Day One: Cascade Pass to Cottonwood Camp

Day One: Cascade Pass to Cottonwood Camp

Click on the small pictures to see larger ones.

Whew! Long way! The hike up to Cascade Pass was lovely, even though it was mostly uphill. We counted off the switchbacks in all the foreign languages that we knew: French, Swedish, German, Spanish, and Japanese. It helped pass the time - there were 34 switchbacks altogether. Lin, Liz, and I were astonished at how much the glaciers had shrunk since we last hiked up to this pass in August, 2004. They were markedly smaller, and we commented on why we thought that was. We hoped to see a bear on the trail, or perhaps some mountain goats but, alas, it was not to be. Maybe next time! The traffic on the trail was light as it was a weekday. Nevertheless, the Interpreter at the Pass asked to see our backcountry camping permit. We didn't have one because the rangers at the station in Marblemount said we didn't need one. We were not planning to use the National Park campground at Cottonwood, but rather had made arrangements to use the base camp owned by the Stehekin Lodge folks.

Eva and I making
sure we are
counting switchbacks
correctly.
Surrounded by
glaciers
Beautiful!
Today's Task: Hike!
Don't fall off!

We had lunch at the Pass, nearly 5400 feet. Then we started our descent into the valley. I'd never been on this part of the trail before so I was quite excited. All around us was a lovely alpine meadow and glaciers nearly touching the sky. The birds and flowers were terrific, and so were the ripe berries along the way! We stopped a lot to pick them. They would taste delicious in our oatmeal the next morning.

long rock field
the other side
of Cascade Pass
chilly willy
camp is somewhere
in that valley
YUM!!

We filtered water and had a snack along the way at Doubtful Falls. It looks like the water runs pretty fast through it on a typical day so we were relieved that it was easy to cross. We saw a cool snake as we arrived, but he didn't hang around very long. I used my new Steri-Pen to sterilize water instead of pumping it through a filter or using tablets. It uses a UV light to scramble the DNA of anything alive in the water so it cannot reproduce. This prevents them from breeding colonies inside you. My co-hikers were sceptical at first, but by the second day, they loved it. It takes 90 seconds to purify 32 oz of water. A lot faster than pumping...but the catch is that it only works on relatively clear, sediment-free, water. No shortage of that in the mountains!

Sign at the top
of Cascade Pass
entering the
National Park
Loving the view
a hasty retreat
Mountain ash

Finally, we arrived at Cottonwood Camp. The 8.9-mile hike took us just less than 9 hours, including our stops for breaks, snacks, berries, and photos. Not bad timing! We had plenty of daylight left to explore the campground. The tent was terrific, with cots, sleeping bags, liners, blankets, pillows (!!) and even a wood stove if we got cold. We didn't get cold, though, as the night was fairly temperate. I had brought pasta sauce, Eva brought pasta, and Lin brought wine, cheese and bread. Even though the camp was well-supplied with food, we got by on our own provisions. I sterilized some more water for cooking (and made friends with Jeff, a lone camper whose peace and quiet was destroyed by our presence, I'm sure) and we had a lovely meal at the picnic table by the river. We were a little bit confused by the axe in the Ladies' Outhouse, but decided it was better there than anywhere else. After all, one never knows. We slept just fine, and were anxious to be on the trail the next day when we would hike about 14 miles to the Lodge.

Cottonwood Camp
Footbridge over a
rushing creek
Lizzie Borden slept
here?
Great view for
breakfast

Go to Day Two -->

page maintained by Cheryl


Eva and I making sure we are counting switchbacks correctly.	Surrounded by glaciers	Beautiful!	Today's Task: Hike!	Don't fall off!

We had lunch at the Pass, nearly 5400 feet. Then we started our descent into the valley. I'd never been on this part of the trail before so I was quite excited. All around us was a lovely alpine meadow and glaciers nearly touching the sky. The birds and flowers were terrific, and so were the ripe berries along the way! We stopped a lot to pick them. They would taste delicious in our oatmeal the next morning.

long rock field	the other side of Cascade Pass	chilly willy	camp is somewhere in that valley	YUM!!

We filtered water and had a snack along the way at Doubtful Falls. It looks like the water runs pretty fast through it on a typical day so we were relieved that it was easy to cross. We saw a cool snake as we arrived, but he didn't hang around very long. I used my new Steri-Pen to sterilize water instead of pumping it through a filter or using tablets. It uses a UV light to scramble the DNA of anything alive in the water so it cannot reproduce. This prevents them from breeding colonies inside you. My co-hikers were sceptical at first, but by the second day, they loved it. It takes 90 seconds to purify 32 oz of water. A lot faster than pumping...but the catch is that it only works on relatively clear, sediment-free, water. No shortage of that in the mountains!

Sign at the top of Cascade Pass	entering the National Park	Loving the view	a hasty retreat	Mountain ash

Finally, we arrived at Cottonwood Camp. The 8.9-mile hike took us just less than 9 hours, including our stops for breaks, snacks, berries, and photos. Not bad timing! We had plenty of daylight left to explore the campground. The tent was terrific, with cots, sleeping bags, liners, blankets, pillows (!!) and even a wood stove if we got cold. We didn't get cold, though, as the night was fairly temperate. I had brought pasta sauce, Eva brought pasta, and Lin brought wine, cheese and bread. Even though the camp was well-supplied with food, we got by on our own provisions. I sterilized some more water for cooking (and made friends with Jeff, a lone camper whose peace and quiet was destroyed by our presence, I'm sure) and we had a lovely meal at the picnic table by the river. We were a little bit confused by the axe in the Ladies' Outhouse, but decided it was better there than anywhere else. After all, one never knows. We slept just fine, and were anxious to be on the trail the next day when we would hike about 14 miles to the Lodge.

Cottonwood Camp	Footbridge over a rushing creek	Lizzie Borden slept here?	Great view for breakfast