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CRISLER TRAVERSE DAY 6
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Along the Bailey Range [148 Kb]
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We woke to beautiful sunny weather on day 6 of our
Crisler Traverse,
but the day's hike turned out to be a long one.
Most of the day was spent walking on snow along the ridge crest of the
Bailey Range in some of the most remote parts of the Olympics.
The views in all directions are magnificent from here, with Mount Olympus to the
west and the Hurricane Ridge area to the northeast. The Goldie River,
a tributary of the Elwha, lay directly below to the east.
This section certainly marked the highlight of the traverse.
Our exit from the Bailey Range came at Dodwell-Rixon Pass, which
separates the Queets and Elwha drainages. The route descends
from the pass via the Elwha Snowfinger, a patch of snow which
remains year round due to the shade provided by the steep hemmed-in
terrain.
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Near Bear Pass [323 Kb]
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Below the snowfinger we eventually found the trail which decends
to Chicago Camp, an established trail camp along the banks of
the upper Elwha River. I had spent a night at Chicago Camp several
years earlier, hiking the 40 km along the Elwha in two days from
the Whiskey Bend trailhead with a college friend.
We had a cold but much needed bath in the river at Chicago Camp,
then prepared and ate supper.
We were back on the trail after supper, climbing the 430 meters to
Low Divide, the pass which separates the Elwha and Quinault Rivers.
Here we set up camp 5 and then promptly turned in for a good
night's sleep in preparation for
day 7.
Other stuff:
Other pictures
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