KUOW Hike of the Week- Contest

This was updated on Friday October 28. This hike is in Mt. Rainier National Park and the trailhead is off of Hwy 410 east of Enumclaw. There might be some patchy snow on the ground near the Upper Lake so a ski pole and some good hiking boots would be an excellent idea. Access to this trailhead closes near Thanksgiving time. For the best chance of views of Mt. Rainier Saturday would be better than Sunday. Chance of light morning showers on Saturday and steady precipitation for Sunday.
Photo below is view of the Upper Crystal Lake, photo by Karen Sykes
Photo below is view of Rainier less than one mile into hike, photo by Michael Fagin
Photo below is view of Mt. Rainier from above Upper Crystal Lake, photo below is by Michael Fagin
Photo below is view of Upper Crystal Lake from trail above the lake, photo by Michael Fagin
Photo below is some of the fall colors at the basin near Upper Crystal Lake, photo by Karen Sykes

Photo below are more fall colors at the basin at Upper Crystal Lake, photo by Karen Sykes

Trail stats: 6 miles round trip with 2,300 feet of gain
Driving Directions: From Enumclaw drive SR 410 east toward Chinook Pass -- the trailhead is 4.5 miles past the entrance to Mt Rainier National Park or about 42 miles east of Enumclaw. Parking on both sides of the road. The map is Green Trails No. 270 Mount Rainier East.
Trail and driving directions provided by Karen Sykes as well as some of the photos. Trail stats and driving directions are our best estimates so please drive a map and or a GPS
CONTEST

Question How much snow will be on the ground at Paradise Ranger Station on 12-1-2011 at 1 am.
Rules: 1 Winner is the first person who has entered with the correct guess or closest guess, 2. In the event of a tie the winner is first who has entered with the correct guess or closest guess, 3. One guess per family, 4. Guesses must be in by November 7, 2011 by 1 am and email them to
enter guess here
First place prize: New waterproof, lightweight Platypus Origin 5 hydration pack designed to keep you comfortably hydrated on half- or ultralight full-day excursions. Features a 2L Platypus Big Zip SL reservoir plus 5L of gear storage http://cascadedesigns.com/platypus/hydration-packs/origin-5/product

Second place prize. Backpacking Washington, By Craig Romano
http://www.amazon.com/Backpacking-Washington-Overnight-Multi-Day-Routes/dp/1594851107/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1318184187&sr=1-1" />

Weather forecast and extended early November

Weather for the Northwest for the period November 2 through November 8 is calling for below normal temperatures and above normal precipitation. The map below is the 500 mb map (18,000 feet) for this period and this indicates a zonal flow. Zonal flow is a westerly flow to bring weather systems in and out of the region. However, with this pattern we will still expect some dry weather is we get some brief ridges of high pressure that build from time to time.

Contest & Extended Weather

CONTEST

Question How much snow will be on the ground at Paradise Ranger Station on 12-1-2011 at 1 am.
Rules: 1 Winner is the first person who has entered with the correct guess or closest guess, 2. In the event of a tie the winner is first who has entered with the correct guess or closest guess, 3. One guess per family, 4. Guesses must be in by November 7, 2011 by 1 am and email them to
enter guess here
First place prize: New waterproof, lightweight Platypus Origin 5 hydration pack designed to keep you comfortably hydrated on half- or ultralight full-day excursions. Features a 2L Platypus Big Zip SL reservoir plus 5L of gear storage http://cascadedesigns.com/platypus/hydration-packs/origin-5/product

Second place prize. Backpacking Washington, By Craig Romano
http://www.amazon.com/Backpacking-Washington-Overnight-Multi-Day-Routes/dp/1594851107/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1318184187&sr=1-1" />

Extended Outlook
Map below is 500 mb (at about 18,000 feet) for Friday October 28. This indicates a ridge of high pressure that rebuilds over the west. With this pattern we can expect above average temperatures with below average precipitation. This seems to be the pattern as we move form 10-28 to 11-1.

KUOW Hike of the Week- Easton Ridge- Contest

Updated: Friday October 14, 2011
With snow on the ground close to 5000 feet in many locations this hike is great as it is snowfree. This hike is located about 16 miles east of Snoqualmie Pass near Lake Easton. This weekend will bring some clouds and slight chance of a few showers but if any showers should be light. Bonus hike, Rachel Lake, scroll to the end
Photo below is typical fall colors, photo by Alan Bauer
Photo below is hikers going up small knob, photo by Alan Bauer

Photo below is view of Easton Lake, Photo by Karen Sykes

Photo below is summit meeting on top of Easton Ridge, photo by Karen Sykes



Driving Directions:
From Seattle drive I-90 east and get off at Exit 70. Proceed over the freeway and turn left onto frontage road (signed Kachess Dam Road), continue to Forest Service Road No. 4818 and turn right. Stay on Road No. 4818 to an unsigned road junction, turn right, continue to the trailhead, elevation 2,400 feet (it is also the trailhead for Kachess Ridge). For Easton Ridge turn right on a path to Silver Creek, a few paces upstream you’ll find the bridge. A Northwest Forest Pass is required.

Trail stats: From the trailhead to the rocky outcroppings on the ridge crest it is approximately 7 miles round-trip with about 1,700-1,900 feet elevation gain. High point is at about 4500 feet.
Driving directions and trail stats by Karen Sykes
Remember this information is our best estimation so you should have a current map and or GPS to assist you.

CONTEST

Question How much snow will be on the ground at Paradise Ranger Station on 12-1-2011 at 1 am.
Rules: 1 Winner is the first person who has entered with the correct guess or closest guess, 2. In the event of a tie the winner is first who has entered with the correct guess or closest guess, 3. One guess per family, 4. Guesses must be in by November 7, 2011 by 1 am and email them to
enter guess here
First place prize: New waterproof, lightweight Platypus Origin 5 hydration pack designed to keep you comfortably hydrated on half- or ultralight full-day excursions. Features a 2L Platypus Big Zip SL reservoir plus 5L of gear storage http://cascadedesigns.com/platypus/hydration-packs/origin-5/product

Second place prize. Backpacking Washington, By Craig Romano
http://www.amazon.com/Backpacking-Washington-Overnight-Multi-Day-Routes/dp/1594851107/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1318184187&sr=1-1" />
MORE HIKES

Rachel Lake
Photo below is just one example of all the colors, photo by Michael Fagin
Photo below is view of Hibox Mounatain (6500 feet), notice new snow at about 5000 feet and above, photo by Michael Fagin
Photo below shows more fall colors at their peak, photo by Maria Lamarca Anderson

Driving Directions
From Seattle take I-90 east to exit 62 (signed "Kachess Lake"). Turn left from the exit ramp and drive northeast and follow the signs to Lake Kachess Campground. Turn left on FR 4930, which goes about 4 miles to a large parking lot and the trailhead at the road's end.

Trail stats
Roundtrip 8.0 miles
Elevation Gain 1600 feet
Highest Point 4600 feet

Weather Washington Cascades October 20, 2011

Forecast models are indicating a flat ridge of high pressure for the period October 20 to October 26. This type of pattern will lead to average to above average temperatures with close to average precipitation. The map below is at the 500 mb level (close to 18,000 to 19,000 feet) indicates this. Notice the ridge just east of Washington and a trough of low pressure to the west of Washington.

Weather outlook- pattern to October 15

An active storm track over the Pacific Northwest will keep temperatures below normal and precipitation above normal as we move towards the middle of the month.