Photos from this trip can be found here.
Bootjack Mountain, how we nearly forgot about you! I wanted to do this hike last year but didn’t realize at the time that a big section of Icicle Creek Road had been closed off since 2008. So when we got to the closure we were forced to turn around and went to Icicle Ridge instead.
The road was reopened since last weekend, so we finally got out on a sunny day despite a late departure from Seattle. When we got into Leavenworth at 11, we were immediately greeted by the Oktoberfest marathoners along Icicle Creek Road. With a line of cars in the first mile, we then were delayed by another hour.
Eighteen miles later we were at the trailhead and started hiking at a quarter to 1 with about 5.5 hours of daylight left. The first two-thirds of the hike were fairly steep, but nothing compared to Hibox from just two days before. The last third of the hike was done in snow, thanks to the parties before me who broke trail. I packed microspikes and snowshoes just in case, but ended up only needing the spikes for traction.
On the way up we passed a hunter in the lower elevations and a group of five hikers near the summit. There was a lone tent on the ridge, but we didn’t see the owner. Last bit of scramble got easier with the snow, and the dogs got to the summit long before I did.
Breathtaking views of The Enchantments and northern peaks, including Glacier Peak, Sloan Peak, and Mount Baker. We got to the summit three and a half hours later, stayed for 30 minutes and then back down the mountain. Lucky for us, we got back to the car at two minutes before sunset! For the record, I did bring my headlamp just in case it got dark before we got back to the trailhead.