Cascade Pass, 2017

 This past week was my hiking test for this season.  Bob has been choosing days and places based on weather, distance, vertical gain, and available days free of various appointments and commitments.  All of our previous hikes throughout the spring and summer were to get in shape for the big one, Cascade Pass in the North Cascades National Park. 

This is a 7-½ mile round trip hike that starts at 3600 ft elevation and ends at 5400 ft elevation for a vertical gain of 1800 ft.  It took us 3-½ hours up and about 2-½ down. It is steady up all the way with between 35 and 37 switchbacks.   There are no dramatically steep places.  Yay!

 A section of the trail that goes through the forest

 Peek-a-boo views from the forest trail

 Fairy tale mushroom, pretty but poisonous, NOT edible and choice

 The weather was wonderful, sunny but cool enough to be comfortable on the way up.   Nice breezes at the pass and a good place to sit, eat lunch, and enjoy the splendors of nature.  The fall colors were in full array.  We saw lots of chipmunks, two different types of squirrels including the elusive reddish brown Douglas squirrel, a pika obliged by sitting long enough on a sunny stone for a picture.  Four or five people reported seeing large black bears, on the trail ahead and on the trail behind, and also a little past the pass, but we did not encounter any or even seen one from distance.  I was grateful for that.  It would be okay to see one from a safe distance but to come upon one ambling along the trail toward us would have been a definite bad idea as far as I am concerned. 

Pika sunning on the rocks.  These little guys are so shy, they are heard but not often seen.  

 Gorgeous fall colors along the open trail section

 Rock scree just before the pass

 Just to prove I was really there, the US Geological survey marker at the Pass

 Views from our lunch spot at the pass

Although Bob says he had no doubts I could do this, I really didn't think I could.  However, as you can see from the picture above, I did do it.  It was a 53 people no dog day, which would be rare except no dogs are allowed on this trail.  The views are splendid from every stopping place along the way beginning right at the trail head parking lot.  The main drawback is the 13 miles of very rough, gravel/dirt road approach to the trail head.  The washboard surface in several places was teeth rattling and jarring, the worst we have encountered ever.