima river, road 821 between Ellensburg and Yakima. There are plenty of campes on the river and at the third one there were free spots. The next day we hiked the:
• Black canyon:
  • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/black-canyon/?searchterm=Black%20canyon
  • It is a 4 hour hike, 7 miles roundtrip going up on to a ridge with beautiful views and walking a loop along the ridge
  • We liked it, but were not thrilled.
• Came back to Redmond via I-90, lots of traffic.
• Other hikes we considered but did not do:
  • Lake Lenore Caves: http://www.wildernet.com/pages/area.cfm?areaID=WASPLKLENC&CU_ID=1
  • Swakane Canyon: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes-of-the-week/swakane-canyon
• Camping & RV Parks
  • http://www.experiencewa.com/experience-washington/outdoor-activities/category/camping-and-rv-parks.aspx
  • http://www.bentler.us/eastern-washington/
  • Coulee City Campground, near Lenora lake: http://www.experiencewa.com/business-listing.aspx?id=27482

Mount Si - May 2009:

• Close to Seattle, on I-90, near North Bend.
• http://mountsi.com/
• http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/mount-si

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General Information

Permits:

• North West Forest pass - required to hike in most national forests and wildernesses
  • http://www.naturenw.org/store-passes.htm or http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/04passes/nwfp/index.shtml
  • There are daily passes (5$) and annual passes (30$).
  • Pass is good for one car or a company of up to 4.
  • Can be bought it in REI or in most national parks visitors centers.
• Some national parks require entrance or hiking permit
  • Mt. Rainier - 15$ per car per day or 30$ annual
• Annual pass to ALL parks and forest in US. 80$

Clubs:

• Washington Trails association
  • http://www.wta.org/
  • Hikes of the week
  • The 10 Most Popular Hikes on WTA.org
  • WTA on facebook
  • http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=80242264109&h=A9_3O&u=JurqC&ref=nf
• Great hiking websites to find quality hikes in the area:
  • http://www.attrition.ws/
  • http://www.vtrail.com/
  • http://www.trailsnw.com/
  • http://www.metatropo.com/gps_products.htm
  • http://www.slackpacker.com/map_wa.html
  • http://picasaweb.google.com/eric.jain
  • http://www.eskimo.com/~captain/page6b5.htm
  • http://www.hikingwithmybrother.com/
  • http://ericsbasecamp.net/
  • TNAB - Thursday Night After Burners - http://thursdaynightafterburners.com/
• Mountaineering
  • http://www.mountain-survival.net/
  • http://www.peakbagger.com/list.aspx?lid=5005
  • http://danielarndt.com/trips
  • http://www.stephabegg.com/
• Mountaineering clubs:
  • http://www.seattlemountaineers.org/
  • Boeing alpine Club
  • http://www.bushwhackerclimbingclub.org/
  • Washington Alpine Club - http://www.grandcanyontreks.org/wac/2005/wacinfo.html
• A Great Collection of Hiking/Scramble Maps
  • http://www.erikhenne.com/L_maps.htm
  • For the full switch from "Satellite" to "Earth" mode (where holding down shift- and ctrl- with mouse rotates and tilts, click-and move pans, and wheel zooms).

Additional hikes and interesting places to visit:

• One day hikes:
  • Crystal lakes: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/crystal-lakes (Rainier National Park)
  • Serene Lake: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/lake-serene (Highway 2)
  • Mt. Baker National Forest
    • Melakwa Lake
  • Olympic (also for winter):
    • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/second-beach
  • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/oyster-dome
  • http://www.hikingwithmybrother.com/2009/07/mt-defiance-mason-lake.html
  • http://www.localhikes.com/Hikes/Chainlakesloop_0860.asp
  • http://www.trails.com/tcatalog_trail.aspx?trailid=HGW207-004
  • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/longmire-indian-henrys/?searchterm=indian%20henry%20hunting%20ground
  • Pine and Cedar Lakes Trails:
    • http://www.co.whatcom.wa.us/parks/trails/pincecedar.jsp 
    • http://www.co.whatcom.wa.us/parks/pdf/trails_brochure_2003.pdf
    • Whitney mountain
• Multi day backpacking:
  • Thunder Creek drainage off the North Cascades Highway (approaching Mount Logan)
    • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/thunder-creek-1
    • http://activities.wildernet.com/pages/activity.cfm?actid=WANPSROSSLKIO*53112hw&areaname=Ross%20Lake%20National%20Recreation%20Area&rectype=Hiking%20%26%20Walking&startrecord=1&fromPage=summary&CU_ID=1
    • http://www.thingstodo.com/states/WA/nationalparks/northcascades/thundercreek.htm
• Hot Springs:
  • http://www.goldmyer.org/
  • http://scenichotsprings.blogspot.com/
  • Olympic hot springs
• Mt Rainer
  • Comet Falls, Spray Falls, Shriner Peak, Crystal Lakes, Mt. Freemont Fire Lookout.
• Olympic peninsula 3 days trip
• Lake Ingalls Hike:
  • http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/ingalls-way
  • http://www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=400700
• Cape disappointment - http://www.parks.wa.gov/parks/?selectedpark=Cape%20Disappointment&subject=maps
• Canadian Rockies: http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3439661,00.html
• TODO in Seattle:
  • "underground tour" from pioneer square
  • Bainbridge island ferry
  • being on the space needle at sunset
  • www.Klondike-travel.com
• TODO in Vancouver BC:
  • Graves Tour - "the dead guy tour", can be booked from the green tortoise hostel, costs 6$. Drive around in a car with a stoned tatooed girl, see graves of Bruce Lee, Jimmy Hendrix, and Kurt Cobain's house.
  • a 2-day track, really recommended - http://vancouverhiking.tripod.com/id10.html (bring something against bears)

Campgrounds:

• Lake Wenatchee state park camp http://www.parks.wa.gov/parks/?selectedpark=Lake%20Wenatchee&subject=camping
• Newhalem campground
• Oregon, Union Creek campground, Crater Lake: http://www.roguerec.com/index.html.
• Moran State Park
  • https://secure.camis.com/WA/MoranStatePark
• http://www.experiencewa.com/experience-washington/outdoor-activities/category/camping-and-rv-parks.aspx
• http://www.bentler.us/eastern-washington/
• Coulee City Campground, near Lenora lake: http://www.experiencewa.com/business-listing.aspx?id=27482