Editor’s note: it is the month of December and for many bloggers it is the season of “Blogmas”. It is a marathon of posting every day for the month of December, often with a holiday theme. For some crazy reason I have dived into this as motivation to clear out some drafts and repost some posts from the last 6 years with a refresh. And maybe a few new stories! This was a time I was lucky to get up to Mount Pilchuck before the forest road gate closed but there was plenty of snow. With a little motivation, I was able to sneak in nearby Heather Lake as well. Time has flown, as of this writing I have now 414 trip reports on WTA.
In early November, I has looking at my trip report total over at Washington Trails Association and realized I was about 30 trips shy of getting my “200” badge. They give one for 5, 10, 15, 25, 50, 100 and then it is a whole other 100 to get it up to 200. I decided that I really wanted that 200 and it would be great motivation to try and get it by the end of the year. And it has been, I’m up to 197 now!
The weather last Friday was not supposed to be the great but Thursday night it improved and I decided I would go and do an easy hike up the Mountain Loop Highway. Mount Pilchuck is the quintessential Pacific Northwest hike: not too long, great views and a lookout at the top. I can even see my house from there! And because so many people hike it, it is best saved for a weekday hike.
Plus, because so many ill-prepared people hike it during the winter, they close the gate once the snow comes and barricade the road with boulders, adding about 9 more miles to the trip. Too many cars in ditches and hikers lost of the side of the mountain. No, really. Everyone thinks if you can hike it during the summer, you can hike it just as easy during the winter, too. Not this one.
So, I figured I better get up there before they close the gate. The last three times I have hiked it have been during the winter months, the last one on Thankgiving morning. And somewhere in the back of my mind, I was thinking about my trip report count. This same road also holds the trailhead for Heather Lake, another short and popular hike to a gorgeous body of water nestled in the ridge below Mount Pilchuck. What if I got up early enough and DID BOTH?
I don’t know about you but when the temps are in the 20s, it is a bear to get out of bed. Although a sunrise hike would have been nice, I was lucky enough to get myself out the door and to the trailhead for Pilchuck by 8:30am. There were 4 other cars, which for Pilchuck is nothing. Heather Lake had none and I was tempted with the thought of having the lake all to myself but opted for Pilchuck which I knew was better for the beginning sun and would fill up faster.
If you have visited Mount Pilchuck in the winter months, you know that traction devices are mandatory. The trail has very poor drainage which means that water runs down the trail all the time. And when it is cold, that means a sheet of ice to navigate.
Today was no exception. Some folks will take their chances and try and walk around on the edges but unfortunately this erodes the trail and isn’t good practice. And from what I could see, there was very little trail not covered with ice. I was so glad to have my microspikes, I have no desire to have a repeat shoulder injury or worse.
It took my about 2 hours to get to the top and there were nothing but views once I was above the treeline. I stayed long enough to eat a snack and bask in the day’s sunshine and I as heading back down to the car. I had another trail to hike!
The Heather Lake trailhead had about 8 cars at 12:45pm and as I headed up most of those hikers were heading back down.
The trail was not near as icy as Pilchuck and I left my traction in my pack. I did slip a few times but with less ice my poles worked great at keeping me upright. It was after 1pm at this point and I knew I only had about 2 more hours of good sunlight before.
I took time to admire the crazy nurse logs on the old growth stumps along this trail!
Once at the lake, I did a quick and chilly wrap around on the snow covered boardwalk and was quickly heading back down to my car with enough daylight that I didn’t have to don my headlamp.
I was feeling pretty proud of myself that with what little hours we have for hiking as we head towards solstice this month that I was able to enjoy both hikes with my late start!
3 more trip reports to go…I can do this!
For more information and videos about my Mount Pilchuck visit you can head here and for Heather Lake you can visit here. If you want to learn more about other hikes in the area, you can check out my Mountain Loop Highway page! And in case I was too subtle about trying to do both of these hikes in one day, make sure you have plenty of daylight. The total is 10.5 miles plus your drive time and current conditions (AKA more snow) are important to know!
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