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#1,028
#1,028
Took some pictures from a stop between Ponte Verde and St. Augustine while driving back from Jacksonville down the A1A today. First two are from balcony of hotel.
 

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#1,032
#1,032
Bump! It's summer!

I scored coveted permits and took my dad on a long weekend backpacking trip via the Enchantment Lakes traverse. It's 20 miles through some spicy and stunning terrain near Leavenworth, WA. He did great!

1.jpgColchuck Lake, where we spent the first night, and Aasgard Pass, which we climbed day 2

2.JPEGIt got stormy on the way up and we maybe should have turned around, but we made it!

3.JPEGThe upper core, like another planet

4.jpgPerfection Lake and Prusik Peak

5.JPEGThe best backcountry crapper view I've ever had. Overlooking Leprechaun Lake

6.JPEGMorning goat

7.JPEGSprite Lake

8.JPEG
Descending to Snow Lakes
 
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#1,033
#1,033
BartW said:
Bump! It's summer!

I scored coveted permits and took my dad on a long weekend backpacking trip via the Enchantment Lakes traverse. It's 20 miles through some spicy and stunning terrain near Leavenworth, WA. He did great!

View attachment 559672Colchuck Lake, where we spent the first night, and Aasgard Pass, which we climbed day 2

View attachment 559673It got stormy on the way up and we maybe should have turned around, but we made it!

View attachment 559674The upper core, like another planet

View attachment 559675Perfection Lake and Prusik Peak

View attachment 559676The best backcountry crapper view I've ever had. Overlooking Leprechaun Lake

View attachment 559677Morning goat

View attachment 559678Sprite Lake

View attachment 559679
Descending to Snow Lakes
Click to expand...

Love the crapper view. Best one I have had is on the lower saddle of the Grand Teton.
 
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#1,034
#1,034
BartW said:
Bump! It's summer!

I scored coveted permits and took my dad on a long weekend backpacking trip via the Enchantment Lakes traverse. It's 20 miles through some spicy and stunning terrain near Leavenworth, WA. He did great!

View attachment 559672Colchuck Lake, where we spent the first night, and Aasgard Pass, which we climbed day 2

View attachment 559673It got stormy on the way up and we maybe should have turned around, but we made it!

View attachment 559674The upper core, like another planet

View attachment 559675Perfection Lake and Prusik Peak

View attachment 559676The best backcountry crapper view I've ever had. Overlooking Leprechaun Lake

View attachment 559677Morning goat

View attachment 559678Sprite Lake

View attachment 559679
Descending to Snow Lakes
Click to expand...
Can you post some information on where to get the permits and your actual route? I do a lot of backpacking and we are planning a trip out to Olympia.
Great pictures and that crapper was either in Backpacker or Outside magazine about 25 years ago.
 
#1,035
#1,035
UT_Dutchman said:
Can you post some information on where to get the permits and your actual route? I do a lot of backpacking and we are planning a trip out to Olympia.
Great pictures and that crapper was either in Backpacker or Outside magazine about 25 years ago.
Click to expand...
Hoi fellow Hollander! I’m happy to share my tips. What time of year are you coming? There’s lots of great backpacking with less restrictive or no permit system that I can suggest too. Here is info on the Enchantments hike and permits.

We started our journey at the Lake Stuart trailhead and made it a one-way trip to the Snow Lakes trailhead. This requires coordinating with a second car or shuttle, hitchhiking between trailheads, or an extra 8 mile road walk. I’ve also stashed bikes at the Lake Stuart TH and drove back to start at Snow Lakes, so we could coast the 8 miles back to the car after hiking one way from the Snow Lakes side to Lake Stuart TH. To reach the top of Aasgard Pass and the upper Enchantments from the Lake Stuart TH is about 6 miles and 4500’ elevation gain, including a pretty rough 2000’ in ¾ mile climbing the pass itself. From the Snow Lakes side it’s a total of 6500’ gain but more mileage (10 miles and 5500’ before you’re up in the core). Still scrambly sections coming from Snow but not as rough as Aasgard with a pack. You can also hike this as an out-and-back from either trailhead. Or if you’re fit you can get an early start and run/hike it all in a day with a light pack. If you’re day-hiking you only need to fill out a free self-issued permit at the trailhead. The competitive permits are only for overnight camping (for now anyway...).

For the Enchantments the primary way to get camping permits is through an annual lottery on recreation.gov. But it’s very competitive. Every person in your party can submit an entry though so if you have a decent sized party one of you may win the lottery for the entire group. I participate some years but have never won this lottery. I consider it a donation to the forest service.

There are also a number of permits reserved for a walk-up in-person lottery every morning at the ranger station. During covid the “walk-up” permits were released online weekly at a random time on Sundays and I got one that way. If you do try the lottery at the ranger station, I would wait at the back of the line to submit my location request last. That way you can see which zone everyone else is applying to and try to get one with less competition.

The best way to get a permit for next year (the system I finally nailed down this year) is to create an account on recreation.gov and be online April 1 7am PST looking at the available permits. All the permits that go unclaimed from the initial lottery are all released back to the system simultaneously at this time. If you’re scrolling through the dates you’ll see it suddenly go from zero availability to numerous permits. But you have to click fast – they all disappear in about a minute! Some permits may also randomly show up throughout the year as people cancel. It doesn’t hurt to check the website now and then.

Late June is about as early in the year as I’d want to camp there. Prime season is August-September. Although if the weather cooperates, roughly the second or third week of October is an absolutely magical time to make this trip as the larches turn colors (aka the larch march). It’s also right at the end of permit season so you’re more likely to find them available. From my previous trip -

IMG_3278.jpeg
 
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#1,036
#1,036
img_1219_32eff0870f27ce08d2cc7e39fe4a003a663e9778.jpeg
 
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#1,044
#1,044
BartW said:
Hoi fellow Hollander! I’m happy to share my tips. What time of year are you coming? There’s lots of great backpacking with less restrictive or no permit system that I can suggest too. Here is info on the Enchantments hike and permits.

We started our journey at the Lake Stuart trailhead and made it a one-way trip to the Snow Lakes trailhead. This requires coordinating with a second car or shuttle, hitchhiking between trailheads, or an extra 8 mile road walk. I’ve also stashed bikes at the Lake Stuart TH and drove back to start at Snow Lakes, so we could coast the 8 miles back to the car after hiking one way from the Snow Lakes side to Lake Stuart TH. To reach the top of Aasgard Pass and the upper Enchantments from the Lake Stuart TH is about 6 miles and 4500’ elevation gain, including a pretty rough 2000’ in ¾ mile climbing the pass itself. From the Snow Lakes side it’s a total of 6500’ gain but more mileage (10 miles and 5500’ before you’re up in the core). Still scrambly sections coming from Snow but not as rough as Aasgard with a pack. You can also hike this as an out-and-back from either trailhead. Or if you’re fit you can get an early start and run/hike it all in a day with a light pack. If you’re day-hiking you only need to fill out a free self-issued permit at the trailhead. The competitive permits are only for overnight camping (for now anyway...).

For the Enchantments the primary way to get camping permits is through an annual lottery on recreation.gov. But it’s very competitive. Every person in your party can submit an entry though so if you have a decent sized party one of you may win the lottery for the entire group. I participate some years but have never won this lottery. I consider it a donation to the forest service.

There are also a number of permits reserved for a walk-up in-person lottery every morning at the ranger station. During covid the “walk-up” permits were released online weekly at a random time on Sundays and I got one that way. If you do try the lottery at the ranger station, I would wait at the back of the line to submit my location request last. That way you can see which zone everyone else is applying to and try to get one with less competition.

The best way to get a permit for next year (the system I finally nailed down this year) is to create an account on recreation.gov and be online April 1 7am PST looking at the available permits. All the permits that go unclaimed from the initial lottery are all released back to the system simultaneously at this time. If you’re scrolling through the dates you’ll see it suddenly go from zero availability to numerous permits. But you have to click fast – they all disappear in about a minute! Some permits may also randomly show up throughout the year as people cancel. It doesn’t hurt to check the website now and then.

Late June is about as early in the year as I’d want to camp there. Prime season is August-September. Although if the weather cooperates, roughly the second or third week of October is an absolutely magical time to make this trip as the larches turn colors (aka the larch march). It’s also right at the end of permit season so you’re more likely to find them available. From my previous trip -

View attachment 559914
Click to expand...


The Enchantments unquestionably have some of the most impressive concentrations of subalpine larch anywhere. You might enjoy an article that I published in "Distinctly Montana": Larch Madness: Fall-Foliage Destinations in Northwestern Montana
 
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#1,046
#1,046
Thinking about getting a camper. Anyone pulled one with a minivan? My Sienna has a 3500lb tow capacity and the camper I’m looking at is 2985 lbs.
 
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