[iron]

in the course of this leisurely 12hr trip, i shot 550 pictures, or 45 pics/hr, or 1 per 1:18. too much beauty, too nice of a day. it was one of those increasingly rare days where i appreciated my unemployment for the past 11 months... fortunately, i've edited them down to just 100 pics... cartman and i left seattle at 5:30a and were hiking by 7:20. it was one of those great days where you start off in a long sleeve shirt and pants and end up in a tee and shorts without once having the need to put on a warm layer, unlike this trip. this being cartman's first time on the goat lake trail, we took the upper trail. i must say, it was way more enjoyable this time around than in the past. it almost looks trail-like and not like a road. not sure if there was maintenance on this part, but if there was, . the alders and early morning light were beautiful. yellow, purple, and white flowers lined practically the entire trail.

upper trail flowers

former road turned trail

cartman and trees

bright leaves and dark trunks

bouldery junction

peakaboo light

grab here

photosynthesis

tiny brightness

nearing the lake, the roar of elliott creek near the goat lake outlet drew us in. wow! so much water!

goat lake outlet!

windy in here!

next, a calm and pristine goat lake welcomed us. this was my first time up here (in 4 trips) where i could see blue skies and the other end of the lake!

heineken (snow slope furthest away) as seen from goat lake outlet

slimy rocks

i am the plant charmer

classic goat lake color

did i mention the reflections?

calm

reflections

make

me

happy

i'd like to be this log...

that's a funny looking mountain

favorite shot of the day

blue skies!

we continued on the trail which is well beaten in all the way to the point/cove of the lake. some avi debris, but pretty easy to follow.

looking from point back towards goat lake outlet

if i was a bird...

...this is where i'd hang out

false!

shadows through petals

from the point, we headed up well consolidated avi debris until it abutted a rock outcrop (not the cliffs with the real waterfalls). we traversed right and up through rock bands and cliffs. eventually, we made it into a forested slope with sizable trees around EL3800'.

main slope creek waterfall

is this the REI flagship?

avi debris and our route up

moving on up

that's a bit of avi debris down there (the point, lower right)

no spray zone

cartman's route up

falls that flow into avi debris pile

emerging

there are 2 small streams within the forest. we traversed level on those before gaining an obvious rib. on the way down, we found a fisherman's trail that more or less traced our route, but stayed a little higher (details below).

1st stream crossing (bootpath just right of center)

2nd waterfall

on a well defined rib west of main waterfall

branch free

twisted

curves

consistent snow ~4300'

flakey

there's tons and tons of avi debris in this area. if planning this trip, assume that there is no truly avi-safe slope heading up to the ridge if accessing from the north side of goat lake.

lots of this on the route

from L-R (heineken, cadet, foggy)

cadet

foggy

clouds

soon enough, we were on the ridge. great snow, which started around EL4300', was found all day long. on the ridge, views of the N cascades, YES! peak, sloan, and cadet lake emerged. cadet lake looks like a gem to me!

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summer 2010: cadet lake and green slopes leading to goat lake

traversing up and right at the rocky outcrop to reach the ridge

cadet lake (look for a future TR for this location!)

cartman and sloan

ida pass

cadet and monte cristo's

looks like it's ripe to climb!

still some snow up here

for scale

don't do it!

staying on the ridge itself proved more difficult than beneficial. after a little ridge walking, we dropped into the N face and booted up from there, regaining the ridge just before the summit. again, great snow!

ridge leading to heineken's summit

no trip is complete without YES! peak

runnels

dropped off the ridge and ascended N aspect

only 15ft high...

back on the ridge, summit near

if i had a snowboard...

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same peaks, now with monte cristo, kyes, and goblin (R-L from cadet)

the cornices up here, like everywhere in the cascades right now, were huge. we could clearly see the breaking line, so we had a nice safe spot to sit and soak in the views. i must say, this peak has one of the finest viewpoints of any i've sat on. with the exception of the olympics and pickets, you can see 'em all!

the edge of the world giving way

sloaning it up

pretty sure this is goblin

monte cristo (L); cadet (R)

the ridge we avoided (bootprints R margin)

eventually we retreated, pointing out many peaks along the way. great views of most of the ptarmigan traverse, all the glacier peak stuff, monte cristos, and MLH.

soaking it in

and photoing it up

more clouds

more sloan

more cartman

up and down routes

just say YES!

more more clouds

goat lake basin

the ultimate slide (you and 3 of your friend can each have a lane!)

then back in the forest.

what happened to your branches?

thick

and regaining the faint boot path. at the two forested stream crossings, you want to be about 20 vertical feet below the cliff bands. if you cross on the bootpath of the east stream, you'll easily find it for the west stream. then, follow the trail 'til you can see the big waterfall and the avi debris pile. from here, drop down a bit, then walk up by the waterfall, and follow down to the lake. easy once you've done it, somewhat hard to explain.

2nd stream

cascades rule!

on bootpat heading out

drop left, then wrap right, following the stream from the big waterfall. this takes you back to avi debris pile

big waterfall

irish fresh

changing directions

it's good for what ails ya

draining into goat lake; can't beat the beauty of the cascades

linear

take that big 4 ice caves

at the top of the avi debris pile. on the up route, we went R here; on the down, we came underneath the R waterfall and then around the bump in the foreground (do this way!)

no trash spotted (Hulk)

i even nailed some boot glissades

like a calving glaicer

don't glissade down into here

couple by the big waterfall

1st stream crossing:

big waterfall:

on the way out, we took the lower elliott creek trail. awesome as always and highly photogenic.

now on the lower trail

more flowers

nice creeks to cross

so fragile looking

a horse stump

rawrr

trail's eye view

as i was silently passing through, i noticed a change in pitch in the creek. so i explored, and found this:

log falls

so, so tempted to go across this...

bubbly

peaceful here

not here (2nd fav shot of the day)

so fresh

log falls:

what an amazing find. it absolutely solidified a great day.

someday, there could be a tree on this rock

chaos

violence

constriction

green

from above

tiered

adios creek

don't forget the dinosaur food.

king sized cabbage

and the fading light hitting the trees.

golden

fin

awesome trip. do it with sun in the forecast and stable slope conditions. right now, goat lake is as amazing as i've ever seen it. pano's coming...

[ale_capone]

Amazing photos! Thank you very much.

[RichP]

Awesome photos, iron. You really captured the flavor of that trip from low to high.

[Backpacker Joe]

Did you guys see any animals while you were hiking? All you had to do IS LOOK IN THE MIRROR! Great work yet again.

[Matt]

Interesting to see it on a calmer day.

[raising3hikers]

Great pics! They told a good story. Looks like the perfect day for that trip

[iron]

heading up the avi debris

where the avi debris meets the lake

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nearthe summit, looking towards the ptarmigan traverse area

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sloan,YES!, and heineken

[Snowdog]

your pics speak volumes.