Park Butte – Easton Glacier Hike

West side of the Easton Glacier


Our Hike Route of Park Butte Fire Lookout and Easton Glacier (via Canon GPS Logger and Google Earth)


Hike Notes

Length: 12.5 miles
Duration: 8.5 hours, 9:20 am – 5:50 pm inclusive of a 45 min lunch break.
Elevation Gain: Trailhead: WTA - 3,250 ft (WTA), Garmin** - 3,347 ft, Canon* - 3,357 ft. Highest point at edge of Easton Glacier: Garmin - 6,423 ft, Canon - 6,411 ft. Total elevation gain: Garmin - 4,150 ft, Canon - 4, 877.
Location: North Cascades -- West Slope

* Canon GPS Receiver, ** Garmin HCX

Overview

For our 10^th and possibly last hike of the 2014 season, we hiked up to the Park Butte historic fire lookout and then took a stroll alongside the west side of the Easton Glacier (WTA site). We have racked up 131.7 total miles this season, inclusive of this hike and beating our 115.2 total miles last year.

First stop for us was the Park Butte historic fire lookout. At the fire lookout we had about 45 minutes of just us two and nobody else inside. We sat staring at Mount Baker, eating lunch and reading the various journals and information sheets left inside. After our lookout lunch, we headed back to the junction of the Park Butte Trail and the Railroad Grade Trail, which takes you toward the Easton Glacier. We decided that we would just take a peak at the glacier, and head back to pick up the Scott Paul Trail back to the trailhead. However, once we got saw the glacier, we knew we wanted to walk up beside it. We followed the Railroad Grade to get to the Easton Glacier, which is a lateral moraine formed as the glacier retreated. We were walking on a ridge where, on one side there is green high meadow, and to the other, a sharp drop down into emptiness where the glacier once was. We got up to 6,500 feet, above High Camp and then called it a day and headed back.

Left: View from the Fire Lookout Toward Mt Baker; Right View from 6,500 feet near the Easton Glacier, Looking South



Fly Amanita. Left: Dirty Toadstool? Right: Toadstools and Heather


Left: A Marmot near High Camp; Right: A Gray Jay - Perisoreus canadensis

Left: Another View of Our Hike Route of Park Butte Fire Lookout and Easton Glacier (via Canon GPS Logger and Google Earth); Right: Lincoln Peak

Park Butte Fire Lookout. Left: Outside; Right: Looking Inside

Left: A Lunch Table in the Park Butte Fire Lookout; Right: View from the Fire Lookout


Hiking on the East Glacier Lateral Moraine

Vaccinia - Blueberries in Morovitz Meadow

Left: West side of the Easton Glacier; Right: Park Butte trail wall made of log ends.

Yellow Aster Butte and Tomyhoi Lake Hike

Left: Hike Profile KML from Canon GPS Logger; Right: View of Tomyhoi Lake

Hike Notes
Length: 12.3 miles (according to *Garmin HCX)
Duration: 8.25 hours (8:15 am – 4:30 pm)
Elevation Gain: 4,361 (total), 6,184 ft max elevation on top of Yellow Aster Butte*, starting @ 3,670 ft
Location: North Cascades – Mount Baker Highway

For our sixth hike of the 2014 summer (and bringing us to 84.8 total miles this season), we chose Yellow Aster Butte (WTA: Yellow Aster Butte, Tomyhoi Lake). We actually went to Tomyhoi lake first and then Yellow Aster Butte. At approximately 1.4 miles from the trailhead, the trail splits and you make your choice: the left route takes you to Yellow Aster Butte, and the right route takes you up over Gold Run Pass and down to Tomyhoi Lake. The path to Yellow Aster Butte is well-beaten and easy to follow. The path to Tomyhoi Lake was bit trickier, we lost it a few times as we busied ourselves with flower pictures. Nearer to the lake, there were many paths to get to the lake edge and you just had to pick one. The lake elevation is close to starting elevation at the trailhead. It’s quite a slog to climb back out to Gold Run Pass.

On the Yellow Aster Butte trail, we encountered a lot of people. Saturday, sunshine, beautiful views, and trail popularity explains it. Not many seem to opt for the Tomyhoi Lake trail, which we found very quiet. Choose wisely.

Selected Plants Observed

Format: [Family] Genus species (Common Name). Links are to WTU Image Collection.

[Asteraceae] Petasites frigidus (Sweet Coltsfoot) – “Petasites is from the Greek petasos ‘a broad-brimmed hat,’ referring to the large basal leaves characteristic of this genus.” [1]
[Liliaceae] Anticlea occidentale (Mountainbells)
[Melanthiaceae] Veratrum viride (Green False Hellebore)
[Orobanchaceae] Castilleja parviflora (Mountain Indian Paintbrush)
[Orobanchaceae] Pedicularis racemosa (Sickletop Lousewort)
[Onagraceae] Chamerion angustifolium (Fireweed)
[Onagraceae] Chamerion latifolium (Broad-Leaved Willowherb)
[Orchidaceae] Platanthera stricta (Slender Bog Orchid)
[Orchidaceae] Goodyera oblongifolia (Western Rattlesnake Plantain)
[Phrymaceae] Erythranthe lewisii (Purple Monkey-Flower). Given as Mimulus lewisii in [1].
[Phrymaceae] Erythranthe guttata (Seep Monkey-Flower). Given as Mimulus guttatus in [1].
[Polygonaceae] Oxyria digyna (Alpine Mountain-Sorrel)
[Ranunculaceae] Anemone occidentalis (Western Pasqueflower)
[Rosaceae] Potentilla flabellifolia (High Mountain Cinquefoil)
[Rosaceae] Rubus spectablis (Salmonberry)
[Saxifragaceae] Leptarrhena pyrolifolia (Leatherleaf Saxifrage)
[Saxifragaceae] Micranthes tolmiei (Tolmie’s or Alpine Saxifrage)

Insects Observed

Pterostichus (Beetle)
Pterophoroidae (Plume Moth)
Pointania californica (Willow Apple Gall Sawfly) Gall [2]
Polygonia[3] (Angel-Winged Butterfly) on Valerian
Speyeria hydaspe? [3] (Hydaspe Fritillary)

References

[1] Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast: Washington, Oregon, British Columbia & Alaska
[2] http://bugguide.net/node/view/185043/bgimage
[3] On the checklist for Whatcom County from ButterfliesAndMoths.org.

Left: Plume Moth on Goodyera oblongifolia, near trailhead; Right: Dew drops on Moss, near Tomyhoi Lake

Left: Angel-Winged Butterfly, on the way to Yellow Aster Butte; Right: Fritillary on Veratrum leaf


Left: Pterostichus Beetle Near Tomyhoi Lake; Right: Potentilla flabellifolia

Left: Sawfly Gall; Right: Larva Inside Gall

Left: Anemone occidentalis (Western Pasqueflower); Right: Anticlea occidentale (Mountainbells)

Left: Castilleja parviflora (Mountain Indian Paintbrush); Right: Leptarrhena pyrolifolia (Leatherleaf Saxifrage), both in the wet meadow above Tomyhoi Lake

Fireweeds. Left: Chamerion angustifolium; Right: Chamerion latifolium

Monkey-Flowers. Left: Erythranthe lewisii (Purple Monkey-Flower); Right: Erythranthe guttata (Seep Monkey-Flower)

Left: Micranthes tolmiei (Tolmie’s or Alpine Saxifrage); Right: Oxyria digyna (Alpine Mountain-Sorrel)

Petasites frigidus

Left: Platanthera stricta (Slender Bog Orchid) – near Tomyhoi Lake and smelled like honey!; Right: Valerian Feathery Seed Heads

Left: Veratrum viride (Green False Hellebore) Single Flower; Right: Rubus spectablis (Salmonberry) Single Berry

Left: Map at Trailhead to Yellow Aster Butte and Tomyhoi Lake; Right: View from Gold Run Pass toward Mt. Larrabee and the American Border Peak

View from Yellow Aster Butte toward Tomyhoi Peak

Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Goat Mountain Hike

Left: View of Mount Baker from the Goat Mountain Trail Knoll;  Right: Goat Mountain Trail in the Open

Goat Mountain was a bit of a quad burner as our first hike of the year. Ultimately, we were rewarded with great views at the “knoll” (or as some wrote in the register, the “balcony”), a stopping point at 5,100 feet. Some negatives of the hike on this day: bugs – boy, do they keep you moving quickly and a lackluster setting in the beginning of the hike. According to the Washington Trails Association (WTA) info for this hike, there was a fire nearly a half century ago. Today the forest is thick, but it is the type that is dry and with little or not green. All snags and brown. Not until the forest thins does the trailside manner of this hike get better.

As we climbed out of the dark into the light and into the blueberry slopes, we ran into a WTA crew working on the trail. Wow, those are some dedicated volunteers. Three cheers for them and a donation! We were fussing about the flies and the heat (it was hot on this day) and here they were constructing the trail we were walking on.

Botanical-wise, plants we saw on this hike were similar to those on the Skyline Divide hike we did two years ago (Skyline Divide Hike – Flowers, Butterflies and Mount Baker) – just a lot less variety.

Food-wise, a shout out to Milano’s Restaurant, on Route 542 in Glacier, Washington. The husband and wife team, Tony and Jeannie, that own the place have created a little piece of Italy in Glacier. Jeannie’s family is from the Valtellina Valley in Northern Italy. Start with their signature mussels dish and then work in one of their homemade pastas to get some carbs for your hike!

Length: Our hike on this day was 7 miles round-trip. Total round-trip to the top of Goat Mountain is 11 miles. We did not have time to do the full hike so we stopped at the "balcony".

Duration: About 4.5 hours with short water stops and lunch. 10 am left trailhead. 12:30pm at "knoll" for lunch. 1:00pm start down.

Elevation Gain: ~3,000 feet for us today. (2,550 feet at the trailhead to 5,600 feet where we stopped for lunch above the knoll.) The peak is at 6,650 feet and the full hike’s elevation gain is 4,100 feet.

Location: North Cascades, Mount Baker Highway (542). Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. We stopped at Glacier Public Service Center and they recommended this trail because it would be clear. We were also considering Yellow Aster Butte too on this mid to late July hike.

Left: A Fly That Died Trying (To Bite Us) – One of Many;  Right: A Hoverfly – Not Annoying at All – Lands on Valerian

Left: Evidence of a Fire Years Ago – A View Up Through a Burnt Out Trunk; Right:  Clintonia uniflora (Queen’s Cup) in Shadow


Left: Getting Nutrients in the Mud – Likely a Silvery Blue; Right: Unknown Butterfly Stops for a Moment

View of Mount Sefrit from the Goat Mountain Trail