Backpack - Kettle Crest North

9:00am at the Kettle Crest Trailhead on Sherman Pass in north central Washington. 

The time and location may be adjusted slightly depending on conditions and where participants are staying the night before.

After a winter and spring spent among our lovely west-of-the-crest forests, by June all those trees can start to feel claustrophobic yet most of our nearby alpine destinations are still under snow.  In a quest for blue skies and wide open spaces we'll head to north central Washington to visit the Kettle Range, one of the state's "other mountain ranges".

We'll spend a leisurely three days walking along the crest of the Kettles, following the aptly named Kettle Crest Trail north from Sherman Pass (Highway 20) to the boundary of the 2015 burn area.  Our route will take us up and over the highest summit in the range, Copper Butte, which is said to have excellent views of the whole region.  Because it will be prime season in the Kettle Range, we'll go midweek to avoid the crowds and traffic on the mountain passes during our eventual drive home.

This trip is about enjoying the area, taking in the views, and generally being Backpacking Underachievers. Daily mileages and elevation gains are modest.  If the weather is nice we may choose to leave camp a little later than usual, or if it's going to be a warm day we may start early then linger in our next camp in the afternoon.

To extend your trip, consider combining this with Louise Suhr's trip to Kettle Crest South.

The Kettle Crest trail (either North or South) is one of the routes for the Eastern Washington region of the coveted Gold Backpack award badge.

Itinerary

The trip starts and ends at the Kettle Crest Trailhead at Sherman Pass. We'll hike north then return to our starting point via a car shuttle.  Daily distances and campsites are determined in part by the availability of water, which is limited to a small number of reliable springs.  Elevations range from 5600' and 7139', and most of our time will be spent over 6000'.

Day 1 (6.25 miles, 1900' gain, 800' loss): We'll start the day by staging car shuttle vehicles at the destination trailhead.  Then we'll hike north to our first camp, an area with good campsites and a reliable spring located about 6.25 miles north of the trailhead.  (Optional additional trip for lookout-o-philes to Columbia Mountain on route.)

Day 2 (6.2 miles, 1860' gain, 2050' loss): On our middle day we'll continue north and take a brief side tour of the scenic Marcus Trail before reaching the summit of Copper Butte.  Depending on conditions we will probably linger on the summit before heading down to our camp at the intersection of the Kettle Butte and Old Stage trails.  This is a dry camp, and we'll need to walk another 0.4 miles further north to fetch water.  (The daily stats include a 0.8 water fetching trip.)

Day 3 (6.5 miles, 750' gain, 175' loss): From camp we'll head north a couple miles to visit the boundary of the 2015 burn area to see how nature is recovering.  From there we'll double back to the campsite before hiking out to our staged cars.  From the northern head we'll make the brief drive back to our starting trailhead.  If all goes per plan we should be done by mid afternoon.

Special Considerations

• This trip is in north central Washington.  Depending on where you're starting from, the drive from the Seattle area could be 6.5 hours or longer.  You'll want to drive to the area the night before.  There are a few NFS campsites nearby, and lodging in the nearby town of Republic.  Depending on the group, we may arrange a group campsite at either  Sherman Pass or Jungle Hill campground.
• We'll be at elevation on an inland mountain range, so temperatures could vary widely.  We'll need to be prepared for highs in the upper 70s and lows in the upper 30s.  Our actual temps will probably be in between, but we'll need to be prepared for the extremes just in case.
• We'll be out in the sun most of the time.  Sunblock, good sunglasses, and a hat with a brim will be essential.
• We'll be getting our water from springs.  Pump filters will probably work better than squeeze bags or gravity filters.  We may be able to share filters among the group.
• This trip involves a car shuttle.  We'll need at least three drivers to make it all work.  Assuming COVID conditions are favorable by June, we'll be riding with 2 - 3 people per car for a drive of around 45 minutes.

COVID CONSIDERATIONS

Depending on whatever COVID guidance is in place in June, this trip is tentatively expected to require: 1) full COVID vax and booster, and 2) a negative at-home test immediately before the trip.  Details TBA as the date of the trip approaches.

Leaders Permission

This trip is open to anyone who has the Basic Backpacking Skills badge or the Basic Backpacking Course Student badge and has completed the course field trip.  If you meet either of those criteria you have permission to register, and there is no need to contact the leader.  

Please use good judgment when self-assessing whether your fitness level is sufficient for this trip.  If your online Activity History does not show any recent activities with similar distance/gain, the leader may contact you to inquire about your fitness level.

If you are an experienced backpacker who does not yet have the Basic Backpacking Skills badge, see Basic Backpacking Skills Equivalency.