Hidden Lake Peaks 2010

Overview

Hidden Lake Peaks is a large granite lump rising 7,200' above sea level
and situated on the northern side of Cascade River Rd. Located on the
lower summit is the old Hidden Lake Peaks fire lookout, currently
maintained by the Friends of the Lois Webster Memorial Shelter and
operated on a 'first come first served' basis. Respect this place.
From Marblemount, follow Cascade River Rd. 9.8 miles to FR 1540 and turn
left. Follow FR 1540/Sibley Creek Rd. 5.2 miles to the trailhead and
please; don't park in the turnaround beyond the parking lot. Ascend
wooded slopes for a mile before crossing lower Sibley Creek (also a fault
line) and emerging into lush meadows ascended by moderate switchbacks. At
2.3 miles the trail crosses upper Sibley Creek and mellows out as a
rapid shift from lush meadows and Gneiss like rock to heather and
granite take place. From here the trail goes south for 2 mile switchbacking before you end up on the final slope leading to the notch between the two peaks and overlooking Hidden Lake. From the notch ascend easy granite slabs trending NE towards the 'true' summit or follow the trail south then west one tenth of a mile to reach the old fire lookout.

Ascent

I had originally planned to stay the night on this trip however the day
before I was to leave work asked me to come in on a day off. Not allowing
that to ruin a perfectly salvagable day trip I was pulling up to the trailhead
at 12:30 pm and the weather was questionable, there had been moderate
thunder showers the night before and more were forecasted for later in the
day. In twenty minutes I was starting up the meadow and not long after that
I passed the first half of a father-son combo, he had a pretty nice haul and was taking it easy informing me I may see his son at the summit. Reaching the upper crossing of Sibley Creek I could tell the weather was still deciding when to let loose, beyond here a few snow crossings were reached usually with water flowing underneath and ready for collapse, a common sight in August. Right before I got to the 'middle' switchbacks a large patch of snow was crossed, it had melted in such a fashion that it was on the first switchback of a series leading to the upper slope and notch and of course there was a dirty boot path walking right past it. It was here I stumbled across the other half of the combo, he said he was unsure on which way to go having just gotten back from the other end of the dirty boot track. Pausing for a moment I scoured my mind, I had been here once before (the previous year) and knew switchbacks were coming up, looking over my shoulder was the trail continuing up, clear as day. 2:10 pm and I was passing through the notch, I could see showers in the Cascade Pass area as I ascended the final rocky switchbacks to the lookout.

Summits

I rested my pack out front of the hut on large granite slabs, a family was
inside making some food and a man emerged. He told me that they had reached the trailhead the night before making it to the lookout right before the rain and lightning, he even said that a bolt may have struck the hut and if not probably only missed by a few feet. Instantly jealous for I have always wanted to experience 'Saint Elmo's Fire' I felt a raindrop on my shirt. Time to move, it was starting to rain, my poncho was in the truck and I had only done one peak so far. I hustled back down to the notch and ascended the NE ridge leading to the other summit making my way over pretty easy granite slabs, I passed the 'false summit', a mere shallow rise on the ridge and noticed the temporary radio signal repeater I saw in 2009 consisting of a nice sized solar panel, 2-12 volt batteries and a water tight box were no longer there. It wasn't long before I was on the true summit marveling at the beautiful west ridge leading up to 8,868' Eldorado Peak and the nasty weather system dishing out some 'business' in the Cascade Pass area.

Descent

Sprinkling on and off it wasn't so bad as I made a direct westerly descent to a section of trail maybe half a mile below the notch and right above the 'middle' switchbacks. Moving at a good pace down the switchbacks I hear a noise that brought me to a full stop, trying to locate it I finally see a Ptarmigan with its Summer plumage. Pretty impressive self-defense mechanism it took me a full 30 seconds to actually see the bird 10' in front of me followed by another 5 seconds to notice the five chicks standing motionless around her. Reaching the bottom snow covered
switchback I happened across part one of the combo again, perfect timing I show him where the turn is and tell him where his kid was setting up camp before running back downhill to my truck in an effort to beat the rain, which I did. A great trip can only end with a perfect Calzone so I stopped in Concrete before continuing home to Mount Vernon. Over the next two weeks I would repeat this trip three more times, each with improving weather conditions and with such great scenery after only a mile of woods its hard to get 'tired' of a trail so impressive.

Images

View Hidden Lake Peaks 2010 Image Gallery - 14 Images