Alpine Lakes

I'm sure once you have your map, you'll see lots of opportunities (regardless of my 'almost loop trips').  The place has tons of trails so I'm sure you can find something.   There are just a few 'epic' loops that could be possible if there were a few strategically placed trails.  I have a bad habit of seeing cool places on a map, looking at surrounding trails, and trying to connect them...generally just gets me into trouble (a friend placed a 5 year ban on any bushwacking with me after one of these trips).

If you're gonna get a map, I highly recommend the TOPO! programs from National Geographic...I've lost many hours drawing new trips in that program, and use it for all of my adventures in the Northwest.


A couple of my 'Almost Loop Trips':

A loop through the Enchantment Lakes and around Mt. Stuart using Jack Creek and Ingalls Creek -- missing a connector trail on the east end of the loop.

There could also be a cool loop trip on the west flank of Mt. Hinman.  Go up the West Fork of the Foss River, and back down the East Fork.  There is a rather long stretch of trail missing between Big Heart Lake (West Fork) and Opal Lake (East Fork),but the territory may be able to be navigated fairly easy without trail, and it would be cool to go cross country from lake to lake.  Maybe Google Earth could provide some answers on what the territory looks like?



Once you have a map, you'll probably be able to find quite a few loop trips that don't require new trail construction! 

I just need to get a map.  Are the missing peices of the loop trails passable?  I often do some off trail travel in an attempt to connect many of those "almost loop" trails. 
I was planning on convincing some of my hiking budies from portland to meet me there, so there would likely be two vehicles for a shuttle.  However, it is nice to know about that family and I will keep that as an option. 

I haven't done any hiking in the North Washington Cascades and I know I'm missing out.  I kind of assumed I wouldn't be doing much if anything there since I moved to Coeur d' Alene, but it just recently dawned on me that I am no further, and even closer in many cases, to the North Cascades than when I lived in Portland.

I don't have any personal experience of hikes in the Alpine Lakes, other than speeding through the area on the Pacific Crest Trail trying to get out of the rain.  It was unfortunate, since I know the area is stunning.  We got a few hints of scenery, with clouds hovering, but glaciers and snowfields visible below, but most of our journey through was shrouded in clouds.  I need to go back.

I am hoping to do some more hiking in the Cascades north of I-90 this year however, so I thought I would look for some potential hikes.  It's an interesting area, and it's probably good that there aren't more trails than there already are (with it's proximity to Seattle, they would all likely be overrun anyways), but I keep finding 'almost loop trips', where there is just a missing piece that would allow for a cool trip.  If I find any interesting options, I'll pass it along.

As far as shuttles, there is a family that lives in Skykomish that shuttles PCT hikers to and from the trailhead (on Highway 2), lets them stay at their house, etc...  They seemed nice, we didn't stay with them, but they shuttled us back and forth.  I'm not sure, but they may be open to shuttling you around if need be, if interested I can probably dig up their info.