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August 6, 1998

North Cascades high-country trek sure to be uplifting

By KAREN SYKES [Bio]
SPECIAL TO THE POST-INTELLIGENCER

Photo 
What began as an ill-fated climb of Mount Baker turned out to be one of the most pleasant days I've ever spent in the mountains.

We did get off to a bad start. I'd been jilted the night before by a boyfriend and drove to the town of Glacier through tears to meet faithful friends, who cheered me up.

We started our climb of Mount Baker, but despite good weather it was not meant to be. After getting a late start and encountering a glacier that supported us like a bowl of Jell-O, we decided to turn back after I fell into a crevasse up to my shoulders. I was easily plucked out, but I usually have a better time hiking than I do falling into crevasses.

In an attempt to salvage what was left of our holiday, the late Harry Kelsey suggested we camp near Washington Pass and go hiking. Such was my introduction to Cutthroat Pass.

We hiked from Rainy Pass to Cutthroat Pass, where we dawdled most of the afternoon. We never ran out of scenery, and words alone cannot come close to describing the grandeur of this high mountain scenery. Even a camera cannot capture the spirit of this place, though it's virtually impossible to take a bad picture when you're in this kind of heaven.

Cutthroat Peak towers above the pass at 8,050 feet, a rocky peak on the divide between Rainy and Washington passes. It is not an easy climb. To the east you'll see Silver Star, Liberty Bell and farther away to the southwest, Dome peak dressed in glittering glaciers.

There are plenty of other enticements. Take a one-mile side trip to the Pacific Crest Trail to a viewpoint above Granite Pass, where you will find more views of peaks than you can shake a camera at, though this portion of the trail is sometimes blocked by snow until later in the summer.

If you can arrange it, plan a one-way hike -- leave a car at the Rainy Pass or Cutthroat Creek trailhead and hike one way. You can't go wrong. And it's the best place I ever found to mend a broken heart.

If you approach Cutthroat Pass from Cutthroat Creek, you have additional options. Hike an easy mile for a side trip to Cutthroat Lake before climbing to the pass or, if you'd like a mellow outing, make Cutthroat Lake your destination. It's ideal for a short hike, a beginner's backpack or a family picnic, since it's only three miles round trip.

The first time I saw Cutthroat Lake was on a cold October day and the lake was polished green glass, already frozen. The larches had turned golden and blazed beneath a sky so blue it almost shouted.

Heather lines the lakeshore and is susceptible to damage; camping is forbidden within a quarter-mile of the shoreline. Anglers may find trout, and photographers will enjoy the larches, deciduous conifers that love the cold. The upper branches leaf out even when the base of the tree is still under snow. In June the needles are bright green and by late September they will turn golden.

Map Getting there
On Interstate 5 north of Mount Vernon turn east at Exit 230 onto North Cascades Scenic Highway 20 and continue to Marblemount. From Marblemount continue on North Cascades Highway 20 over Washington Pass and drive another five miles to Cutthroat Creek Road. Turn right on paved Cutthroat Creek Road (Spur Road 400) and drive 1-1/2 miles to the trailhead and road end.

If you are coming from the west, it's about 25 miles from Winthrop, 1-1/2 miles beyond Lone Fir Campground.

If you are beginning your hike at Rainy Pass, drive North Cascades Highway to the Rainy Pass picnic area, 51 miles east of Marblemount. The trailhead (Pacific Crest Trail) begins directly across the highway from the picnic area.

Trail detail
The trail begins at an elevation of 4,500 feet and crosses Cutthroat Creek (as of early July the bridge was out, but the creek can be crossed without difficulty) and climbs through forest of lodgepole pine and Douglas fir to a trail junction, about nine-tenths of a mile. A spur trail leads to the lake. A little beyond the junction, the main trail splits. The left forks leads to the north shore of the lake, which is framed by mountain hemlock and subalpine larch. The main trail goes uphill to the right, crosses a coupleof streams and begins to climbout of the valley. At about 2-1/2miles, the trail enters meadows andcampsites that are usually lonesome, though surface water is not available from midsummer on. Earlier in the year you can depend on snowmelt.

From the meadows the forest changes to mountain hemlock and subalpine fir before the trail wanders through rock gardens and granite slabs mixed with heather and blueberry. The trail rounds a bowl before it reaches Cutthroat Pass at six miles, 6,800 feet.

If you are hiking one way from Cutthroat Creek, take the Pacific Crest Trail from Cutthroat Pass and descend five miles to Rainy Pass. The first two miles of trail are open and in meadows before the trail descends Porcupine Creek and forest to Rainy Pass at 4,840 feet. There are several available campsites along the way.

Trail data
Cutthroat Creek to Cutthroat Pass is 12 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 2,300 feet. Rainy Pass to Cutthroat Pass is 10 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 2,000 feet. One way from Rainy Pass to Cutthroat Road end is 10 1/2 miles with an elevation gain of 2,000 feet. Cutthroat Lake from Cutthroat Road end is 2.8 miles round trip, with an elevation gain of 410 feet. The map you will need is Green Trails No. 50, Washington Pass. For additional information refer to "Hiking the North Cascades" by Erik Molvar (Falcon Publishing, 226 pages, $14.95). For current trail conditions, call the Methow Valley Ranger District at 509-997-2131 or North Cascades Visitor Center at 206-386-4495.

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