[jaysway]

I woke up very early on Saturday morning in Marblemount to avoid the crowds and hike to the top of Easy Pass for sunrise. Other than irrational sleep-deprived paranoia around running into a mountain lion, the trip up in the dark was easy, although I was surprised at how low the snow started appearing on the trail. I didn't see a single person until I started going down hours later, and then probably saw 2-3 dozen people on the way back to the car. Sunrise was great, but minutes afterwards the sun went behind the clouds and didn't really reappear until hours later when I was halfway down the trail which made me wish I waited longer at the top, but I was getting cold and ready to come down. Some scattered flakes were falling all morning, which added to the fall-meets-winter ambiance of the hike. This was my third weekend in a row of celebrating a hike by picking up food and a milkshake at Katsu Burger on the drive back to Oregon. Now that I've done all of the super popular larch hikes off of SR 20 - Maple Pass, Blue Lake, Cutthroat Pass, and Easy Pass - I can see why Easy Pass is the least crowded despite it being the closest to Seattle. You spend less time among the larches compared to the others, and the vertical gain is bigger too, although less than 3K seems tame compared to many hikes in the area. The views certainly don't disappoint though, and while I saw a bunch of people on my way down, the density of hikers was much lower than those other hikes. Of all of these hikes, Easy Pass also felt like the one where you miss out the least by coming before larch season. Sunrise

I was a minute or two away from getting a great shot here, but the light had mostly faded but the time I got to this spot

Post-sunrise

[Backpacker Joe]

That didnt look easy!

[Chief Joseph]

So, is it easy, I have heard it's kind of hard? Really like the photos contrasting the fall colors + snow.

[mosey]

Those are some nice shots of swirling clouds!

[silence]

Your photos are spectacular!! Nice work!

[Hiker Mama]

Beautiful photos. I have wondered about that hike as I speed past the signs for it on the way to overcrowded trailheads. I like the contrast of snow with fall colors.

[hikermike]

I went up and spent the night there years ago...nobody around. Surprised it's become so popular now. Is there a bridge now? Used to be, then washed away, then a big log, then washed away. It is supposed to be hard but went well for me as it is in 3 parts so it marks the time as you climb. Beautiful old forest then subalpine parkland and then alpine bareness with a dramatic pass. Great winter photos.

[jaysway]