Peak Summer in the Goat Rocks

Trip Report

There are so many ways a trip to the mountains can go wrong. It might rain, it might be too hot, the participants might cancel, there could be too much snow or too little, expected highlights like wildflowers or wildlife might disappoint, and smoke from forest fires could force a retreat back to the trailhead. All of these worries gnawed away at me in the weeks leading up to my Goat Rocks Wilderness outing.

I proposed the trip in June and scheduled it for the middle of July. As the weeks passed and the weekend of the outing approached I nervously checked the weather; hoping for a forecast that would be dry, but not too hot. I also followed news reports about numerous wildfires burning around Washington State. I had reason to worry, this was my second attempt at the Goat Rocks. My first attempt ended in disappointment—smoke from forest fires forced us to abandon our trip early. What little I saw my first time there was amazing enough to make me want to return. I hoped this time would be different. I looked forward to seeing what I missed during my initial abortive foray into the Goat Rocks Wilderness.

Despite all my worries, the trip was still a go. It began on the morning of Saturday, July 20th as an "alpine start" in Seattle. I woke up at 3:30 a.m. so that I could meet my carpool and leave Seattle at 4 a.m. Our destination was the Goat Rocks' Snowgrass trailhead; a 3+ hour drive from the Seattle-area. It was cool in the pre-dawn darkness, but the mild temperatures were not going to last. The Pacific Northwest was in the middle of a heatwave. Making an early start was good for multiple reasons, but the biggest motivator was the high in Packwood (the town closest to the Goat Rocks) was forecast to be 100 °F. I wanted us to gain altitude and cooler temperatures before the heat of the day hit.

There were seven of us in total. Joining me for the weekend were Julie, Addie, Dima, Daniel, Rhett & Kate. Everyone on the trip had been either an instructor or student in the Boeing Alpine Society (BOEALPS) Basic Mountaineering Class (BMC) that spring. I organized the trip through the BOEALPS Summer Climb Series' (SCS) Bag-It Night, which is held in June the week after BMC graduation. It is an event with speakers and free pizza. Club members propose a climb and put out a sign-up sheet (on paper, very old-school) for people to sign-up.

Between instructors and students, the BMC has over one hundred and twenty participants and is broken down into eight teams. I was an instructor and Team Lead in the class. The class is fun, but a lot of work, especially if you are a Lead. By June I was burnt out on organizing and leading trips, but if you want to do fun things you cannot sit on your ass and hope they will happen. After a long stressful day at work all I usually want to do is veg out. I almost skipped Bag-It Night, but I dragged myself off the couch and drove to the meeting.

Most trips are capped at twelve participants due to National Park and Wilderness Area party size limits. My trip, like most trips, filled up and had a waitlist. Even in our digital age there is still no substitute for meeting in person with paper maps to explain your trip plan to get people interested in joining an activity. Trying to organized a trip through BOEALPS' social media channels never works—I know, I've tried and failed.

As the weekend approached, people dropped out of the trip right up to the last minute. I expected this. The previous summer I participated in several Summer Climb Series outings and saw the same thing happen where a full trip with a waitlist dwindled down to less than half dozen participants. Still, when you are the organizer it is not fun to see one person after another withdraw and you have to wonder if everyone will cancel and all the time you invested into planning the trip will be for naught.

The Goat Rocks are south-east of Mount Rainier. You can see them from Rainier's Camp Muir. They are the heavily eroded remnants of an ancient volcano. They are what Rainier will look like in a few million years. Even though the range is relatively close to Seattle, it's not as well-known as you would expect given the proximity to a popular National Park. Most people I spoke to about the Goat Rocks said they had never heard of them before.

The turnoff for the Snowgrass trailhead is off Highway 12 near the town of Packwood. From there it's sixteen miles of forest service gravel roads to the Snowgrass trailhead. By the standards of forest service roads, they are in very good shape, but they are still gravel roads. So, there were multiple sections of washboard road and a few potholes. We arrived a little after 7 a.m. In my trip plan I hoped we would start hiking by 8 a.m., but everyone was early and had their gear together so we were on the trail by 7:30 a.m.

Graduating from the BMC is a prerequisite for participating in a SCS trip. The BMC is an eleven-week course that feels like mountaineering boot camp. Basic Class trips always start in the morning at seven o'clock sharp. The expectation is that participants arrive early so the team can move on time no matter how long the drive to the trailhead is (usually a couple hours). It is class policy not to wait for anyone who is late—if you are late you miss the outing. It teaches the students to be organized and punctual. I was pleased to see how efficient everyone was. I felt I should thank their BMC Team Leads.

No reservations are required, but we were expected to fill out a free backcountry wilderness permit at the trailhead. Although the general public are not aware of the Goat Rocks, it's still popular and gets a lot of visitors. There were numerous signs at the trailhead warning about the potential for crowds on the trial, explaining Leave No Trace principals, listing Wilderness Regulations, and begging people not to feed the wildlife.

The start of the hike was a classic Cascades forest hike through thick evergreen forest of Douglas Fir and Western Red Cedar. About halfway up, we crossed a bridge over the swiftly flowing waters of Goat Creek. We made good time, reaching the tree line a little after 10 a.m. As we left the forest, the views opened up and the scenery changed dramatically. We had arrived at Snowgrass Flat. To the northeast we could see the long ridgeline of the Goat Rocks, while to the south we had (for the moment) a clear view of Mount Adams. Continuing up the pathway to the juncture with the Pacific Crest Trail we arrived at the location where the hike turns into the scenery that the Goat Rocks are famous for.

Even before reaching the alpine meadows of Snowgrass Flat we started to see clumps of pink mountain heather and the white blossoms of avalanche lilies, promising greater things to come. When planning the trip, I was really concerned about picking the right weekend to maximize the wildflowers. There are large alpine meadows in the Goat Rocks Wilderness; I've heard stories from friends about of vast fields of wildflowers. It all depends on when the snow melts. If we were there too early, there would be too much snow the meadows would not be in bloom. The last time I was there was late-August; it was well past wildflower season. According to the ranger station, peak wildflower season is typically between mid-July through early-August, but it varies from year-to-year depending how heavy the winter snowpack was.

The meadows delivered on expectations. They were a kaleidoscope of colors: red Scarlet Paintbrush, yellow five-petal Fan-leaf Cinquefoil, shaggy white seedheads of Western Pasqueflower, the purple corolla of Cusick's Speedwell, yellow dandelion-like Short-beaked Agoseris, and the compact white blooms of Woolly Pussytoes. It was exactly the sort of place you expect to see Julie Andrews twirling through the meadows like at the beginning of the Sound of Music.

A portion of the Pacific Crest Trail's Section H runs through the Goat Rocks Wilderness., that was our route to Old Snowy. We followed the PCT across an open rocky slope. As seen from the south, Old Snowy is not very impressive. Its south face is completely snow free and looks like nothing more than the high point on the northern end of the Goat Rocks ridgeline. We were looking for a campsite somewhere off the PCT and relatively close to Old Snowy. The plan was to setup camp quickly and then with much lighter packs climb Old Snowy and Ives peak.

From the Goat Rocks you should be treated to stunning views of Mounts Rainier, Adams, and St. Helens. However, there were active fires burning in Eastern Washington and the North Cascades. Smoke from those fires just reached the Goat Rocks on Saturday. Subsequently, the views deteriorated as the day wore on. As we approached Old Snowy, our view of Mount Adams faded behind by a thickening haze. Continuing along the trail we gained views of Mount Rainier, but it too was partially obscured by bands of wildfire smog. The most we ever saw of St. Helens was a dark smudge through the smoke.

I grew anxious that history would repeat itself and we would be engulfed in smoke and have to leave the Goat Rocks early. Sadly, in recent years, smoke from forest fires has become a regular thing. I grew up in Washington State; it didn't used to be like this. It's not just in the mountains anymore either. It's now an annual occurrence that Seattle gets smothered by smog from fires in August or September, spoiling a couple of the best weeks of summer. In spite of my fears, we continued. In the end we got lucky—the prevailing winds kept the worst of the smoke away.

On our way to Old Snowy we crossed a couple small snowfields. None of us brought microspikes. It was already very warm so the surface of the firm névé snow was soft enough for us to get a solid footing, but if we were there earlier in the season or in cooler weather, we would have needed traction assistance. That said, it was good that there was still snow. If there was too little, there might not be any sources of water high in the Goat Rocks.

We found a nice campsite off the PCT. After quickly setting up our tents and dropping all our camping gear we headed for the summits of the Goat Rocks. A PCT spur trail took us to the base of Old Snowy. From there the rest of the way to the top required easy 3rd class scrambling. Third class scrambling is not technical climbing but does require you to use your hands. Also, exposure is limited—a fall should not be fatal, but could result in a broken bone. We were on the summit at 1:45 p.m. It was a majestic view from Old Snowy. We could see the top of Rainier poking out above the low-lying bands of smoke to our north. Our next object, Ives Peak, was visible to the south. Beyond Ives we could just make out Gilbert Peak through the haze.

On Old Snowy we met a couple guys with ice axes and crampons. Like us, they were tagging Old Snowy and Ives Peak on Saturday, but Sunday they were headed for Gilbert Peak, the highest point in the Goat Rocks Wilderness. From Old Snowy it looked like the easiest approach to Gilbert was up a forty-five-degree snow ramp, so they might have needed both the crampons and ice axes.

From Old Snowy it was a dusty traverse across the Goat Rocks ridgeline to Ives Peak. It's under a mile, but it takes time. We were scrambling up and down along the mountain's undulating spine all while route-finding the trail which was not always obvious. About half way across we passed a cool looking natural arch made of eroded pyroclastic rock.

During the crossing I regretted that I did not bring trail runner style gaiters. I was wearing low-top Merrell Moab hiking shoes which accumulated detritus as we crossed the sandy scree slopes. I repeatedly had to take off my shoes to pour out sand and pebbles. Both Old Snowy and Ives Peak are covered with a combination of scree and talus. The distinction between scree and talus is not precise, but they are both forms of eroded rock that accumulate on the sides of mountains. Scree is generally small rocks from the size of pebbles up to fist-sized rocks. Talus is larger rocks up to the size of boulders.

At first glance the Goat Rocks ridge appeared devoid of life, but even on the barren slopes of Old Snowy Mountain and Ives Peak we encountered small clumps of flowers sprouting out of seemingly the most inhospitable environment. From the red Martian soil on Old Snowy and the grey Lunar regolith of Ives Peak sprouted small swatches of color: lavender Davidson's Penstemon, yellow Alpine Gold, purple Alpine Phacelia, and white Fleabane.

When we reached the base of Ives Peak, we dropped our packs and scrambled up to the top. Ives is not difficult to climb, but it takes longer and requires slightly more challenging 3rd class scrambling than Snowy. There was a lot of loose rock on both Old Snowy and Ives Peak that someone above you could accidentally kick down, so helmets are recommended. We summited Ives Peak at 4 p.m. From the summit of Ives Peak we were rewarded with views of Old Snowy and the whole Goat Rocks Wilderness. From that perspective, Snowy looked like a proper pointy mountain summit and its northern slope was covered with snow.

After summiting Ives Peak we descended back towards Snowgrass Flat and the PCT. When we reached an area crisscrossed by small brooks we stopped to filter water. It was a beautiful spot. The Snowgrass flat area is dotted with glacial erratics, out-of-place boulders in the middle of the meadows deposited by retreating glaciers at the end of the last Ice Age. The largest one was bigger than a house and cleft down the middle with trees growing in the gap. It looked like a landscape out of a fantasy novel.

Lying in the grasses of the lush, wildflower covered alpine meadows of Snowgrass Flat, listening to the gentle sound of buzzing insects and the babbling of small snowmelt creeks, on a warm summer afternoon, while gazing up at blue skies, I thought, "This is the peak of summer." It was a feeling both joyous and sad. Although we still had almost six weeks of reliably good weather left ahead of us, the days were already getting shorter. I was running out of time to do everything I still wanted to do in the outdoors before the seasons turned and the long dark of wet grey winter in Western Washington returned. The thought cast a shadow over a moment of bliss.

We were back in camp by 7 p.m. Everyone was relaxed and in a good mood. Although our first day clocked in close to twelve hours, over eleven miles, and around five thousand feet of elevation gain, by the standards of BOEALPS, it felt like a very leisurely pace. We had a beautiful campsite. We ate dinner around sunset. The horizon glowed deep red. The only good thing about smoky skies is that they make for beautiful sunsets. It was a fine end to a good day.

The only negative thoughts I had was a general worry about the future of the Goat Rocks Wilderness. It seems like an area in danger of being loved to death. The outdoors is getting more popular and Washington State's population keeps growing every year. There is also what's called the "Instagram Effect" (not a filter for your photos) where some social media influencer posts a photo or video of someplace beautiful and then hordes of people overwhelm the same spot armed with their phone's camera. If you have thru-hiked the Alpine Lakes Wilderness' Enchantments in recent years, you know how bad the crowds can get.

The fact that you are reading this means that I'm part of the problem. Unfortunately, there is no putting that genie back in the bottle. The Internet and social media exist, so our duty now is to educate the public about how to enjoy nature responsibly. The goal is to prevent the "tragedy of the commons", the idea that a resource everyone shares but no one is responsible for will get used up and ruined. A good way to do that is to follow the 7 Principals of Leave No Trace.

One of the 7 Principals we followed was to Travel & Camp on Durable Surfaces. So, what that means is stick to the trails and to don't take short cuts. Don't run out into the middle of the wildflower meadows to get a photo and trample the plants along the way. The growing season in the Alpine environment when it is snow free is very short so the plant life is fragile—it can take years to recover once damaged. Also, you do not need to make new campsites in the Goat Rocks. There are no formally designated campsites in the Wilderness, but over the years people have cleared plenty of tent sites. So, just re-use existing site.

Another rule is to Leave What You Find. This is often phrased as "Take only photographs, leave only footprints." So, don't pick the flowers and don't take souvenir rocks. It can seem like a trivial impact, but if thousands of people do the same thing it will not be long before there are no flowers left and the ground in popular areas will be just bare dirt.

A third principal is to Minimize Campfire Impacts. Where we camped there is very little material to make a campfire and creating a new firepit would scar the ground for years. Instead, we brought integrated canister stoves (Jetboil, MSR WindBurner, etc.) for melting snow to top off water bottles, rehydrate freeze-dried meals, and for coffee in the morning.

A fourth principal we followed was to Dispose of Waste Properly. That's generally an easy rule to follow. Do not litter and pack out all your trash. That includes organic material like food waste. Orange peels and apple cores are not a part of the mountain environment and are litter. That is the easy part, the more challenging thing is what to do with your human solid waste.

If you are camping in the forest at lower elevations, you can dig a cathole a safe distance from water sources like described in the book How to Shit in the Woods. However, above the treeline the alpine biome is not a suitable place to bury your feces. The soil is too thin and the short snow-free season means it will take a very long time for your waste to decompose. The environmentally responsible solution is that you have is pack out your poop and toilet paper. It's gross, but necessary.

We've all gotten used to picking up our dog's poop when taking them for a walk, this is no different. When I was growing up, no one picked up after their dogs. There was dog shit everywhere and it was common to accidentally step in it. It's great that now that it's no longer a nuisance. If we are able to keep our neighborhoods poo-free we can do the same for our alpine playground too.

Saturday night after we went to bed, I lay in my tent hoping that I could make it back to the trailhead without having to go, but eventually I had to admit to myself that I wouldn't make it. Ugh. So, I went out into the dark night to take care of my business. You can buy WAG bag for your number two, but for free you can get "blue bags" from National Forest and National Park ranger stations. I prefer the blue bags, they are lighter and better for the environment; WAG bags seem heavy and over-packaged to me.

Blue bags are a double plastic bag system: an inner blue plastic bag like dog poop bags and an outer clear heavier duty plastic bag that you put the blue bag into. After I've picked up my excrement and toilet paper (glove style), I secure the blue bag in the outer bag with the two provided twist ties. I then stow it in the water bottle sleeve on the outside of my backpack. As soon as I get back to civilization I dispose of the blue bag in a dumpster. In my toiletries kit I always carry a travel sized bottle of hand sanitizer or if I'm really counting the ounces, single use hand wipes.

It was a warm night on Saturday, but on Sunday morning the weather started cooling off dramatically. We even got sprinkled on intermittently, but the rain held off. Julie thru-hiked the whole Pacific Crest Trail in 2023 and recommended the trail out to Elk Pass for the views. So, before our hike back to the trailhead we did an out-and-back hike to Elk Pass which rewarded us with vistas of the Goat Rocks Wilderness area that we could not see from the Snowgrass side. We had a good view of the McCall Glacier and from this angle Old Snowy looks like a snow-covered mountain. After Elk Pass we took Goat Ridge trail back to the Snowgrass trailhead, passing Goat Lake on the way.

Although the area is called the Goat Rocks, we never saw any mountain goats. The area gets its name because mountain goats were once abundant here, but in recent years they have become scarce. I called the ranger station when planning the trip and they cautioned that I would be unlikely to see mountain goats. On the trail to Elk Pass we did see goat droppings and hoof prints in the snow, so they are there, but they were not showing themselves. Dogs and horses are allowed in the Goat Rocks Wilderness and the Snowgrass area is the most popular part of the Wilderness area. My guess is that the goats avoid that area in favor of parts of the range less traveled by humans.

On the way out, we took the Goat Ridge trail. To get to the trail we crossed big talus fields of jagged broken slate. The geology was very interesting there. It did not look like any place else I've been to in Washington State. Walking across it looked like and sounded like crossing fields of giant pottery shards.

Before we could begin the descent down Goat Ridge we had to hike up to Goat Lake. Although it was July Goat Lake was still frozen and just melting out at the edges. The Goat Ridge trail is a beautiful hike in its own right, with even more wildflower covered alpine meadows, but it couldn't compete with the dramatic scenery of the previous day. The Goat Ridge trail takes you to the Berry Patch trailhead, but there is a short connector trail that leads back to the Snowgrass trailhead. After the outing we went to Packwood Brewing for beer & brats. On the way back, just past Mount Rainier National Park in the town of Greenwater, we stopped at Wapiti Outdoors for ice cream.

I definitely recommend an early start for the first day in the Goat Rocks if your plan is to scramble up Old Snowy Mountain and Ives Peak. It allowed us to tag both summits, while still getting back to camp by dinner time. Our weekend was a very enjoyable backpacking trip with some easy scrambling, but if you are looking for a more ambitious trip in the Goat Rocks you could add on Gilbert Peak.

Maps

The 7 Principles of Leave No Trace

From the Leave No Trace website:

The 7 Principles of Leave No Trace provide an easily understood framework of minimum impact practices for anyone visiting the outdoors. The Principles can be applied anywhere — from remote wilderness areas, to local parks and even in your backyard. Each Principle empowers you to minimize your impacts.

1. Plan Ahead and Prepare
   When outdoor visitors plan ahead and prepare, it helps to accomplish trip goals safely and enjoyably while simultaneously minimizing damage to the land. Poor planning often results in a less enjoyable experience and damage to natural and cultural resources.
2. Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces
   The goal of travel outdoors is to move through natural areas while avoiding damage to the land, foliage, or waterways. Understanding how travel causes impacts is necessary to accomplish this goal. Travel damage occurs when surface vegetation or communities of organisms are trampled beyond recovery. After traveling to an area, we can have a significant effect on where we decide to camp. The resulting barren area leads to soil erosion and the development of undesirable trails or trampled areas. By understanding the best practices to travel and camp on durable surfaces responsibly, we can minimize human impact on outdoor spaces.
3. Dispose of Waste Properly
   The waste humans create while enjoying outdoor spaces can have severe impacts if not disposed of properly. It is crucial to anticipate the types of waste you will need to dispose of and know the proper techniques for disposing of each type of waste in the area you are visiting. Leave No Trace encourages outdoor enthusiasts to consider the impacts they leave behind, which will undoubtedly affect other people, water, and wildlife.
4. Leave What You Find
   The items we find in nature have a role to play, either in the ecosystem or the story of the landscape. Leaving what we find in place helps to preserve both. Allow others a sense of discovery by leaving rocks, plants, archaeological artifacts, and other objects of interest as you find them.
5. Minimize Campfire Impacts
   Once necessary for cooking and warmth, campfires are steeped in history and tradition. Some people would not think of camping without a campfire. Campfire building is also an essential skill for every camper. Yet, the natural appearance of many areas has been degraded by the overuse of fires and increasing demand for firewood. Moreover, wildfires continue to threaten outdoor spaces and are primarily caused by humans. We can minimize campfire impacts by using a lightweight stove. Or, if building a fire: use established fire rings, keep fires small, and when done put out fire completely with water.
6. Respect Wildlife
   Whenever you are in an outdoor space, you are in the natural habitat of many wild animals and should work to minimize your impact on them. Human impacts on wildlife can result in negative human-wildlife interactions, aggressive animals, a decline in the ecosystem’s health, and relocated or euthanized animals. All these impacts can be avoided if visitors respect wildlife on all outdoor trips. The basics: observe wildlife from a distance, never feed animals, control pets at all times or leave them at home, and avoid wildlife during sensitive times (mating, nesting, raising young, winter).
7. Be Considerate of Others
   One of the most important components of outdoor ethics is to maintain courtesy toward others. It helps everyone enjoy their outdoor experience. Excessive noise, uncontrolled pets, and damaged surroundings detract from the natural appeal of the outdoors. Being considerate of others ensures everyone can enjoy nature no matter how they interact with it.

References

Asars, Tami. Day Hiking: Mount Adams and Goat Rocks : Indian Heaven, Yakima Area, White Pass. Seattle : Mountaineers Books, 2014.

Green Trails Maps. Goat Rocks/William O. Douglass Wilderness No. 303S. Map, 1:63360. Seattle : Green Trails Inc., 2013. Latest Revision 2021.
If you like physical maps, the Green Trails series are great. I highly recommend this one. They sell them at REI.

Turner, Mark, & Gustafson, Phyllis. Wildflowers of the Pacific Northwest. Portland, OR : Timber Press, 2006 (Ninth printing, 2017).

Meyer, Kathleen. How to shit in the Woods: An environmentally sound approach to a lost art. 3rd ed. Berkeley, CA : Ten Speed Press, 2011.