Aug. 23rd. Start Time: 9:00 Distance: 11.5 miles Elevation: Climbed ~4000 ft, Descended ~3600 ft. Buck Creek Pass Elevation ~5900ft.
Once up and about, we were looking forward to this as the day of climbing, with ~4 mountain passes to trek through.
Filling the water bottle at Lyman Lake.
After the usual oats and oranges, we pumped our water bottles full at Lyman Lake, and headed on our way on trail 1256. After a walk through the forest we came out on a vast grassy meadow and a snow field at the 6400ft Cloudy Pass. Looking back, on Lyman Lake and falls below we could pick out Lyman Glacier and Spider Gap where we had come through the day before. The mountain peaks, ridges, glaciers and snow fields contrasted with the brilliant green of the meadow. Given this landscape combined with the soundscape of countless waterfalls and mountain creeks, you can begin to understand the attraction of trips into the wilderness.
Looking back from Cloudy Pass. Follow Lyman Falls and the snow field up to our crossing at Spider Gap.
From Cloudy Pass we headed down 900ft to the Agnes Creek trail, then back up 500ft to meet the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) and eventually reached Suiattle Pass. On the advice of a hiker going in the opposite direction, we avoided the bypass trail between, as he described very steep snow – and we of course did not have poles or an ice axe. From Suiattle Pass we followed the PCT down ~1400 ft (following PCT grade) mostly traversing wooded slopes, eventually crossing Miners Creek. If it were not for the PCT Detour sign, we probably would have walked past the trail (789) to Buck Creek Pass.
Leaving the PCT, we immediately hit ‘non-PCT grade’ with a stiff 1600 ft climb over the next 2 miles. We stopped for a lunch break ~ halfway up, preparing a meal of instant miso soupand some landjaegers. It was fun to find a 1940′s geological survey marker in the rocks where we dined.
Geological Survery Marker
Re-energized by lunch, we resumed the climb to the Middle Ridge trail at around 6200 ft then quickly descending on the Buck Creek trail, dropping down to Small Creek at 5100 ft. Small was a bit of an oxymoron as this was the only creek I actually had to take my boots off to cross – the icy cold water was incredibly refreshing. From Small creek, the trail headed up through several non-PCT switchbacks eventually reaching the trail to Flower Dome. After a quick break, we hiked the last 0.3 miles and made our way down to the Buck Creek Pass campsite.
Crossing Small Creek - Refreshing!
After setting up our camp under some trees, I began to feel the effects of all the climbing, and decided to pass on dinner for the night, though I managed some soup and an orange. With a few hours of sunlight, I spent some time reading and then enjoyed the changes in light on the neighboring mountains as the sun set. As it grew dark, we took in another star filled sky, then climbed into bed and dropped off to sleep before long.
The setting sun on Helmet Butte.
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