Mount Adams Loop Trip plus PCT to White Pass: 2018/07/22 to 2018/07/29


This was my third year in a row circumnavigating a Cascade volcano. In the previous two years, I have hiked around Glacier Peak and Mount Rainier. This year I had hoped to do both Mt. Adams and Mt. St. Helens, but logistics were a bit of a problem, involving a car shuttle and all our cars were needed back home. So I had Nathan drop me off on Sunday at Takhlakh Lake and Laura picked me up the following Sunday at White Pass. So in addition to hiking around Mt. Adams, I also hiked from Mt. Adams on the PCT through the Goat Rocks to White Pass.

This was a very nice walk. It was not too strenuous and I only had one really long day planned along with one short but stressful backcountry day. Overall, it was a very scenic week. I went in late July this year, hoping to avoid wild fires and see some of the meadows in peak bloom. I was mostly successful on both counts though there were some fires near Rainier and the last evening erupted in thunderstorms (more on that later!). Wildflowers were nearly in peak bloom and I have never seen so much blooming paintbrush and beargrass. Unfortunately, this trip was much too early for huckleberries. Nights and mornings were pleasant, but the sunny weather heated things up rapidly and on most days, I was looking for camp in the early afternoon, hoping to find any shade or breezy location away from mosquitoes. So while backpacking in late July is kind of new to me, I'm not sure if I prefer this time of year. I probably prefer a pleasant early fall trip when the bugs are more lethargic and after wildfires have dissipated.

https://pnwmossreport.blogspot.com/2018/12/mt-adams-loop-trip-day-1-killeen-creek.html
https://pnwmossreport.blogspot.com/2018/12/mt-adams-circumnavigation-day-2-devils.html
https://pnwmossreport.blogspot.com/2018/12/mt-adams-loop-trip-day3-hellroaring.html
https://pnwmossreport.blogspot.com/2018/12/mt-adams-loop-trip-day-4-horseshoe.html
https://pnwmossreport.blogspot.com/2018/12/pct-to-white-pass-day-5-adams-high-camp.html
https://pnwmossreport.blogspot.com/2018/12/pct-to-white-pass-day-6-silent-lake-to.html
https://pnwmossreport.blogspot.com/2018/12/pct-to-white-pass-day-7-cispus-basin-to.html

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