Mileage: 4.4 miles RT
Elevation Gain/Highest: 500 ft/2423ft
Map Green Trails Monte Cristo No. 143
Favorite Eats After Hike: Grilla Bites, Route 2 Taproom and Grazing Place, River House Cafe, Espresso Chalet, 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.
Hike Details:
Barclay Lake is a family friendly spot up from Baring, WA perfect for an afternoon stroll or first overnight with a young one. Fun log bridges to cross and a sandy beach below towering Baring Mountain offers a little bit of adventure for everyone. There are several campsites and two pit toilets around the lake. Some more adventurous folks will use this as a back route to Eagle Lake but route-finding and scrambling are required.
My Hikes:
1/1/2024
This trail was closed from September, 2022 to November, 2023 due to the Bolt Creek Fire. I have a goal to get back to some of these hikes I haven’t done in awhile and Barclay made the perfect New Year’s Day outing. I did get up early so I could start hiking by 7:30am as this trail has really increased in popularity since I started hiking it years ago.
I had the trail and about an hour at the lake to myself but I passed about 50 hikers and 15 dogs on the way back to my car. It was interesting to see how the fire has impacted this area and I imagine it will continue to do so for years to come as dead trees fall.
I also wanted to scout to see how things looked for another attempt at Eagle Lake. I made some edits down below for those of you who like the off-trail stuff.
12/11/2015
The road had its usual potholes and some new ruts running down the sides from the recent storms, along with a few minor slides down onto the road but there was a small Toyota sedan in the parking lot so it must be good for most vehicles.
The trail from the parking lot to the bridge had about 5-6 downed trees and root balls that had dislodged sections of trail but nothing that couldn’t be navigated over or under without straying from the trail. It looks like most of the damage is from 11/18 because there were boot paths around a good portion of the trees from folks not practicing Leave No Trace and going well around each obstacle. I always love a hike with a full body workout; lots of opportunity for squats, planks, presses and crawls.
From the bridge (which looks like it took a hit on one end) to the lake the trees across the trail increase, more root balls dangling and a major rock washout right before you get to the lake. I passed two hikers on their way out who asked me if I was heading to Barclay Lake or to the parking lot. They had disoriented themselves going around trees on the trail, I guess.
There was no ice on the lake and Baring had a light dusting of snow. Starting to my way around the lake, I stopped a short ways in because it was clear the trail was covered by a forest pick-up-sticks game and it would take me longer than I wanted to to make it up the side trail towards Eagle Lake. I noticed the first toilet sign, so I went to see if it had survived and it had. There were enough trees to make this an off trail experience but the box was easy to locate if you follow the brightly colored trail tape. I saw 3 other folks on my way out.
The trip report below was a hike and scramble to Eagle Lake from Barclay Lake. More straightforward hikes to Barclay rest above and below this…
Mileage: 6.5 miles RT
Elevation Gain/Highest: 1900ft/3800ft
5/2015
Editor’s note on 1/1/2024: the toilet sign is no longer there but you can see notches in the log and flagging on the left. I noticed on GAIA the map has a trail starting somewhere near the middle of the lake but as far as I could tell, that does not exist. Here are some current pictures:
Editor’s note: if you are following the comments below, you know I hoped to rehike this in 2020. Well, that didn’t happen so I spent a little time going over this description again knowing what I know having taken a scrambling course with the Mountaineers (2017). Since it has been almost 6 years, you can expect both overgrowth and a more noticeable boot path in places.
It took me 2 attempts to finally make it up to Eagle Lake from Barclay Lake and I can’t say it was pretty at all. As in, my attempts were not pretty. I am writing this report awhile after having hiked it, so I might as well write it to you rather than spend TOO much time describing what I did. I did go when there was still snow at the higher elevation which did not help at all. Not that I imagine there is a trail to follow anyway. I pulled my map and compass out MULTIPLE times. However, I was much more successful on the way down.
Hiking to Barclay is a no brainer. Flat and easy. As you start to make you way along the trail at Barclay Lake, continue until the trail leaves the shoreline. There is a horseshoe bend in the trail to the left and you will see a sign for a second toilet (you passed one near the outlet for the lake). You can see the boot path for Eagle when you stand right in front of the toilet sign.
The boot path is on the left as you come around that bend. From here, you will be making your way almost straight up. There is no official trail, just MANY boot paths and pieces of flagging. Expect to be clinging to the side of slope on trees. My advice is to stay as close to the creek as possible. It does flow from Stone Lake, the direction you want to be heading in. However, most people including myself, end up somewhere near here:
Once out of the woods, you come to a talus field. There should be some cairns but you are going to be moving to the right and up here. You will see the boulders from the talus going up on your left and a “trail” to the right to what looks like it might be a saddle.
Go for the saddle furthest to the right. You will cross a creek. It will be tempting to cut up early like I did but in looking at the map there is probably another saddle just a little further to the right where Stone Lake drains. My route worked but there was a lot of clinging to trees on the steep slope and I leveled out in between Stone Lake and Eagle Lake. There is a talus field to the left of the that I did end up coming down but if you read the comments below, it sounds much more overgrown now.
You will come out onto what could either be a meadow or tarn depending on the time of year, follow it to the left. Yep, wet feet. It won’t be long and you should come out to the back of the cabin at Eagle Lake.
On the way back, I skipped most of the last part and just came down the talus field from the top. Wahoo! I’m not sure I would recommend it as tempting as it might be not to go back via Stone Lake.
In summary, understand there really is no trail and route finding is necessary. If you keep Baring to your back going up and in front of you going down, you should be able to make it. Descriptions are in the pictures. Good luck!
9/12/2014
Headed out to Barclay Lake after work on Friday with my friend, Kristin to enjoy some nature. I even talked her into attempting a scramble up to Eagle Lake but we only got to the talus before deciding we didn’t have enough daylight to be safe.
Directions: From Monroe, head east on US-2 to the town of Baring. Near milepost 41 and across from a convenience store, turn left (north) onto 635th Place NE. Cross the railroad tracks and continue 0.3 miles. Reach a junction and keep left on 635th Place NE for 0.1 mile. The road becomes FR-6024; continue 3.9 miles to the trailhead. Watch for potholes. There is a privy at the trailhead and parking for about 20 cars. The privy closes in winter and there is no garbage service so plan accordingly.
For more hikes along HWY 2. click HERE.
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