On August 1st, my daughter and I stepped onto the Wonderland Trail with a permit in hand (rather wired to my pack) for a seven day itinerary. The trip was cut short but three days later we were returning home with smiles on our faces and excitedly comparing notes about what we saw and experienced on the trail. That was until I regained a cell phone signal….
Here is a link for our YouTube video of the experience:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pZrSVs0UB0
Day One – Longmire to South Puyallup Camp Ground
Distance – 12
Elevation 4,126’ gain / 2700 loss
Weather- rain, fog, and high humidity throughout the day. Temperatures in the 50s and low 60s.
Day one began with a late 1100am start on the trail due to my off trail life interfering with my on trail life. We gave our confirmation letter to the NPS, received a set of instructions, and were briefed on the trail conditions.
The trailhead for the Wonderland is conspicuously posted near the Longmire WIC which would explain why I spent an extra five minutes looking for it. Once I assured my daughter that there was a 40% chance that she won’t suffer from early dementia like me, we stepped off onto the trail and began our attempt at a seven day through hike itinerary of the Wonderland Trail.
We enjoyed a few miles of green tunnel hiking up to Pyramid Creek. Neither of us needed to use the facilities that early in the hike so we continued on without checking out this campsite.
A couple miles later we hiked through Devils Dream. This campsite is built on the side of the hill and all of the campsites are visible from the trail. There is an enclosed outhouse towards the top. This campsite has a bad reputation for mosquitos but it was raining so fortunately we did not have to suffer through them as we hiked through.
We hiked through Indian Henry’s Hunting Ground and visited the NPS cabin. This area is how I would imagine what heaven looks like. Unfortunately the mosquitos were swarming so we put on our head nets, rolled down our sleeves, and covered our hands with picardin. Our clothes were pre treated with permethrin so this system worked well for us. Other than a couple photo opportunities and taking a moment to refill our water bottles, we kept moving so as not to tempt fate with these bloodsuckers.
The last few miles to the South Puyallup Campsite is downhill but was very rocky. Unfortunately due to our late start and poor time management, it was starting to get dark as we descended. We turned on our headlamps but had to keep them between low and the red light setting due to the mist. Visibility was very poor and traction was even worse.
I assured my daughter that not all night hiking was as miserable as this experience and I made a mental note that I was no longer in the running for the 2013 Father of the Year award. It was difficult to ignore all of the cougar scat we had seen on the trail so my head was on a constant swivel looking for glowing eyes.
The trail conditions and poor visibility slowed our progress to less than one mile per hour and it was pretty late when we set up camp. We chalked up the last three miles as a character building experience, inhaled a no cook dinner (in lieu of the Mountain House which was originally on the menu), and were quickly sawing logs.
The day was very enjoyable overall with the exception of the night hike.
Day Two – South Puyallup to North Puyallup in lieu of Golden Lakes
Distance – 7.5 miles
Elevation 1800’ gain 2800’ loss
Weather – rain, fog, and very high humidity. Temperatures in the 50s and low 60s.
We both gobbled down our no-cook breakfast and hit the trail early. As was typical, my daughter lead the way and set the pace. Our first adventure of the day was crossing the suspension bridge over the Tahoma Creek.
Neither of us have a fear of heights but I can see how this bridge would be challenging for those who do. While I anticipated that the bridge would bounce up and down as we walked across it, the gentle swaying from side to side made me almost feel intoxicated. The NPS has done a very good job of over-engineering this bridge and it definitely adds to the Wonderland experience.
On the north side of the bridge, we cook a minute to drink/eat some Perpetuem (me) and a Cliff Bar Energy Gel (her) before the 1800’ climb we had before us. The trail quickly became overgrown and I replaced my daughter on point so I could hopefully knock most of the water off of the plants. I was not wearing rain pants (I never do) and was quickly soaked from the waist down.
Hiking up to Klapatche Park took us through St. Andrews Park. While both areas were gorgeous, this was our second day of hiking in mist, fog, and rain so visibility was very poor. The swirling mist certainly adds some mystery to the experience and I quickly understood why there are many people who hike this trail several times. Not knowing what was yet to come, I had already made a mental note that I would have to hike this trail again.
We stopped beside the lake at Klapatche Park and found a comfortable rock to sit on. We enjoyed our PBTs (peanut butter tortillas) and a few other snacks for lunch. I can only imagine how glorious this campsite must be on a clear day. I looked at my watch and noted that we were setting a leisurely pace but that we were on track to make it to Golden Lakes (our reserved campsite) before dinner.
My daughter returned to walk point and set pace for our hike. Ahead of us was a series of switchbacks as we would descend down to the North Puyallup Campsite. This portion of the trail was very overgrown and it was difficult to see your feet. We both twisted our ankles a couple times but weren’t overly concerned as they weren’t serious and just walked them off.
My daughter then stepped on a slick rock and twisted her ankle after she lost her footing. We slowed our pace and made our way down to the bottom of the hill. It quickly became apparent that her ankle was tightening up and that we’d have difficulty maintaining even a one MPH pace. Looking at the distance and elevation between us and Golden Lakes, I made a decision that we would try and sneak in to the North Puyallup camp for the night and reassess our situation the next morning.
We ended up meeting an incredibly nice lady at the campsite and ended up pitching our shelter next to hers. We never saw a ranger that day but I suspect that under the circumstances, they would not have hassled us for staying there.
I cooked some freeze dried beef stew for dinner and we relaxed for the remainder of the afternoon in camp.
For the second night in a row, we encountered the worst condensation (by a lot) I’ve ever experienced in my Hexamid Twin. I’m no stranger to tarp camping but my lightload towel was working overtime trying to keep water from dripping on us. We met another hiker earlier in the day who was using a single wall tent who experienced the same problem. The woman who let us camp next to her was sleeping in a BA Fly Creek 2 and she said that she had no problems with condensation to speak of.
As much as I love my Hexamid Twin, it won’t be on the Wonderland with me next year. I’m not sure if I’m going to bring a simple A frame 8×11 tarp with a couple bug bivys, a Double Rainbow, or Fly Creek but it won’t be my Hexamid.
Day Three – North Puyallup to Longmire via West Side Road and NPS
Distance – Six Miles
Elevation loss – < 800’
Weather – fog and light precipitation in the morning. Sun and broken clouds by 11am
We woke and had my daughter walk around camp to test her ankle. It was clear that she was fine to walk but at a much slower pace. We sat down and had a heart to heart talk about the hike. I felt that we should finish this hike on a high note and leave the trail while we were both smiling.
We agreed to take the N. Puyallup Trail to the Westside Road and that we would try and hitch a ride back to Longmire. The 2.8 mile hike on the trail back to the road was very scenic but we had to take care not to kill any banana slugs on the way out. Evidence of a road which was abandoned long ago would occasionally appear along the way.
Once we found the old parking lot and the Westside Road, we started hiking south. We were aware that the road was closed to the general public years ago but were encouraged when we saw fresh tire tracks on the road indicating that the NPS still patrolled this area.
We walked for another few miles, all along enjoying some wonderful conversation. My daughter stopped to look at a spider but missed a beautiful black and green snake a few feet in front of her. I suspect she set a new vertical record when the snake decided to slither off.
Eventually we saw the welcome sight of a NPS truck bouncing up the road. They were kind enough to give us a ride back to Longmire where we turned in our permit which would free up our campsites for others to enjoy.
As we drove back to eastern Washington, I did not have a cell phone signal until we reached White Pass. I kept contemplating all of the available options available to me including to return the next day to finish the hike with a walk-up permit.
Before we reached the summit of White Pass, we saw a father and son backpacking duo who were trying to hitch a ride. I told my daughter that this was one of those “do as I say but not as I do” situations and pulled over to give them a ride. The father apologized for his bad B.O. before he jumped in our car; I assured him that he would understand as to why that wasn’t necessary once he sat down.
We dropped them off at the summit of White Pass where I finally had a cell phone signal. It was at this point that my world was turned upside down.
On my phone was the message “I just wanted you to know that Buddy died yesterday.”
I just learned that my 43 year old friend of 25+ years had died of a pulmonary embolism. As he had no other known health concerns, this was a complete surprise to everyone. I dried my eyes and we drove the rest of the way home in mostly silence. An immediate return to the Wonderland was now completely out of the question.
I don’t regret this hike at all. My daughter and I had an opportunity to spend a few days together and see some beautiful scenery. We will return to through hike the Wonderland next year.
In the short term, I’m going to return to Longmire a few days before Labor Day Weekend (2013) and will try to get a walk up permit.
To be continued….
