3-4 days seems to be the go-to length of travel for me these days..I wonder if I am now considered a 'weekend warrior'? Haha! It's always such fun travelling with Karen - but this time we added 3 friends to the mix and flew up to Washington for 3 days for major fun. Thanks to Keith again for planning an awesome trip once again :) And THANK YOU KEITH AND ANDREW for being such men and driving the entireeeeeee time!
Day 1: Gifford Pinchot Natl Forest
We landed in Seattle the night before and the next morning drove 4 hours south to Falls Creek Falls. Seattle was going through a heatwave (their version of a heatwave was 85 degrees, meanwhile LA was 103) so it was a bit of a warm hike- but enjoyable none-the-less! I was determined to make up for my Hawaii hike so I tried super hard not to lag. We spent a couple hours at the falls just taking photos and overall enjoying the water.
Just as the sun was setting, we arrived at our second location: Panther Creek Falls. From there, it was a mad scramble to get to the bottom of the falls before all light was lost. I was so happy and proud of Karen and Tina for getting down there! It was definitely a bit of rock scrambling in the dark - but they pushed forward and ultimately conquered that shit! :D
On our way home, we saw mountain fires across the lake. We pulled over and watched as the fire got bigger and bigger and only later found out that this was the Eagle Creek Fire. I was so sad to see so many fires in Oregon and Washington. The eagle creek fire was supposedly started by a teenager who was playing with fireworks? Ahh.. I wish that people would be more careful in nature. I remember the really large Big Sur Fire last year (still closed off to the public now) was started by an illegal campfire. It's a reminder that even though we always think we can be an exception to the rule, there is a reason why rules exist.
Day 2: Northern Cascades National Park (Winchester Mountain / Twin Lakes)
Day 2, we drove north 3 hours (almost the canadian border) to explore the Cascades. It was some of the group's first time backpacking - always exciting. For those in the Seattle area who want to rent equipment or explore some mountaineering classes, I highly suggest looking into Kaf Adventures. We had a great talk with Reed there who was extremely knowledgeable about anything mountain-related and has really reasonable rental prices.
It was a grueling drive up to Twin Lakes - switchbacks, off road, tons of pot hole, one lane, you'll definitely need a high clearance car! Once you reach Twin Lakes, there are a couple of dedicated camping sites. The lakes were definitely poppin' and there was a lot of families out on the lake. From the parking lot, it's about 1.7 miles up the mountain to Winchester Mountain Lookout at the very top. You can see a tiny bit of the lookout flag from the parking lot (photo below). I would suggest hiking this trail very early in the morning or later in the afternoon to avoid harsh sun exposure. Overall, the hike itself was really pleasant and had great views as you kept climbing upwards. There was even an ice field adjacent to the trail (closer to the top) where we explored for a bit.
The Mountain Lookout is first-come, first-serve and was unfortunately already taken. But there were several groups camped out at the grassy fields next to it. We set up camp - and took in the views! It was PERFECT camping weather - not too cold, and not windy. I got to test out my new MSR Tent (thanks to my lovely friends who surprised me with it on my birthday! I AM NOW UNSTOPPABLE MWAHAHA) and we slept without the rainfly :) Good times were had watching sunset and talking/ drinking the night away.
Day 3: Freeway Park
The next morning, we enjoyed some peanut butter sandwiches and made an early descent down to the car and made the long drive back to Seattle and explored Freeway Park in Downtown Seattle. Very cool..