Desolation Peak

July 13, 2024 - Ross Lake Recreational Area, WA

Stats: 16.8 km / 1477m gain / 1826m high / 5:15 hours MT

When I started planning this trip a few weeks prior, I thought it would be quite simple: drive to Ross Lake, canoe & kayak 10 km to the Boundary Bay campsite, the next day canoe 3 km to the trailhead, hike Desolation Peak and kayak back the third day. But it proved to be anything but simple...

I had to go to the Wilderness Rangers North Casacade National Park Center in Marblemount Washington, to pick up the backcountry camping permit in person. This would be a 5-hour drive to half-an-hour west of the south end of Ross Lake. So I phoned and asked them if it was at all possible to e-mail it to me. They complied, but warned me that the water was too low on the north Canadian end of the lake. It would mean portaging our heavy canoe and kayaks for 1.5 km through a large meadow riddled with sawed off stumps. So we decided to canoe/kayak from the south end of Ross Lake. Until...

I was corrected about the distance (thanks Susan Hay). I had asked the Ross Lake Resort staff if it was a total of 18.5 km kayaking to our campsite. She must've missunderstood me. She said yes, when it was actually 26.5 km, including Diablo Lake which you'd have to kayak across for 8 km, then get portaged past the Ross Lake Dam ($50.00US) and then continue kayaking 18.5 km down Ross Lake. This was not possible to do in one day especially since it's best to get off of the lake by early afternoon due to typical strong winds. Trying to fit this trip into participants' schedules was another component to keep into account so a 5-day trip was not an option. This changed our plans a second time. We would not be kayaking such a distance, so I phoned Ross Lake Resort again about renting a water-taxi instead. But the water-taxis were all booked. So they suggested to use the motor-boats. We had to drive them? Uh oh. 700lb. max meant 4 humans & gear in one boat. But 8 people wanted to come. We'd need two boats and they only had one left. With only 3 days to go before we left, the pressure was on. I was a very happy camper when they phoned me not even two days before, that they got me a second boat. Phew. Good to go, right? Wrong...

I made the mistake of thinking I had it all put together. When we talked to the ranger at the Wilderness Center, I realized I hadn't. She asked me how we were going to get to the Ross Lake Resort. I understood we could park there. She said no, it's a floating resort and is only accessable by boat or walking down and crossing on Ross Dam. So back on the phone with the Ross Lake Reosrt staff. She said they could get all 8 of us on the Diable Lake ferry that leaves only twice a day, at 10:00am & 2:00pm. OK. So as soon as we were in the car, we tried phone the others but there was no reception at all in the Ross Lake area. What to do?

Since Denise & Charlotte had taken duffle bags and not backpacks, I dropped them off at the Diablo Lake ferry dock so they could repack their belongings into their day packs. Then Pram & I drove to the Ross Dam parking lot but did not see our fellow hikers. Did they start to hike down already? Pram asked if they could've gone home? I laughed and said I know them and they're not quitters. We found two vehicles with BC license plates and left a note on what we thought was Sue's Subaru. Later we learned that we'd missed Sheri by minutes. She'd come up that steep trail twice, looking for us.

The Diablo Lake ferry ride was 45 minutes long and cost $10.00 cash, paid to the captain.

We were amazed at how much stuff these three young people were taking along. By comparison, that pile on the left belonged to us four.

The shuttle truck dropped off this load of humans with their cargo, to be replaced by us. No sooner had it stopped, and a woman came bounding off, heading straight for us, and asked, "Are you the group that are missing four?" What a relief! The others were waiting for us at the resort.

A short and very fast boat ride took me & Charlotte across the water to the resort where we had a happy reunion with the other half of our group.

Then Charlotte and Sheri got a lesson on how to drive the boat.

Memorial plaques.

Back to the dock we went to pick up the others.

It was a 1:10 hour ride to Lodgepole campsite.

As we boated 19.5 km down Ross Lake, I kept thinking how relieved I was that we weren't canoeing it. The massive narrow lake is 37 km long.

One of two bridges on the backpack trail that starts at the south end of the lake and goes all the way to the north end.

As soon as we parked our boat, Charlotte was in the water, clothes and all. Temperatures were in the high 20s.

We all ended up in the very refreshing lake.

These tiny fish kept bumping against our legs.

David asked, "What's with this group? Where's all the men?" I think he did quite well, with 7 women walking around in bikinis (the less weight to carry, the better) and cackling away.

It was so peaceful.

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Day 2: Desolation Peak - 16.8 km / 1477m gain / 1826m high / 5:15 hours MT

We agreed the night before that we'd be at the trailhead by 6:30am in order to avoid climbing in the hottest part of the day. David was up first, and by 5:00am most of us were out and getting breakfast & lunches ready. That was a good thing, because we ended up getting there exactly at 6:30am, after a 15-minute boat ride.

All of the docks on Ross lake are no longer floating.

The trail was in very good condition and maintained a steady comfortable uphill grade.

Honey Suckle Bristly Yarrow

Jack Mt (2438m) and Ross Lake -- south & southwest.

French Groundsel Wood's Rose

Indian Paintbrush.

Purple Lupines.

south

west

It wasn't till we were almost at the summit that we could see the familiar Hozameens in Manning Park.

This fire lookout is still staffed each summer by Ranger Jim Henterly. Unfortunately, he was not there. It's one of the most remote active fire lookouts in the US.

The AllTrails App said that the average moving time for this hike is 7:15 hours. We were at the summit in 3:15 hours and down in 2.

Dave took a photo of us sitting infront of the fire lookout and said, "I just took a picture of a bunch of chickens sitting infront of their coop".

south to west to north

video

Desert Parsley Patridgefoot

west to north

Penstemon

I'd never seen an outhouse like this before. No smell and what a view!

To the left of the Hozameens is the Skyline Trail in Manning Park -- northeast.

White and pink heather.

Group shot: Sue A, Lonja B, Pramila N, Sheri K, David G, Charlotte H, me, Denise D

Small-flower Penstemon Stonecroft

Heading down.

Once back at camp, the first thing we did was jump in the lake. Ahhh! That felt so good after a hot dusty sweaty long hike. The boat had to be back by 6:00pm. The others decided to do some sightseeing with their boat but us four opted to head straight for the resort. Sitting in the boat without something to recline against was hard on mine and Charlotte's backs.

Cat Island.

southeast

Approaching Ross Lake Resort.

We relaxed and ate junk food at the resort for a good hour. It was our turn to wait for the others as they had for us, the day before. But then we got restless, knowing our hike wasn't done yet. We still had to climb a steep 183m from Ross Dam to the parking lot. No one was looking forward to that.

Sheri had advised us to walk to the dam and then take the trail to the parking lot.

So after getting instructions from the girl in the office/store, we crossed a little bridge and started up the trail, soon turning left. But the route quickly became sketchy, with a faint trail that dropped very sharply down and up again, often with nothing secure to set our feet on.

When we got to this rope part and had to maneuver ourselves down with a heavy unbalanced load on our backs, we began to feel desperate. We were halfway between the resort and dam, and we realized this route was too risky, especially for our tired bodies. Then we saw a man with his little boy approaching in his boat. Charlotte started yelling and Pramila started flailing her arms, trying to get his attention. And it worked! He picked us up and drove us to the dock on the other side. It made us feel better when he told us his wife had made the same mistake that morning. The real trail was higher up by a cabin. How did we miss that?

After 12 years of construction, Ross Dam was completed in 1949. It is 160m high and 400m wide.

It's stretching across one of the narrowest spots in the Skagit Gorge.

I was not looking forward to that half-an-hour & 183m of steep uphill at the end of a long challenging day. But it was the only way to get back. With sweat dripping down our faces and heavy loads on our backs, we trudged upwards. When we got to the parking lot, we were all exhausted.

By the end of this day we did a total ascent of almost 1700m!

I left my gear with Charlotte, Pram & Denise and jumped into the other car who then dropped me off 15 minutes later, by my van at the Diablo Lake ferry doch. They then contined driving home for 2.5 hours. Us four did a quick stop at a gas station for some food and then kept driving to Grandy Lake campground on the Baker Rd, which was closer to the trailhead for the next day's hike. But it was full. So we kept driving north on the Baker Rd. By the time we got to the next campsite it was 10:00pm and dark. There were 3 campsites beside eachother that were empty. The RESERVED dates on them were from the day before. The host was nowhere to be found. So we took a chance and parked in the largest one. We were so done. No one did show up.

Hind sight, two nights in the backcountry would've been better. Then we could've taken the ferry back the third day. But there were people in the group that needed to be back by Sunday. Next time...

Despite all the hurdles and logistics of this trip, we accomplished what we set out to do. It was a grand adventure, one we won't soon forget.

The third day the four of us hiked the Park Butte trail by Mt. Baker. It is in my next blog...