Miles: 18+ miles (to hike through)
Elevation Gain/Highest: 4500ft/7800ft
Map: Green Trails Alpine Lakes Wilderness, 209s, 209 Mount Stuart, Caltopo
Favorite Eats After An Enchantments Hike: Gustav’s, Yodelin’s Broth Company, South, Dan’s Food Market, or just Pack A Cooler. You can learn more about these places in my Must Hike Must Eat Eating Out Guide.
Find out current conditions and as always, practice Leave No Trace. Pretty please.
My hike:
8/2015
The Enchantments was a part of an annual girlfriend backpacking trip. I wasn’t doing trip reports on WTA yet and I didn’t think to do a trip report on Trail Journal’s, I pretty much just posted the amazing pictures on Facebook!
There were 8 of us who put in for permits and one of us luckily got one. In the end, only a few of the original gals could make the trip, so we ended up with some new friends (and newbie hikers) on our adventure. What an initiation. Who wouldn’t want to say their first backpacking trip was in the Enchantments! I heard things like, “This is the most beautiful place I’ve ever been to,” and “This is the best day of my life.” I think mostly because she had accomplished something she never thought she could before. Mark that off the bucket list.
I’m glad we camped two nights in the Snow Zone and day hiked into the Core and back out. This allowed for a slower hike in with a longer and more gradual elevation gain with a lot less people. Once at Snow Lake, the trail becomes more boot path like with scrambling up to the Core, which we did on the second day with day packs. I liked the introduction and we didn’t have to deal with a lot of day hikers like you do going in via Colchuck at the Stuart Lake trailhead. And these days where the number of people allowed each day to camp in the Core is limited to 24, your odds of getting a permit in other sections is greater.
I felt sorry for the people I saw lugging full packs on with all the loose and slab rock, even some rebar! I’m also glad we went midweek and avoided the forest fire smoke that came up after we hiked out. I used my hammock for the first time and loved it, even if it was a bit chilly. I would add another day so we could do more exploring on the surrounding peaks in the Core, but I’m not sure most of my group would have been up for that anyway.
The Enchantments are everything they say they are, in addition to crowds, people not following Leave No Trace and overuse. I saw people camping right on the lakeshore and folks walking on vegetation to get pictures with goats. Not to mention all the day hikers doing the entire 18+ miles in one day because they didn’t get overnight permits. I loved the trip, but there are plenty of other places in the Pacific Northwest with equal or greater beauty still left in more pristine condition and where you can have a more wilderness experience.
But, I suppose you have to visit the Enchantments at least once. You can find more detailed trail information on the Washington Trail Association website. Permits are required May 15th-October 31st. Information on permits can be found at Recreation.gov or The U.S. Forest Service, the lottery for the permit applications becomes available from February 15th to March 1st and winners to reserve permits are drawn on March 8th. Anything not snagged up during the lottery opens in April to general reservations. Some walk-up permits are available lottery style Monday-Saturday at the Leavenworth Ranger Station. I also talk in my post, So You Didn’t Get An Enchantment Permit, about other places near by just as nice without all the hassle of permits (not yet, anyway).
Directions: There are two main trailheads for this hike. From Hwy 2 as you enter Leavenworth, turn onto Icicle Creek Road from US2 , drive 4.2 miles to the Snow Lakes Trailhead. It will be on your left, privy available. For the second trailhead, drive 8.4 miles from HWY 2 and turn left onto Forest Service Road 7601. Follow the rough dirt road 3.7 miles to the Stuart Lake trailhead. Privy available and a Northwest Forest Pass is required for either trailhead (even if you have an overnight camping permit). Expect an INSANE amount of people, being blocked in by others is not a rare occurrence.
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