9.07 miles of hiking • 3000' elevation gain •
This was the first hike on our hiking vacation week. You have to cross the bridge-less Chiwawa River in the beginning of the hike. On the way in, we followed the maze of downed logs until we reached the other side. On the way back, we just removed our shoes and walked across. There were a ton of very tiny baby frogs. So cute. Schaefer Lake was quite beautiful. It felt like fall and the huckleberry bushes were turning red. On the ridge, we could see significant smoke from the Wolverine Fire, which caused us to reconsider our plans for more hikes in the Glacier Peak wilderness. As of today, this trail is closed due to evacuation of the Chiwawa River drainage, since the fire is now proceeding in that direction.
