Cutthroat Pass

Had a great day Saturday checking out Cutthroat Pass on Saturday with friend Rich.  Fall is just beginning to show signs at the higher altitudes, with some berry bushes turning red and a few larches just starting to show their fall gold.  We had an outstanding day, with 80 degree weather and clear blue skies.

Rich ran the Enchantments the day before, and then met up with me at Rainy Pass off Highway 20 early Saturday morning.  There, we met Pacific Crest Trail hiker "Trek", trying to hitch a ride to Mazama.  We weren't in a hurry to start, and so we gave him the lift, went for coffee, and bought some very tasty sandwiches for later on at the Mazama Store.  We ran into many other PCT hikers during the day, happy to be near the end. I always marvel at that effort.

We hiked the same route that is the Cutthroat Classic run.  Since I always run this route, it was nice to   spend more time exploring, especially at the top of the pass.

There are a number of side trails up there, for camping and for climbing routes.  We climbed above both sides of the Pass, including a relatively easy scramble to a notch at about 7100 feet, which gave us sweeping views of the PCT going north, Tower Mountain, and the dry country of the Pasayten.

In all, we spent at least an hour and a half exploring the Pass.  The quiet air and steady breeze has a way of pushing the cares of the week aside.

We jogged down the backside, which is about 5.5 miles. A short stop at Cutthroat Lake--a pleasant lake with a large amount of eelgrass (or something akin) growing bright green on one side.

I saw a bluebird on the way down. Bluebirds are mostly on the east side of the Cascades, and while I haven't tried too hard, I haven't seen one in a few years. Made me smile.

There were plenty of small patches of red at or around 7000 feet. It looks like in two weeks or so the autumn colors will be in full force in the North Cascades.

Sahale Arm In September

Saturday snuck up on me this weekend, fast, after having been gone for part of last week. There are so many great places to go run and hike in the North Cascades, but I didn't make Saturday plans until Friday night.  Rather than come up with something new, I cannonballed up to Sahale Arm and checked out the fall colors.

You just can't go wrong with Sahale Arm.  It is one of the prettiest trails you'll ever hit. No exaggeration. An out and back, going up to 7800 feet, it can take you through several microclimates, which was the case on Saturday. The trail up to Cascade Pass was covered in clouds. Sort of cold.  Clouds then were streaming over the pass, like a waterfall, the wind blowing at a chilling clip. Only a few 100 meters higher, and the sun came out. From above, I watched the clouds pouring through.  Higher still, and a different chill set in. I spent much of the day above the clouds. Glad I brought an extra layer.

The fall colors have arrived. My friend Seth went up here a couple weeks ago--it should be interesting to compare pics.  The views of the Cascades are normally spectacular, but as one or two photos below show, there is a haze in the air now from the forest fires in Eastern Washington.

I saw a full flock of ptarmigan.  I chased a grouse down the trail for 100 yards.  No bears this time around. I once saw seven bear here on one trip.

I made it up to the Sahale Camp, 5.7 miles in, 5.7 out. Up, then down. The distance is deceiving, as this is a slower hike/run, due to the sights and pitch of the trail.  I jogged much of the way down. Listened to U2's Achtung Baby on the drive home, twice.