McClellan Peak sits in one of the most beautiful areas in all of the Washington Cascades, or for that fact, just about anywhere. The Enchantment Lake basin is home to not only McClellan Peak, but across the way, is Little Annapurna to the West and directly north is Prusik Peak and nearby,Dragontail and
Colchuck Peaks. This area is part of the Mt. Stuart area and is legendary among those who have become "Enchantment" addicts. McClellan is generally overlooked by those who set their sights upon Prusik Peak or nearby Dragontail but there are many routes & interesting rock towers that can challenge just about any taste in mountaineering. Fred Becky, Pete Schoening and some others were instrumental in discovering the potential for climbing in this area and numerous routes were put up by these men on not only McClellan but on the rock formations that abound in this area.

McClellan is listed as the 88th highest summit in Washington State. If you are interested in what all of those 100 summits are, click on this underlined part.

McClellan Peak was named in honor of Capt. George B. McClellan, of the Corp of Engineers. He never actually set foot on his namesake mountain. Its also interesting to note that Ingalls Creek was named after a U.S. Army Captain who explored this area in 1872 who was seeking after a gold mine. Ingalls Creek follows a valley for 16 miles and is one of the last untouched stretches of river wilderness left in the Cascades. Ingalls Creek drains mainly the Mt. Stuart range as well as creeks that come into it like Crystal creek. Somewhere in these mountains Captain Ingalls' lost gold mine still awaits discovery but the real gold is found in the value of the wilderness here. The gold is found every fall when the alpine Larch trees turn their needles into a display of gold beauty that is unsurpassed.

Mount Stuart was named by the same McClellan that McClellan peak is named for, he named the granite mass for his friend Jimmy Stuart. He did so in 1853. If you'd like to get a little more detail on the geology of this area and even more of the historical aspects, Fred Beckey's book has several worthwhile pages starting on page 233-239.

Getting There

From Seattle there are two routes you could take. First, you can get on I-90 and head east over Snoqualmie Pass to Cle Elum, taking the exit to Wenatchee & Blewett Pass via 970 and then US highway 97. Highway 97 takes you over Blewett pass to a junction with U.S. 2. Turn left towards Leavenworth. Go through Leavenworth (you pass the Leavenworth ranger station on this road) until you come to the last road before you start to enter Tumwater canyon and turn left on Icicle road, going 4 miles until you come to the Snow Creek Trailhead parking area, very obvious on the left. Northwest Forest Service pass required.

The 2nd way to get to the same Icicle Creek TH from Seattle or Everett area is to take US 2 over Steven's Pass to Leavenworth. When you come out of the canyon, turn right on the Icicle Creek road and drive as before.

To access the Ingalls Creek Trailhead, you go to near milepost 178 on the Blewett Pass highway, #97, watching for the Ingalls Creek road No. 7312. You turn west across a bridge and then stay left until you come to the trail head in about one mile.

Red Tape

In 1984, I was camping in the upper Enchantments over a labor day weekend and there were people everywhere. Tents dotted the hillside and it was even worse in the Enchantment Lakes lower down. People were loving this place to death. This did not pass unnoticed by the powers that be and within a couple of years, the Forest Service implemented a permit system to control the "crowds". Personally I hated this infringement but in reality, it was probably the only choice. So today, in order to overnight in the Enchantments between June 15th and October 15th, you have to get a permit from the Leavenworth Ranger station. Currently the charge is 3 bucks a day which includes the day you go in as well as the day you come out. 75% of the permits are given out by mail and 25% are given out each day during the season. As far as getting reservation permits by mail, you need to be on top of this as many of the permits are gone shortly after the first week that they are accepted by the Leavenworth Ranger station on March 1st. I'll list the address
below. The 25% given out daily are given out at the Leavenworth Ranger station in Leavenworth at 7:45 A.M. If more people than permits that are available show up, then the ranger does a "lottery"

There are five spots available for the Enchantment Lakes area and one available at nearby Snow Lakes and one at Colchuck Lake. Not alot but if it is the middle of the week, you have a good chance of getting in. Weekends are much tougher. I personally have had about a 50 percent chance of success for the Enchantments during the weekday however, the FS only allows you to get one permit trip per season in. Hmmm, you still have the ability to go before June 15th or after October 15th. The latter date is right about the time that the larch trees turn gold and is one of my favorite times to be in this area. In 2002 we had a great extended season and it was still possible to access this whole region with no problems.

At the Trailheads, (Snow Creek, Lake Stuart and Ingalls Creek)
you need to display a Northwest Forest Service Pass or risk being ticketed. Holders of Enchantment permits are given parking passes to display during their allotted time although
I wouldn't display this pass at Ingalls Creek, should you choose that trailhead.

Obtain permits at the Leavenworth Ranger Station
600 Sherbourne Leavenworth, WA 98826 (509) 548-6977
For much of the needed information, click on Leavenworth Ranger station above (underlined)

One final note: U.S. backcountry forest rangers regularly patrol the Enchantment area and the main trails and if you encounter one of these rangers you will find them friendly and helpful but they will ALWAYS ask to see your permit. In the past six years, I've been stopped and checked three times. If you use the Ingalls Creek trailhead, fill out one of the free permits available at this trailhead and if stopped by a ranger in the Enchantment area, let them know you are camping in the Ingalls Creek zone. I will try and post a map that accurately shows the Enchantment fee area so you will know where to camp just outside of the boundary and be safe from being fined.

Trail access

There are three ways to get to McClellan. By far the most popular route is the Snow Creek Trail, taking off at the Snow Creek TH, just off of the Icicle Creek road. Elevation begins at 1300 feet and after a little drop down to a bridge across the Icicle River, it begins a series of switchbacks that lead upward and onward, never relenting until you come into the middle Enchantment Lake area, a distance of close to ten miles. Camping is possible at Nada or Snow Lakes if you get a late start. The elevation gain is close to 5400 feet or more, depending upon where you camp. A good area to camp at is just below Rune Lake's outlet (sprite lakelet). Mountain goats are plentiful and not one bit afraid of humans. They are known to seek out the salt from urine so it is recommended that we all answer nature's call on the rock rather than the fragile soil. Access to McClellan Peak can readily be made from the campsite just mentioned or from Leprachaun or Crystal Lake.

Route 2 is the Aasgard route via the Stuart Lake TH and accessed by going up the Colchuck Lake trail. It is 4 1/2 miles to the Lake and another 2 1/2 miles to Crystal Lake. It would make a very long day if you had to do it in a day. The elevation gain from the TH to Colchuck Lake is 2000 feet (TH elevation 3300 feet) and then you gain 2200 feet in a little over 1/2 mile to the top of Aasgard pass (7800 feet) before you enter the upper Enchantments and travel across this area to access either Leprechaun or Crystal Lake routes. See Randy's trip report for
a full description of his route.

Route 3 is via Ingalls Creek . This is the one route where a regular Forest Service trail permit (no fee) can be utilized for camping as you actually don't camp in the Enchantment corridor. This is my "backdoor" approach. Start at the Ingalls Creek Trailhead. The trail starts off at a gentle grade and maintains this easy grade for mile after mile. The first 5 1/2 miles to the Falls Creek area gains only 1500 feet and makes a good place to camp if you get a late start. It can provide a jump off place for the following. My approach was to go to Crystal Creek, 5800 feet, and about 7.5 miles. My group followed the creek up (there was an actual sign denoting Crystal Creek) but later parties have said the path was marked by cairns on the right side of the creek. A faint trail leads up, appearing and disappearing, but no matter, the way is up. Be sure to take plenty of water as the creek doesn't guarantee you'll find water again until you reach Crystal Lake. We ended up dry camping about 1000 feet below Crystal Lake in a meadow next to a dry tarn. We then followed Beckey's advice in finding a route up the southside of McClellan Peak, a scramble for the most part. A few class 3 spots but nothing overly difficult. I'll write a trip report on this approach. From the dry tarn area, you can go right up into the Enchantments in about an hour. This off trail route is best spread over two days. Total distance is close to ten miles and 5000 foot elevation gain. Remember, this is a cross country approach and common sense and route finding skills are helpful. There is no Official Crystal Creek trail.

Climbing McClellan Peak

McMcClellan Peak can be accessed by several different routes that are mainly scrambling at worst (or best) One route is to go from Leprechaun Lake. Ascend south, keeping to the west of a formation called the Prong. Climb to the ridge west of the summit and then scramble up final rocks. A register is reported to be placed very near the summit.

You can also approach from near Crystal Lake and a climber named Randy has a detailed description of his route on a trip report.

From Ingalls Creek, you can approach via Crystal Creek as described in an excellent report by a climber who goes by the name of Mountainwoman

Stefan Feller recently went up from Ingalls Creek and his trip report
is HERE .

An amazing effort that has to be seen to be believed is Jeff Howbert's excellent resource of the Back Court 100 McClellan is listed as number 9 on his list. Great job Jeff.

Climbing on or near McClellan Peak

While McClellan itself is not much more than a scramble, located on its ridge or on its flanks are many worthwhile towers and peaks that are good for short rock climbs. Below is a list of a few of them. Becky's guide has enough beta to get you going. McClellan Peak is more than just a summit, it is an area and a very worthwhile area at that.

Tulip Towers
The Prong (around 7800 feet / prominent north angled needle on the north side of the Chessman)
The Chessmen (seven towers on west end of ridge)
Window Tower
Orange Tower
Bloody Tower
Glockenspiel Tower
Crystal Lake Tower
Three Feathers
Nocturne Tower
Fire Spire
The Turle
Coney Rock
Cruel finger and many more. Rock climbing on short but often dramatic pitches.
All of these plus a drawing of the location and information on each can be found in Fred Beckey's amazing book, Cascade Alpine Guide, Columbia River to Steven's Pass, 3rd edition.
Go to pages 265-271.

Mountain Conditions

The best conditions for visiting the Enchantments and climbing McClellan Peak is generally late June through October, which of course, is dependant on snow and weather conditions. McClellan is not a good place to be during an electrical storm.

Camping

The Enchantments are one of the great places to camp in the Washington Cascades and if you get a permit for the Enchantment Lakes themselves, there are plenty of places to camp at. No campfires are allowed so you need to bring a stove for your cooking needs.

Camping is also available at Nada and Snow Lakes on the Snow Creek trail access and at Colchuck Lake on the Aasgard approach. On Ingalls creek there are several nice places to camp along the river and if you are looking for a car camping campground, then 8 Mile campground on the Icicle Creek is a nice place. Leavenworth has a lot of motels but be warned, they are all expensive as Leavenworth is a very popular tourist town.

Wildlife and miscellaneous information

Gear shops: Leavenworth has two outdoor stores that can provide you with gear should you find your self needing something. Der Sportsman on the main tourist street across from a little park plaza has basic backpacking gear and there is a climbers / river rafter store that has climbing hardware and alot of good information. It is just a block west from the ranger station on the same side of the street. (can someone help me out with the name) The owners of this store are climbers and have a lot of beta on the area.

Dogs and trail bikes are not allowed in the Enchantment core nor are motorized vehicles of any kind as The Enchantments are part of the Alpine Lake Wilderness Area. See the Leavenworth Ranger Station information and scroll down to Wilderness regulations for all of the information just barely touched on above.

Mountain goats and marmots are two of the most prevalent creatures to be found in this area. The mountain goats are not afraid of humans and are plentiful. Remember, they have horns and can pose a danger in certain situations but mainly they want the salt we provide in urine. The forest service urges everyone to 'pee' on the rocks, not on the ground as these animals will tear the fragile ground cover up attempting to get the salt. Marmots can often be found sunning themselves in
the rocky areas (which is everywhere in this area) and marmots are enjoyable to observe.

I've never seen a bear in this area in the 30 years I've been going in and out but proper care and handling of your food is always wise as this could change someday. I know of only one mountain lion (cougar, puma) sighting in the Enchantment area and that was in 1994.

Fishing. Oh yes, there are fish in the lakes and there are climbers who will supplement their larder with freshly caught fish. You must have a Washington state fishing license of course and these are obtainable at Der Sportsman in Leavenworth.

Weather? Here's a source for Leavenworth's

BTW, I found a really nice picture of McClellan Peak taken when the alpine larch were out. It was posted by RPC at the Prussik Peak page.

NOTE:
The bridgework scheduled for July 15th on the Colchuck/Stuart Lake bridges has been moved to August 1st.

Nearby Mountains and Peaks / Maps

The Top 100
Of the 100 highest mountains and peaks in the state of Washington, the Enchantment area has six of them.
Colchuck, Dragontail, Little Annapurna, Enchantment Peak, Cannon Mountain and of course, McClellan. Prusik Peak, while not one of the highest, might be the most popular of the area peaks sought out by climbers. A recent Issue of Rock and Ice featured Prusik on the inside back cover. Further west lies the mass of Mt. Stuart with smaller adjacent peaks of Argonaut and Sherpa peaks. An interesting new website has been developed that includes some of these as the Leavenworth eight You might find this an interesting site to check out.

From the Seattle Mountaineers list of Washington's 100 highest peaks, here are the ones in the Enchantment area. A good trip is to link all of them:
#26 - Dragontail Peak 8840 ft Excellent page
#33 - Colchuck Peak 8705 ft Excellent page
#38 - Cannon Mtn. 8638 ft
#52 - Enchantment pk 8520 ft
#70 - Little Annapurna 8440 ft
#88 - McClellan Peak 8364 ft
You could hit Cannon, then Enchantment, then McClellan, then Lil Annapurna, then Dragontail, and finish with Colchuck. Just an idea of a trip I'd like to do.

If you want to do some rock climbing, be sure to check on the Prusik Peak page (click on it in the overview section) Recently
Prusik Peak was featured in Rock and Ice magazine. Back inside cover pic is super as it was taken during Larch season.

I'm in the process of developing some helpful maps of the area so stay tuned.

Maps and Nomenclature

(Note: the links to the maps are not working so I'll find another home for those maps to link from - sorry)

A quad map of the area can be found by clicking here

For a contour graphicmap of the area, click here. It doesn't show the trailheads but does give a good overall of the area around McClellan Peak

Beckey's Cascade Alpine Guide: Columbia River to Stevens Pass 3rd Edition (see books) has a great drawing of the McClellan Peak routes on page 267 and I encourage anyone interested in getting serious about McClellan Peak to check this page out.

Nomenclature? Well, one confusing situation that has developed over the years is the fact that three of the lakes in the Enchantment area are known by two different names. The U.S. geological / quad maps refer to Inspiration, Perfection and Temple. In a field report by Chuck Hessey (reprinted in Signpost magazine of July 1996), he indicates that it was during his trip that the lakes that some of us call Talisman and Rune were named Inspiration and Perfection by his group. In the early 50's, Bill and Peg Stark felt that the names should be more magical and put their names on the area. Inspiration was Talisman and Perfection became Rune. Those names were never adopted so the current nomenclature is Inspiration and Perfection. Leprechaun and Lake Viviane were kept and their choice of Naid lake is now known as Temple Lake since it sits at the base of Temple Ridge. I myself prefer the Stark's names as I have a difficult time remembering which is which of the current quad map names since Inspiration and Perfection fit both of these lakes. Isolation lake in the Upper Enchantments was named Byrnhild by the Starks.

I received my Stark map from them as I met the Starks on the trail just above Nada Lake on my third trip into the area in 1971.

As I research this out I'll update this information as it comes to light. If any of you know additional details on the names, please feel free to add to this.

Rock and Ice Article

In the November issue of Rock and Ice magazine (#119), just inside the back cover was a picture of Prusik Peak. Some route descriptions were included but most stunning was the picture of Prussik. In the recent issue, January's #121), a reader wrote in to voice objection to the fact that the magazine had focused on the Enchantment area (meaning Prusik in this case) and was concerned about the fact that not enough was said about the permit system and the heavy impact that this area is subject to. Overuse was the concern, too many people. Here's my 2 cents on that. The majority of people now coming into this area (wasn't always this way) understand the LNT ethic. You have to earn your way up to the Enchantments, you pay for it one upward step at a time. You are entitled but do be legal and get the required permit(s) and follow the rules of this fragile high country. It is there for all of us to enjoy so we need to take proper care of it. Here is a pic I took of Prusik that is from the same spot as the Rock and Ice photo.

Weather

Leavenworth is the closest town to the area, the entryway to the Enchantment and Icicle Creek area. A great place to stop and
eat at after an Enchantment trip:

External Links

Disclaimer

Hiking or climbing in a mountain environment has many risks. Weather, animals, accidents, etc. Any who choose to participate in such activities must assume the responsibility for their own actions and safety. Any information provided here is for educational purposes and cannot substitute for your own sound judgement and decision making skills. For example, hiking into an electrical storm or during an electrical storm is reckless and dangerous. It is not my intent to describe every risk you may encounter on visiting this area but the author of this page is not resposible for your safety. You need to be prepared for the unexpected and proceed accordingly. All risks are assumed by the participant.

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