It’s the second week of December, and in Washington the rain is heavy, and the clouds are dark. I don’t mind this weather (yet), but I do find myself reminiscing on the brightness of fall. Two months ago my friend Caitlin and I went for one final big hike, and today I am going to share that story. It’s not often I see a hike that is four hours away and wrangle someone into coming with me, but per usual Caitlin is my go to gal – up for any adventure.
Our original plan was to do this hike (driving included) in one day. We would get up before the birds, drive the long haul to the North Cascades, hike 11-12 miles, and drive home. We would be tired, but we could do it, right? This trail is one of, if not THE most popular trail in the North Cascades meaning we had to ensure getting to the trail early, or we risked having to park on the already too tiny gravel road. In order to ensure we had a parking spot we decided to find a cheap Air B&B and drive up the night before.
We found Lolita, a 1979 Airstream for a whopping $70 a night.
Lolita was cozy, but the bed was rock hard and I slept maybe a total of 3 hours that night. We woke up around 0500, and headed straight for the trail head. Thankfully I had enough caffeine and adrenaline to get me going, and I was stoked to only be driving two hours instead of four. We arrived at the trail head around 0700 with just enough time to snag one of the remaining parking spots.
The lot was filling up fast, but thankfully for the majority of our hike we didn’t run into too many people.
This hike is popular because there are two main options: hike the Cascade Pass Trail which is a moderate 7 mile round trip hike to a beautiful overlook, or continue on to the Sahale Arm which is an additional 5 miles round trip (plus about 2000 feet more elevation.) I would say half of the people who come to this trail stop at the Cascade Pass. The views to Cascade Pass are beautiful on their own, but I cannot imagine coming all this way and not continuing on to the Sahale Arm.
Caitlin and I specifically saved this hike for the first week of October because it is well known for having amazing fall colors. We could not have gone on a better day, the temperature was perfect, the sun was bright, and the colors were intense. If we had waited just one more week we would have been hit with snow.
We arrived at Cascade Pass just under two hours after we started. This is when the wind started to pick up, and it only got stronger the higher we got. I was continually taking my jacket off and putting my jacket on in an attempt to combat the heat from climbing and the chill from the wind. We took our time to stop and savor the views along the way, all the while playing leap from with one woman who was wearing the same jacket as me, but in a different color.
We savored the view of the above lake both on the way up and on the way down. This lake would be our focal point for the majority of the second half of the hike. At one point I even saw myself rolling down the hill, falling into the lake. More on that later. Overall I felt great on this hike, physically I had energy, and mentally I was stoked. We were having fun and the landscape could not have been more beautiful.
Until…
I eventually reached a point where each step felt like I had bricks tied to the bottom of my feet. My lungs felt like someone was sitting on them, and the air around me felt tight. I often struggle accepting when things are physically challenging for me, so I was getting frustrated by the fact that Caitlin seemed unfazed while I was having a hard time.
Turns out we were nearing 7000 feet of elevation, explaining why I was struggling with air.
Ultimately it shouldn’t matter, but I was comforted by this justification for my breathing. As we continued on we weren’t sure of where the end was. We just kept putting one foot in front of the other, fighting the wind, and admiring the brave souls who camped overnight. I cannot imagine sleeping with that kind of wind all night. We finally came to the end of the obvious trail, and met the portion of trail that was predominately boulders. This was a “choose your own path” type of trail, and when a pair of men passed us to the right, we chose to follow them.
Mistakes were made.
While Caitlin billy goated her way after them, I began crawling as the “trail” became tighter and the rocks became smaller and more slippery. We were on an edge that made every single hair on my body stand up as I shook with each crawl. I am a dramatic child when it comes to trail edges, and I was starting to struggle. Caitlin sensed my struggle, and was also convinced we took the wrong side. She didn’t have to tell me twice about finding an alternative route, but before we turned around she snapped the above photo of me while I was trying to find my footing.
I almost look like I know what I am doing. Thankfully I did not in fact roll down the hill into the lake.
We found a far better path, but my adrenaline was still high. We were both exhausted and unsure if we wanted to continue the final 0.3 miles to the “summit.” We had made it to the main view point, we were moving slow with the altitude and fatigue, and I was a bit shook by the trail edge. We sat at our chosen end spot for 20 minutes, eating snacks, before deciding we were too damn close to stop there. We were going to stop at the proper summit even if it took us an hour.
Turns out it only took us an additional 10 minutes or so. This is a reminder that our brains often tell us something is harder than it really is.
The final push brought us over a ridge that allowed us to see what most people come here for – the Sahale Glacier. We couldn’t see the glacier from our original stopping point, and while I had no desire to walk onto the glacier, seeing it was worth the extra trudge. We clocked in around 12 miles with 4000 feet of elevation when we made it back down, and the entire hike took us around 8 hours. This was by far the best hike I have done in a while, and I am so jazzed Caitlin and I made it happen.
The drive out was just as much of an adventure as the drive in because people had parked on both sides of a tiny road. We knew this was happening ahead of time thanks to multiple trail reports, all the more reason we wanted to arrive early. I cannot justify parking like an asshole, and it was sketchy trying to squeeze between two cars. It felt like driving on a back road somewhere in the UK.
Our four hour drive home turned into five or six thanks to Seattle traffic, but Caitlin and I were riding the high of our hike the entire drive back. It doesn’t take much to make me a happy camper. A quick overnight trip for a beautiful hike is almost all it takes to reset my factory settings when I am feeling off. This was my first hike in the North Cascades, and I can assure you it will not be my last.
Q: Anyone else reminiscing on fall? It’s my favorite season, but I do try to savor each season for what it brings.
40 thoughts on “Cascade Pass to Sahale Arm”
Diana
This looks amazing! I see what you mean about it being worth it to go all the way, even when the trail is sketchy as hell and the altitude is suffocating you.
Brittany
It usually is worth it, but sometimes my brain tries to get the best of me. 🤪 I’m happy I didn’t let the think box win this time.
Liz H-H
Beautiful! And challenging. Must add to my gotta-go-there list!
You intrepid woman, you!
Brittany
You must! You will not regret it. Such a wondrous area of beauty.
joeabbott
Glorious. Congrats.
Brittany
Thank you! I want to go back in time and do it all again.
Rootchopper
I HATE heights so I can totally relate to your fear of sliding into the lake. My acrophobia gets worse by the year too.
Riding across the North Cascades was a real challenge and thrill on my 2018 cross-country trip. The light blue color of the water was unreal.
Glad to see you made the entire trek.
Brittany
I don’t love heights, but I’m ok on trail edges if the path is flat and no loose rocks. Even so I feel extra aware. Maybe a little nauseous.
That area of Washington is so beautiful. I’m glad you were able to bike it, I can only imagine the challenge! 🥵
Rootchopper
By the time I arrived in Washington I’d already ridden 3,000 miles. The climbs were tough but much easier if I had started on the Pacific side
My Health Adventure
I only made it to the pass, but came from the Stehekin side. One friend had to stop below and my son and his buddy went to the top like mountain goats. Awesome hike either way though if you head east, you can do Horseshoe Basin, one of my all time favorite spots.
Brittany
You came all the way from Stehekin?! Amazing! I saw the signs veering off for Stehekin and my goodness I’d love to hike there. It’s ridiculous I have yet to visit Stehekin, but it’s top of my list. I’ll have to add Horseshoe Basin to my list too, thanks for sharing!
My Health Adventure
It was a 3 long day adventure but worth it!
niall
Wow! That photo of you in the rock field is stunning, with that backdrop 😍 I love the windy one too 🤣
Brittany
It was almost worth it to have some fear for that rock field photo, because I do love it. 🤣 The windy one makes me happy because it’s pure chaotic joy, and that is how the day felt.
Atheria
Beautiful pictures/area! Sorry about the elevation thing. I live at 7,199′ and work at 7,320′ here in New Mexico but sometimes get sick if I go up to 10,000′.
Brittany
That’s wild! We’re at sea level over here. It took me a week to acclimate to living in Wyoming at 7000’.
Rhonda
What stunning pictures! I love that line about how our brains tell us things will be harder than they actually end up being. It is so true. Something we all need to be reminded of.
Brittany
Amen! I’m thankful we pushed on, I think I would have been bummed later had we not.
Roy McCarthy
You’re not kidding about the colours, the plant life is spectacular. Nice work on pushing through, too much height on that upper section for me though, I’d wimp out for sure.
Brittany
Thank you! I’m proud of us both for pushing through. This hike will stay with me for a while!
Mélodie
What an amazing hike. The photos are gorgeous 😍.
Brittany
Thank you!
gpavants
Brittany,
Fall is the best. Hiking in the fall is pretty amazing and cool. Great job on the glacier. Thanks,
Gary
Gary Avants Forbear Productions * *garyavants66@gmail.com garyavants66@gmail.com
Brittany
I agree. Fall is my favorite hiking weather.
Emily B
What an amazing hike! Great that you managed to complete it.
Brittany
I would do this one again in a heartbeat!
Tina
Absolutely beautiful photos, I love the Cascades.
Brittany
Thank you! Such a beautiful mountain range.
Pree
Wow these pictures are gorgeous! Hikes take so much energy, so to do it on 3 hours of sleep?? I am amazed!!!!
Brittany
I know. 🤣 Sometimes I amaze myself. I slept hard that night.
kagould17
Every great hike is worth the struggle. I hear you on the putting one foot infront of the other Brittany. That was us as we climbe 6 miles and 3,000 feet back out of the Grand Canyon. This would not have happened had we not gone down, but we are so glad we did. Thanks for sharing Brittany. Allan
Brittany
I would love to hike out of the Grand Canyon someday, what an amazing experience that must be! Amazing job.
Tuarok
Perseverance is one of humankinds most valuable attributes. Proud of you for pushing forward, looks like a lovely hike!
Brittany
Thank you, we were proud too! Felt great to sit amongst the rest at the top. Only thing that would have been lovelier is if you were there.
Allie Zottola
SO TRUE about our brains telling us something is harder than it is. That is the case for me all the time and then I do something and I’m like “Oh… I did it!” haha.
What a hike though! Absolutely stunning!!
Brittany
I’m right there with you. I go through seasons where I’m more inclined to just “go for it”, and then there are times I have to remind myself it’s almost always worth it!
loujen haxm'Yor
Awesome shots and info. Thanx for sharing your adventure, Brittany.
Art
Brittany
Thanks for reading!
Jodie Rae (Cricket)
Thanks for these beautiful pictures of the PNW… I miss my home state so very much!!! I am currently living in Portugal and haven´t been back in years so it was nice to get a breath of fresh air, which I felt from those highly-taken photos 😉
Brittany
I’m glad you were able to get a taste of home from this post!