Backpacker – September 2019

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019
64 BACKPACKER.COM

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DAYHIKE

HUCKLEBERRY

MOUNTAIN

Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie

National Forest

It ’s ra re to sta r t a hike in the

North Cascades from the valley

bottom—most trailheads use log-

ging roads that climb higher. Not

so Huckleberry Mountain, which

packs 4,850 feet of elevation gain in

6.2 miles (one-way). Such a climb

deters the crowds seen at nea rby

Green Mountain and offers a private

viewing of peaks bristling the east-

ern horizon. Trailhead Huckleberry

Mountain (48.2692, -121.3494) 97

miles northeast of Seattle Season

Summer to early fall Permit None

Info http://www.fs.usda.gov/mbs

OVERNIGHT

CRYSTAL LAKE AND

CIRCLE PEAK

Glacier Peak Wilderness

A moderate 3.9 miles leads to camp-

sites at Crystal Lake, nestled in a

cirque. Rise early, cross the outlet

stream, and take the overgrown

trail 4 miles up the ridge to 5,983-

foot Circle Pea k where you’ll have

the view of Sloan Peak, Mt. Pugh,

and White Chuck all to yourself.

Trailhead Mountain Meadow

(48.1895, -121.3709) 92 miles north-

east of Seattle Season Summer to

early fall Permit Self-register at

trailhead Info bit.do/GPeakWild

Seattle

MULTIDAY

COWLITZ LOOP

William O. Douglas Wilderness

Few hiker magnets pull harder than

Mt. Rainier, but this area on its east-

ern f lank sees a fraction of the visi-

tors. Cruise through it on a 20-mile

loop that links the Pacific Crest,

Twin Sisters, and Cowlitz Trails.

Start from the Dog Lake trailhead

and follow the Dark Meadows Trail

to connect with the Pacific Crest

Trail. Hike 7.4 miles to Dumbbell

La ke a nd your choice of shore-

line ca mpsites. Nex t day, mea nder

through a mosaic of ponds and pass

the long shoulder of Fryingpan

Mountain to a campsite by Twin

Sisters Lake, 6.2 miles away and,

unlike many other lakes in the area,

deep enough for a swim.

On the third day, take the Tumac

Trail up and over 6,286-foot Mt.

Tumac, an extinct volcanic cinder

cone, for a view of Cascade titans:

Mt. Rainier, Mt. Adams, and Goat

Rocks—all of which are likely more

crowded. Continue down to Cowlitz

Pass and follow it 7.9 miles back to

Dog Lake.

Trailhead Dog Lake (46.6549,

-121.3612) 115 miles southeast of

Seattle Season Summer and fall

Permit Free; self-issue at the trail-

head Info http://www.fs.usda.gov/rec-

area/okawen

Craig Romano

GUIDEBOOK AUTHOR

SOME PLACES ARE so popular

that hikers can’t seem to imagine

going anywhere else. But Craig

Romano likes nothing more than

helping people break out of their

ruts. Over 16 years, he’s written

more than 20 guidebooks for

hiking in Washington State. He’s

put feet on 25,000 trail miles

looking for the next best place.

But over those years, the big-

gest change he’s seen? Us.

“There seems to be more

people hitting the trails than ever

before,” he says. That’s great,

but it concentrates impact in

those popular spots. Romano’s

solution: Welcome new hikers

and make it easy for them to

spread out.

Romano has been doing this

long enough to hope that these

new enthusiasts will become,

like the generations before them,

smarter users and better stew-

ards. But only if the places aren’t

destroyed first. That’s why he

makes it his goal to expand the

list of great hiking options, which

helps disperse the crowds,

reducing the environmental

impacts of over-use on loved-to-

death places, and gives solitude-

seekers more options to find

what they need.

The Cowlitz Trail

shares miles—

and views of Mt.

Rainier—with

the Wonderland

Tra i l.

YO

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