Day 130-136: Snoqualmie Pass to Stevens Pass
Mile 2394.1-2465.2 (Plus some side trips)
Angus and I got started late the next day. Of course his first day was a rainy one, despite me having next to no rain for my entire trip. Well, at least it helped out with the drought. The weather cleared that afternoon to reveal some spectacular views. There was some gnarly climbing, but we made it into camp.
The next day it rained all day. We pushed 20 miles which was a big day for Angus having not been on trail forever. There were a few good views towards the end of the day but for the most part, we were seeing clouds.
The next day we diverted from the PCT. The weather was better but still not great. We only did a short day, as the diversion from the PCT involved an alpine crossing that would require better weather. We climbed up to Spade Lake and made camp after a ruthlessly steep ascent. The next day, it would be all worth it. We awoke to clear skies the next morning and the beauty of Spade Lake.
We hiked up about a mile to Venus Lake, yet another beautiful alpine lake.
From there the trail disappeared, and we went cross country over a ridge between Venus and Circle Lakes. The views up there were among the best of the entire hike.
A sweet pano courtesy of Angus
Spade Lake down below
From there it was down to Circle Lake, ANOTHER bright blue alpine lake.
This was an extremely worthwhile detour off the PCT. It’s not for the faint of heart as there is definitely some sketchy terrain coming over the ridge, but the views and lakes made it so worth it. From here we headed back to the PCT and then another 9 miles to camp. At this point, Angus’s blisters were real gnarly, and we still had another 17 miles to go. Despite this, he pushed through and we made it out through some pretty scenic areas to Stevens Pass.
We hitched to the Bavarian themed town of Leavenworth and took a zero. Cool little tourist town for sure. After that, we took a day hike in the enchantments, a mountain region near town. It was unfortunately real smoky, but we hiked up to beautiful Colchuck Lake.
Unfortunately Angus’s blisters prevented him from going any further, but I pressed on into the core enchantments up over the brutally steep Aasgard Pass (left saddle in the photo above). Once over the top, I was in the core enchantments, one of the wildest places I had ever seen. More granite and lakes than the Sierra, if that’s possible.
I finished the 20 mile day hike late afternoon, and Angus and I enjoyed our last night together. Was a fun week for sure, but it’s time for the last 9 days to the border now. So close.
