[iron]

the feel of vegetation brushing against my exposed legs always reminds me how alive i feel in the mountains (exceptions include devils club, stinging nettles, and most of the white river trail). i think i first noticed it upon my first hike, sans crutches, following my bike accident. for the most part, we sit in offices, houses, and other manmade safe places where our bodies are protected. mountains offer us the opportunity, that wonderful opportunity, to shed that protection and be part of nature. … glacier peak and its surrounding mountains have always captured my heart since moving to seattle in 2004 and going on my first backpacking trip in 2005. at that time, my roommate and i attempted to do the indian creek to white river trail loop. it was memorial day weekend with temperatures well into the 80s. everything felt new and unexplored. simply driving up trailhead roads was magical then. we didn’t complete the loop that weekend, not because we didn’t try, but because we convinced ourselves the map we had was wrong. see, we intended to start on the white river side of the trailhead, while we actually started on the indian creek side. needless to say, arriving at the junction of the pct didn’t make sense when we needed to go downhill, but clearly we’d be going up. my first in-person hiking lesson. still, seeing the glacier peak wilderness and the sunset that first night was all it took for me to fall in love right then and there.

2005 Indian Creek

2005 Indian Creek

2005 Indian Creek

… day 1 – 28.0 mi, 7100 ft gain, 13 hrs – buck creek trailhead (trinity) to boulder pass having seen the forecast for labor day weekend, i opted to work those days and instead take off the latter half of the week during the good weather spell – thanks snolanator for that idea! i arrived at the trinity trailhead around midnight and didn’t much feel like hiking. so, 6:45a rolled around and i hit the gentle trail towards buck pass. i love this grand valley. i love it even more when glacier starts to emerge with an early morning sunlight lighting it up as white as white gets.

the start of the trip - virtually the only clouds i'd see

glacier emerges

the pass had endless fields of ripe huckleberries. i nibbled on quite a few as i talked to one group and headed clockwise (south) towards high pass. the bootpath is well defined – much better than some of the “trails” on the rest of the trip – ahem, white river…

mouse on a stick

views continue to emerge

glacier in full display

almost at high pass

views are spectacular. i found myself giggling and eventually shouting “waahooo” as i continued to climb. when you finally reach the pass, views of triad lake, clark, tenpeak, and glacier are unreal. i mean, really, how is it possible to see something so brilliantly amazing with such little effort?

clark and triad lake

wow

i love that mountain!

who wants to swim?

whispy clouds

i had my ice axe specifically for this portion of the trip, but certainly did not need it at this time of year. it proved to be cumbersome for the remainder of the trip with the hundreds (thousands?) of downed trees.

glad i brought the ice axe for this

my right shoe kept digging into my ankle (i apparently pronate a little too much for these trail runners), so i had to do a little modification. wwjld? i asked myself. as i reached for the duct tape, i paused and thought: “wait, duct tape is only for experienced mountaineers that need to affix their crampons to their non-compatible boots.” so instead, the scissors came out.

wwjld?

i didn’t want to leave, but knew i must. i should admit at this point that i really didn’t calc out my mileage or elevation gain for any part of the trip; i knew where i wanted to be at the end of day 1 (boulder pass) and where i needed to be at 6:00p on day 2 (pct and north fork sauk to meet hotpantz). reluctantly, i descended, but fortunately, views somehow got better as i went lower. the early autumn colors did their best to lure me farther. abide i did.

interesting erosion from high above

descending high pass warranted many waahoos!

various boulders dispersed about

triad lake

pockets of moss in an otherwise barren plateau

colorful hillsides begin

heart rate racing with excitement

why? why aren't there any bears here?

i could spend weeks here

bright white boulders

looking back towards high pass

wonderful little creek which later turns into a waterfall

more mouse on a stick

perfect

richness defined

some parts during the descent are rocky and sandy. a boot path might not always be visible, but it was easy terrain and obvious where one needed to go – at least until getting closer to the napeequa river. within a short stretch, the terrain steepens and you’re staring at slide alder to both sides of the unnamed stream you’ve been dancing with. i saw a patch of coniferous trees and aimed for that. mistake.

where'd the color go?

which way to go?

dang, not this way!

sad face

emerging from the slide alder to find the falls

the correct route, as i now know, is to stay right. apparently there’s a nice boot path, but i just couldn’t find it. perhaps if my memory worked, i would have used the info presented to me before the trip. lesson 1: remember your critical beta. alas…

do not go skier's left!

the alder – umm – sucked. it wasn’t baby alder either. it was big, strong manly alder that didn’t like to be pushed around. up to this point, i was all ecstatic and excited and fresh. the alder got rid of that in a hurry. finally, after one sketchy veggie belay aided slide, i crossed back over the stream and tromped through waist high grass and other vegetation. the area is remote, i’ll give it that. eventually, i found what might be considered a trail down the napeequa. more often than not, it was just beaten down grass. sometimes there was tread. a lot of the time it disappeared. i was frustrated. finally, i said screw it and forded the napeequa to get to the other side. at least there was no thick brushy vegetation on that side. eventually i crossed over again, finding the tread.

napeequa valley

louis creek

i came to the junction with the boulder pass trail. yes! this was one element of the trip i was nervous about – fording the napeequa (it was further downstream from my previous fords and had two more tributaries – louis creek and the clark glacier runoff). even though it was 6:30p at this point, the water didn’t look bad. in i went and was shocked to see sub-knee deep water. cold? yes, but not terrible. check.

napeequa ford

heading up to boulder pass was greatly welcomed at this point. i can go uphill all day long and the pump and rhythm of climbing again snapped me out of the funk i found myself in. the trail was certainly overgrown and wet and narrow in spots and hidden rocks were everywhere. then randomly, it would be completely fine again. hmm. eventually above treeline, it’s free walking again. i got to the pass for a nice sunset. the tent went up directly on the trail (a perfect-sized patch of dirt exists for a tent there).

evening light on day 1 from boulder pass

the tiredness from the slide alder and frustration with the napeequa trail all came out and i was fast asleep. i find it amusing that after i have my femur fractured, 11 weeks later, day 1 of a four-day backpack trip is longer and more strenuous than almost all of my other backpack trips (the entire trip). day 2 – 24.1 mi, 4500 ft gain, 13hrs – boulder pass to white chuck cinder cone area six miles of descent is always good, right? i liked it this morning at least. the morning dew held nicely to every single overgrown plant on the trail down. there are many of these such plants from boulder pass.

morning light on tent atop boulder pass

some of the best berries were found descending boulder pass

the valley here felt astonishingly green. the trees were tall, narrow, and dark – i believe they’re spruce, but i’m not sure. it was very peaceful. the forest changed quickly as i approached the white river trail. minutes before reaching the trail, i spoke with two hikers who were section hiking. they informed me they did the white river trail last year and it was fine. sweet. i was thinking about backtracking 3 miles to the trailhead and taking indian creek instead.

lots of green coming down from boulder pass

grassy views looking back to boulder pass

time for some wet legs

rich greens approaching the white river trail junction

whoops. should’ve gone with my gut. the “trail” was seriously overgrown. it was truly trail-by-braille. the only indication one was there was a slight depression in the height of the surrounding plants – which was frequently head height. at first, i took some strange delight out of this, again feeling remoteness. but eventually, it wore on me. it was like snowshoeing through wet, heavy snow – not really all that fun and quite tiring.

white river "trail"

looking up the white river valley, while on trail

still on trail

strangely, however, the “trail” would cross into amazing old growth patches. where they came from i’m not sure. the higher hillsides must be shaped just right to keep avalanche debris from obliterating them. these forests are amazing. huge. rich. everything one would expect from old growth.

the occassional crossing of forests provided welcome reprieves from the rest of the white river trail

one tall, bare tree

1945 is also the last time the trail saw maintenance

baby trees growing between fallen trees

tree fungus

you have to ford the white river several times (book says three, i say four). often, the trail you’re on will peter out. it’s clear some have tried continuing on, but eventually turn back. when you reach that petered-out point, it’s time to look across the river. nearing the last crossing, i just couldn’t find the trail. the river was down about 50 steep feet from where i was. hmm. i found some switchbacks that took me higher in the wrong direction so i followed those for awhile until it was basically just all downed trees everywhere. i opted to go high to try and find the clark mountain alternate high route (R&R). about 300 vertical feet later, views emerged and i could see what i needed to do if i wanted to find the trail again.

this cottony stuff was fun to inhale

this log's been worked over

sure, let's climb up this stuff

down i went on the slick terrain (likely made slick by my trail runners). i crossed the river, found a ridge, and followed it. i knew if i stayed the ridge proper on this broad hill, i’d cross the trail. just as the hill started getting steep and thick, bam, there was the trail. phew. i felt waaaay better at this point as i was pretty nervous about breaking an ankle while high off-trail and having no one know where i was.

after following the ridge, i finally re-found the trail

soon, i reached the pct. as i glanced back towards the white river “trail,” i couldn’t even see it. the only way one would know it was there is by the trail junction sign.

...things are starting to look familiar

it's not the only thing that's about to get kissed

pct = cruising speed. perfect, since i needed to meet up with hotpantz at our scheduled time. the low angle autumn sun on the red and orange mountainside warmed my heart. as i neared the junction with the north fork sauk trail, a familiar figure emerged. hotpantz was about 10 steps ahead of me to the junction. it couldn’t have been timed any better. check.

reflection pond, not so reflecting

a new view of glacier peak emerges

hotpantz arrives!!!

i let her catch her breath from the sauk switchbacks and eat some berries, but soon the whip was cracked. mileage was still needed tonight. okay, there was no whip… we climbed to red pass and then dropped about a mile in. a broad meadow with an out-of-place boulder and cairn is where we set camp (we found the campsite a little below that the next morning – lesson 2: when on the pct, keep going, you’ll probably find a campsite).

evening light sets in

hiking towards red pass with warm evening sun

goodnight sun - day 2

glacier was right atop us here. the setting sunlight faded from its slopes, leaving us with another night of impeccable stargazing. there was a nip in the air, but it wasn't bad at all.

campsite just below red pass

day 3 – 26.5 mi, 5000 ft gain, 13 hrs – white chuck cinder cone area to grassy point saddle now on the pct, we would run into several thru and section hikers. it was fun to instantly become part of the crowd – even though i don’t like crowds. no, this crowd is different. it’s a community of like-minded individuals, most of whom have the goal of hiking 2650 miles from mexico to canada. i have particular affinity to these crazy bastards since i hope to be one in the not too distant future. with each new person or group we met, i inquired about their mindset for i understand the mental wear and tear of a journey like this – though to a lesser degree – from the bike trip across the country i did with my dad. by the time you’re nearing the end, you just want to be done. but a few days after it’s over, you’d give anything to get it back. as we descended from our campsite, the lush green valleys welcomed us. we soon passed the lost creek ridge and white chuck trail junctions. we talked contingency plans for escape should my body not hold up to the rigors of the start of day 3. lesson 3: figure out contingency plans before the trip and know which trails go to which roads.

making breakfast (i.e. boiling water)

the area of the trail from the painted mountains north to lost creek ridge was abruptly flat. it’s like glacier decided it was tired of being a gnarly mountain; either that or that stretch has filled in with debris for eons… next, we crossed kennedy creek on the V-bridge. a cairned fording location existed just upstream of the damaged bridge should the bridge be underwater. once around glacier ridge, colorful views emerged. pumice creek was one of the most beautiful creeks i’ve ever seen. we sat there awhile, ate, talked to thru hikers about the downed tree section, and contemplated more of the contingency plan. after my first pb&j went down, the contingency plan disappeared. “let’s roll,” i thought.

no blasting heard, but there was plenty of trail damage

hotpantz crossing the V-bridge over kennedy creek

good traction makes a happy iron

the walk towards fire creek pass was great. autumn colors were intense and so too were the huckleberries. the massiveness of glacier’s glaciers became apparent the higher we climbed. it was astonishingly immense.

constantly stunned by glacier's beauty

back together again in the mountains!

downing the blueberries!

about to step into where?

one of the most beautiful creeks i've ever seen near glacier ridge (picture in no way does it justice)

fall is here

this pb&j is going DOWN

it's tough to hike when there are so many berries

by the time we got to fire creek pass, it was warm and we were craving a swim. we talked with atlas for a bit, a native seattleite nearing the end of his thru hike. his thoughts reminded me of my own two years ago. mica lake was coming up, but we saw a glacial tarn at the foot of the milk lake glacier. sure, why not?! the water was, uhh, refreshing. the brush thrashing on my exposed legs enjoyed it.

the route up after milk creek

atlas, a thru hiker originally from seattle, nearing the end of his journey

hey, let's go swim in that tarn coming off the unnamed glacier near fire creek pass

PG13 only

again, PG13. left leg still has a way to grow to catch back up to the right one

a couple minutes in there and some numb legs later, we pressed on. mica lake was jaw dropping. the color and depth reminded me exactly of foggy lake in gothic basin. it looked clear and cold. this would make one heck of a camp site. lesson 4: allow more days on a trip like this to stay wherever you want, whenever you want.

eldorado, some bumps, and a tiny tarn near fire creek pass

the sublime, and cold looking, mica lake

down we went to milk creek. lots of trailwork going on here on the switchbacks. a crew of maybe five had recreated a lot of the tread lost by erosion. we thanked them for their efforts and continued down. southbound hikers had given us beta to take avoid following the new trail right at the creek which involves crossing a new bridge and bushwhacking through some nasty stuff (reportedly 30 mins for less than ¼ mile). instead, they told us to take the old, washed out trail and boulder hop across the creek. hotpantz found the cairns and made quick work of it and finding the trail again. sweet.

trail work heading down to milk creek

heading down to milk creek via the old trail

boulder hopping across milk creek

now, many switchbacks got us back up to a long ridge and traverse. the noise from milk creek seemed oddly muted on these switchbacks even though on the other side of the creek, the noise was almost always audible. after a flatish walk along the ridge, my foot started to hurt. off came the shoe and i found i’d worn through the injinji sock. apparently it’s only good for 80 miles of walking… so, again, for the second time on the trip i asked wwjld? this time, the duct tape was pulled out. the trail along the east fork of milk creek was awesome. a great campsite lies near the creek, but on it’s own elevated plot of land. we, however, did not get that spot. so, we pushed into the darkness towards the grassy point saddle. an incredibly bright comet welcomed us as we boiled water for tea. we discussed tomorrow’s options as we’d heard bad stuff about the downed tree section coming up heading down from vista ridge to the suiattle river. i’d read about it prior to the trip and saw that it was doable. southbounders talked about all day adventures to gain the 7 miles. northbounders rumored of 1mph paces.

bright green moss near vista creek

night falls on day 3

we didn’t want either. so, why not try a high route again? the dusty high route (R&R) should take us to gamma point and then we could pick up the trail down to the suiattle river. optimistic thoughts ran through our minds as we ate our tasty dinner and drank hot chocolate and tea (separately). an early start was scheduled for tomorrow given that we had 30 miles to go. day 4 – 30.6 mi, 4800 ft gain, 15 hrs – grassy point saddle to trinity morning sun rays peaked over the eastern ridges and lit the tops of logan, eldorado, and the like. is there any better way to start the day?

the sky's on fire to start day 4

hotpantz smiling about oatmeal (or the 30 mile day ahead)

oatmeal on day 4

we headed uphill from our campsite, following what looked like a bootpath along a ridge. 600 vertical feet later, glacier was smack dab in front of us with the vista and ermine glaciers ablaze in early morning light. it was so close it felt like we could touch it. the only problem was: no high route. lesson 5: high routes probably take some more knowledge to get to than i currently have and some 7.5 minute maps would go a long way sometimes.

packing up

getting set to find the high route

the stopping point for our quest of the high route. shucks.

thinking: damn, this doesn't look good

hotpantz wanted to drop down into the vista creek valley; i thought that would only be compounding our error. reluctantly, the we squelched the adventure and proceeded back to the pct to face the 408 downed trees.

big sun

hotpantz is my ray of light

heading back to the pct, tails tucked between our legs

three short hours later, we were through all of them. what?! was that it? it was more like 2.3 mph for us. sure, maybe going uphill through them would be 2mph, but still. the paths around the tree were easy to find and follow and with the exception of my ice axe getting caught up occasionally, it was a ton of fun. i mean, how often does one get to play around on downed old growth? it was a scene reserved for the movies.

playing on the downed old growth

practicing yoga poses again

look at that lunge!

gnarly rootballs

there's no easy way!

we crossed vista creek on a narrow tree; otherwise, it’s easily forded. at the campsite on the other side of the river, we ran into jenny and veggiemite and chatted for awhile. jenny was very thankful for the food (powerbar and dinner) that we gave her the previous day and had noticeably higher energy levels today.

crossing vista creek after the 408 blowdowns

a little narrower log, but those branches should catch me, right?

jenny, veggiemite, and hotpantz

the forest on the other side of vista creek was so incredibly quiet and grand. i’m not sure how it shifted to this level of muteness, especially given it’s location between vista creek and the suiattle river, but it did and we loved it. soon, we were at the mighty suiattle. two trees crossed the chasm, one of which was highly sloped and bark-free. we opted for the barky, level one. i butt scooted along, knowing that a fall in the river would probably re-break my leg. hotpantz danced across – amazing.

the destruction near the suiattle river. what happened to the trees in the background?

o-bliterated

thinking: hmm, if i fall, goodbye

hotpantz simply walked across this one ... over the raging suiattle

we ascended again through yet another old growth or second growth forest. these things are just so unreal and serene. we found the junction to buck pass and the trail soon became un-pct-like. it steepened and was chopped up and littered with horse droppings (a byproduct of not having horses on the “closed” section of the pct). something in me fired up and we charged up these hills, working up a good sweat.

heading up to flower dome's saddle

around middle ridge we went and then up to the junction with flower dome’s trail. everything here is unmarked. heck, i even had to pull out the compass here to double check. in short time, we reached buck pass, all the way back to the start of the loop. we had one final sitdown and put on the marching boots to complete the lollipop loop back to the trailhead. i had hoped to be out sans headlamps, but that didn’t happen. with 5 miles left, i got some blisters – a product of swollen feet and using thicker socks (replacements hotpantz lent me). lesson 6: bring multiple pairs of socks that’ll actually work for hiking, not one for hiking, one for camping.

happy to be here. now, only 10 miles back

are we done yet?

all the way around!

trip nearly complete

the pronation in my foot had really taxed my right ankle throughout the trip and i was already limping because of it. this combined with the blisters made those last already long 5 miles even longer. the sight of the car was a relief. now, how long will it take to get back to the north fork sauk TH? answer: too long. lesson 7: actually plan your long trips if you expect to get back to work at a reasonable hour the next day. after getting chocolate milk, milk duds, and reeses PB cups (for me) and a tuna sandwich and drink for hotpantz at the coles corner gas station, we made it to gold bar where a car nap was in order. an hour later, back at it. by 2:30a, we reached her car. by 4:00a, we were at I5 where i slept a little more. by 6:00a, i made it home. lesson 8: don’t make your last day of a 109 mile trip a 30 mile day and expect to be able to drive 7 hours to get home. totals: 4 days, 109.2 mi, 20,900 ft, 54 hrs what a trip. what a girl hotpantz is. what a mountain glacier is. thanks for the read.

clark, triad lake, and glacier peak

[Obi Tony Kenobi]

Great trip report and pictures!! Great to see you out again!

[Magellan]

Epic! A trip many will dream about, but few will complete. Your dead trees probably drowned in a high river. The channel may have shifted, keeping them underwater for an extended period.

[Hulksmash]

Dude....you just did some thing that the majority of the human population could not physically do with in there life time....how many weeks after getting messed up from getting hit by a car? Some of us can only dream...thanks for shearing

[Jason Hummel]

Holly shizel, way to go round the beast....this was a goal of mine this year and I didn't do it...watson to blum instead, but nevertheless, I'm jealous. You were really moving. Nice work. Makes me want to go do this next week, seriously. Thanks a ton for the story!!!

[Hulksmash]

Sure....just rub everyone's nose in it.

[goats gone wild]

Thank you for sharing your incredible journey, iron. I enjoyed every sentence and picture. It's amazing to me that you can hike such long mileage days so soon after you fractured your femur. I suppose, though, if you're chasing a hot babe like hotpantz through the woods, well, that would be good motivation. My favorite pictures are: 'there's no easy way' and 'all the way around'

[Ingunn]

Holy crap. Sounds like you're already more than ready for the PCT! What an amazing trip, it should (almost) make up for your downtime this summer. It certainly sounds like you've found your female counterpart in Hotpantz.

[iron]

[cartman]

Terrific trip and report, sounds like you are completely recovered, that's great. Yumi and I were up there right behind you, those views of Glacier are amazing. The trail up to Buck Creek Pass is completely clear of downed trees now, the Forest Service did a great job. If you have time, a post with your specific gear list would be very informative. Those packs you two are carrying look very light!

[David¹]

Epic!

[Trevor]

I appreciate the post and congrats for the accomplishment, especially given the trauma you were subjected to in the bike accident.

[BirdDog]

iron; I had to read the title three times to make sure this TR was from this year. Unbelievable. It wasn't that long ago I sent you an e-mail encouraging you to hang in there, and telling you that you would eventually recover from your accident. I knew you were in great shape before the wreck but I had no idea you could recover this quickly. A testament to both your physical and mental toughness. Utterly amazing! Nice TR & pics too. Congrats!

[BeyondLost]

Wow! What a trip and great photos. I treated a lot of femur fractures (including professional athletes) but I never saw anyone 11 weeks post injury do what you just did. Iron indeed!!!

[Opus]

I agree: epic. What a trip! I met Jenny and Vegemite last week as they came over Trap Pass near Stevens! If I'm thinking of the right person, Jenny had just come through a rain storm where her tent failed. Glad to see they're still moving along.