Goat Rocks Traverse

A challenging 30 mile loop over the highpoints of the Goat Rocks. Starting at Bear Creek Mtn, walk the ridge all the way to Old Snowy, a spectacular life list journey! Start at the Section 3 Lake TH, and follow trail 1130 through varying meadows to the base of Bear Creek mountain, 2.7 miles. Here at the junction, you will see a sign pointing uphill for the mountain, and this is trail 1130A. The trail up is like a game trail, hard to follow in some places as it goes over jumbled rock. There are cairns to follow as well. The way up is steep, you will gain 1000ft of elevation in about .9 miles. Look for a peak register when you reach the top, only 3.6 miles from the TH. Now, head back down slightly, until you reach an open area about .1 miles back the way you came, that allows you to look down the ridgeline. Head south following the ridge until you reach Devils Horn, at 5.35 miles. You’ll know you’re there by the bright red rock that crowns the peak here. Skirt the horn on the south side, the north is steep and treacherous. At 6.2 miles, you’ll come to a wide flat bench, from which you will catch your first glimpses of Gilbert Peak ahead. Look for elk and goat here, which call this area home. You will continue to sidehill Tieton Peak until you drop down into the Cold Lake basin and follow the green valley upstream to Cold Lake, perched at the bottom of the Conrad Glacier and Gilbert Peak. There’s a nice sandy beach on the bank of the lake that makes an excellent campsite. From the Lake, you will make your way up to a saddle at the base of a large black rock outcropping, obvious as you head uphill west. From this saddle, you must drop down to find a safe route over the permanent snowfield, and up the other side to gain the ridge that you will walk all the way to Old Snowy, and the PCT. When you reach Ives Peak at 3 miles in, it’s best to skirt it on the west side, and once you round the peak, you will see a trail leading up to its apex on the north side, a far easier climb than approaching from the south. Continue finding your way along the wide open ridge to Old Snowy, at 4.16 miles, and peak out on top at 7888ft elevation. Enjoy 360 degree views of this part of the Goat Rocks. Follow the climbers trail down to the junction with the PCT, and now walk the fabled knifes edge of the PCT, a narrow trail that continues to go up and down along the barren ridges here. Once off the ridge, the trail drops down into a meadow covered valley, and here you can find another great campsite in a meadow next to a small tarn, at 7.5 miles. The final push will be long, if you don’t go all the way down to stay at McCall Basin, a 14 mile push that is mostly in the trees. At the bottom, you will ford the Tieton River, and follow a faint, rarely used remnant trail through the Tieton Meadow basin, and uphill to your return trail junction passed on day 1. This last upward push covers 3.3 miles, and you gain over 3100ft of elevation.