Slide Alder Slayer Member
Joined: 14 Jan 2002 Posts: 1960 | TRs | Pics
|
For our first backpacking trip of the year, Pack Pup and I decided on a three-day trip to Navaho Pass in the Teanaway. This area teams with wildlife, and while driving to the trailhead on the Teanaway Road 9737, we stopped to let a heard of deer bound across the road. As it was a weekday, we assumed they were hurrying off to school.
Stafford Road 9703 is completely clear, and to our surprise as we did not do this hike last year, we arrived to an improved trailhead with new four-star restroom accommodations.
Stafford Creek Trail is virtually snow free to approximately 4,000 feet; both the horse camp and backpacker’s campsite at 4,200 feet are open. Snow depth then varies to the stream crossing at 4,800 feet from the occasional glimpse of bare trail to three feet plus. From the crossing to the signed intersection with Standup Creek Trail at 5,000 feet, snow depth appears consistent at three to a maximum of four feet.
Anyone who has hiked this trail and used the Enchantment Lake Quadrangle 1989 knows that the signed intersection between the Stafford Creek and Standup Creek Trails is way off. No big deal in the summer, but when the trail is snow covered, Green Trail’s Mount Stuart #209 has it right and correctly places the intersection right next to the stream.
We snow camped at the signed intersection and had easy access to the stream for water. Although the weather was very pleasant during the day and early evening, it was COLD at night! The next day 5/9/03, after some morning rain, we hiked (snowshoed) the final mile plus to Navaho Pass. In the spring we have always found it easier to use the more gentle slopes to the West of the trail then intersect with the trail at the small basin, lovingly nicknamed the swamp, before ascending a few hundred feet for the final open approach to the pass.
At the pass we took a thirty-minute break and watched the clouds glide over the summits of Little Annapurna and McClellan Peak. Unlike previous years, the pass area was not blown free on snow, but there were some small clear sections. After our break we started to ascend Navaho Peak when the temperature nose-dived, and a dark wall of clouds that had just obliterated our view of the Stuart Range rushed our way. As it started to hail sideways and the clouds dropped to ground level, we abandoned our plan and descended from the pass. By the time we figured out that it was just a short-term local phenomena we were half way back to camp. Later that afternoon, blue skies.
Up till now we had encountered only one hiker/skier on the way out as we were coming in, and it was nice to have our small section of the Teanaway to ourselves. As we hiked out on Saturday 5/10/03, we began to see other hikers/skiers/snowboarders/snowshoers, most of whom had gone to Little Navaho.
The trail to the first horse camp at 4,200 feet is not yet open for horses. On the way out we could tell by the tracks that one determined horseman had to turn around at approximately 4,000 feet as his horse was sinking three feet plus in the snow. As for ourselves, snowshoes were not necessary until we crossed Stafford Creek at 4,800 feet. There was easy access to water at the intersection of Stafford and Standup Creek at 5,000 feet. At higher elevations all water sources appeared to be snow covered. Only a small open patch was open at the swamp.
|