Our amazing state of Washington has beauty overload; but being outdoors is so much more than the seduction of the dazzling views. The wilderness heals us. Watch any episode of "Alone" and you'll see it happening...this wonderful re-connection to yourself. Your true self. It's something we all need more of.
Though I must say that this is not a backpack I would ever recommend for someone's first time. Welcome Pass is a near sadistic climb up, and if you plan on staying the night you need to carry all your water. But Adam is the sadistic type, with a punishing daily workout routine; so I knew he'd be fine.
I, on the other hand, was riding the struggle bus hard. Having done this relentless incline before as a day hike, at least I knew what to expect - which is probably the only thing that got me up it. That, and the fact Adam carried my extra water as well.
Because my friends had done a thru hike from Damfino Lakes TH to Yellow Aster Butte TH last year, I had the intel about a good camping spot just about a quarter mile east once you gain the pass. When Adam and I reached it, we had to wonder where the man we had given a quick hitch up the 1.5 forest road had jumped off from. Yep, when we told him our plans for the night, he informed us "Oh yeah, that's where I launched this morning with my para-glider." Now that's a "first time" I promise you I will never be experiencing!
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| Right out my tent door |
We kept going east after setting camp to see if we could get far enough to see the tarns at Yellow Aster. After making a snow angel and joking about a possible bear den (though we did see bear scat, so it may not have been a joke!) I started to see a spark coming back in Adam. He's had a tough row to hoe, but I think this little trip gave him some clarity and much deserved rejuvenation. What a gift the natural world is to us.
Adam promised that he is going to start making time for himself a priority, though after the seemingly never ending four miles down to his awaiting car at the Excelsior parking lot he turned to say, "I think next time I'll be staying at a campground." Ha ha, nature is for everyone, but backpacking isn't. Happy "hopefully the first isn't the last" trails!
TRAIL LOG:
Day One: After dropping Adam's car at the just off the hwy parking at Excelsior, we drove my car another 6 miles to turn up the horrendous forest road 3060. Man, I don't remember it being so bad, but I wasn't driving last time. Speaking of firsts, that is the only time I remember almost getting my car stuck trying to get to a trailhead. Once parked, we immediately started off in the wrong direction (my memory gets worse every year) but would be glad we noticed the strange water reservoir on day two. I'll come back to that later. Anyway, it's 66 switchbacks and 2800 feet elevation in just 2.3 miles - and then it's another even steeper climb of unofficial trail up to camp spot; so the entry fee for this one is pretty high. I don't know how much further we went exploring...maybe a mile? But look at this next hill climb! A bit sketchy for sure. Even though our mileage for this day was under five, we were beat.
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| Trail? |
Day Two: Nine-ish miles total. Got an early start and headed west on the High Divide trail towards Excelsior Peak. I had read the only water was about mile past Welcome Pass at a stagnant pond, so that's where I filled up.
Thank God for water filters; though there was a fresh running stream not too far past it. (It must dry up some years.) This is some of the best ridge walking anywhere, though expect to gain some elevation going this direction. It's about 5 miles until you reach Excelsior, where you can choose to go up and over, or around. Adam tweaked his knee a bit (I'm glad I always carry KT tape now for this reason) and I had already done it in 2014 (you will laugh if you read it...I've learned a lot in the past decade!) so we went around.
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| I understand the sign this time, haha |
The four miles down from here are much more gradual than the way we took up, but it still feels relentless. Thankfully Adam's car handled the forest road back up to my car much better, but just when we were SO ready to be done for the day I noticed I had a flat. Ugh, poor Adam. As much as I want to be an independent and confident woman, watching him change that tire made me realize there is NO WAY I could have gotten that done. Anyway, at this time we were reminded by other hikers about the pool of ice cold water awaiting us at the end of the parking area. We baptized ourselves and declared it the perfect ending to an epic adventure. Oh, and if you have the patience to pass the closer towns, the Welcome Grocery in Deming has surprisingly good food and nice outdoor seating in back.
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| The start vs... |
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| The end (Haha, I made him make the face) |
