Gothic Basin

Sorry, I forgot to mention below that I started out at 11:30, arrived at the upper lake at 2:00, left at 2:40, and arrived back at my car at 4:30.  So that's 2.5 hrs up, and 1.8 down.  I hike at a pretty fast pace when solo, so if I were in a goup or taking it easy, give this 6+ hours round trip with a long lunch and snowball fight up top.

Awesome hike! Made a day trip out of it; started up the road at 10am and got back around 6pm. Once you get up to Foggy Lake, I highly recommend pushing up towards Gothic Peak; the view goes from a 10 to a 20. Also, once you make it down from Gothic Peak you should definitely dip into the lake (only way to do it is go headfirst, otherwise you'll wimp out).

This hike kicked my backside this weekend.... we hiked up Saturday, stayed at the basin for the night and went up to Foggy Lake and beyond with minimal gear Sunday... gorgeous view once we climbed the ledge up from Foggy Lake opposite Del Campo... gorgeous view of Rainier from one of the most enchanting little meadows i've ever seen.

The rumors are true.

This trail will wallop even the best in shape person.

if you plan on this madness, make sure your pack is light and do yourself a favor. Sleep at foggy lake.

Don't be stupid like our group and climb the peak with 40lbs of gear. although it may sound like a good idea, sleeping on the ridge, it was cold, wet and the decent was down right scarey.

The Weden creek trail is more difficult to decend, espically when you're loaded down with quartz crystals, your pack and about 10lbs of rainwater. The views are breathtaking, the trail is madness. If you like pain and the outdoors, then this place is for you! :)

oh yeah, and there are nice quartz crystals at the top of the ridge to the left of foggy lake. remember, camp at lake, scramble without pack!

my boyrfriend, one of our friends, and i went on this hike by mistake in a midnight hike. we were going for monte cristo but the bridge to cross the river was washed out.

im glad we took the wrong trail. i mean it was very difficult for me bu t it was beautiful up there. even in the dark =D

An incredible hike!!! Not easy. Get to the trail head w/ at least 10 hours of daylight if you plan on hiking down the same day.

The rewards are worth it; lakes. waterfalls, views. I captured the pic of a lifetime of my dog. People tell me all the time that it looks like a postcard.

Nov 17, 2007, wonderful cool light rain day for a hike. It is a short 1.5 mile hike from Barlow Pass down the Monte Cristo trail to the TH. Look for a large wooden pedestrian bridge that is on the West side of the trail. This takes you to the TH. Previos reports cover the trail. We made it to 3400 feet and began to see snow. By 3600, snow was all over but the trail was well marked. When we cleared the trees at 3800 feet, snow was about 5 inches and slushy, making for pretty slick movement. The trail at this point was not visible. If we had crampons and ice axe, finishing should have been a gimme, but without it the descent would be dicey in places. Even to this point (about king kong's shower), it is still very enjoyable. 6.5 miles r/t and 1600ft gain by GPS. I would encourage others to bring crampons and an axe for the rest of the season.

This hike was taken by 2 leaders and 4 boy scouts. Though it is rather difficult, the trail was maintained and well worth the trip. You will find a couple areas that you have to climb over a couple boulders but nothing to difficult. Be careful around the washouts as there are a few drops that would result in a not so pleasent trip. We ended up having to set up camp before we reached the top since it was getting dark. Not a lot of room but we made it work.  The next day was wonderful, Gothic Basin is simply beautiful. There are few trees at the top but the water is a deep blue in color. For those who are adventurous, or hot, I am sure you would enjoy an ice cold swim.

Was up at Gothic on Saturday June 11. Very wet day, with some sleet at the top. At this point in time there is still a fair bit of snow towards the top of the trail, with some traverses through snow required. Some trees are down in places on the trail. Despite the wet weather it was still a very rewarding walk, with glimpses of the surrounding mountains through the mist.

Just did as a day hike on 4/9/05. There is still allot of snow on this trail and I would advise anyone attempting it this early in the season to consider using snow shoes. Unfortunately, adverse weather denied us any beautiful views of the basin but the hike out was very scenic. The tough treck was made worthwhile by some glissading on the way back.

A tough hike, especially coming down the steep switchbacks and rock scrambles. But the basin is worth the effort. I liked the unique waterfalls below the basin and the stream that connects Foggy Lake with the lakelet below it, flowing through a fault in the rocks. There was fog at Foggy Lake! Some snow patches in the basin on 8/21/2004. We initially missed the trailhead; it's at your 4 o'clock when you're facing the car bridge at about 1 mile past the parking area.

This hike gets to be pretty strenuous - very steep for much of it with a few rocky scrambles as you get higher up. We saw some people doing it as a day hike, but I recommend camping up there. It is a gorgeous view of all the mountains around with beautiful lakes. You can climb up a ridge between Del Campo Peak and Gothic Peak and you get a great view west, toward the Olympics. Before we reached the top, I was cursing the person who took me on the hike, but now, I'd gladly go back and do it again.