I love this hike. It’s fun to go to Windy Pass as a day hike…it’s long, so you feel like you’ve accomplished something at the end of the day. The trip covers a wide variety of terrain: gentle climbing through the forest, steep hillside climbing through an old burn, a couple of high mountain lakes, alpine meadows, ending on a windswept ridge near Mount Cashmere. This hike has it all.
Maps: Green Trails #2905 (The Enchantments). View our topo map (8.5’x11” portrait/landscape or 8.5”x14” portrait/landscape). Note: use ‘Print Preview’ before printing to properly scale this map to a full sheet of paper.
Activities: HikingNearest Town: LeavenworthSkill Level: 2Fitness Level: 3Distance: It’s 5.5 miles one-way to Lake Caroline, 8 miles one-way to the top of Windy Ridge. For those excessively ambitious (not me), you can continue along the ridgeline to Mount Cashmere. Looks fun, but I’m always more inclined to lie down at Windy Ridge and take a bit of a nap.
Elevation: This hike begins at 3,300 feet and ends at Windy Pass, elevation 7,200.
Recommended Season: Spring, summer, fall
Access: From Leavenworth take the Icicle River Road approximately 8 miles to the Bridge Creek Campground. Turn left on road 7601 and cross the bridge over the Icicle Creek. Follow this road about 3 miles to the well-signed trailhead.
Trip Instructions: The first 2.8 miles of this hike is the same trail (#1552) that takes you to Eightmile Lake. The trail gains 1,100 feet in elevation in the first 2.8 miles, so the going is easy. At 2.8 miles is a natural resting spot at Little Eightmile Lake. This is the first and only trail intersection. The Eightmile Lake trail continues on and the Lake Caroline trail (#1554) heads up the hill. Follow trail #1554 for a little under two miles as it switchbacks its way up the hillside. On a hot day, this can be a real “cooker”, so you’re best to start early to be on this part of the trail early in the day. There’s no available water from here until you get to Lake Caroline. At about mile 4.8 you will be looking down into Lake Caroline. Continue down the hill and follow the trail as it circles around the lake to the right. Continue past the lake and through the trees toward Little Caroline Lake (half mile farther down the trail). Both lakes have good camp sites. We noticed some revegetation work at Lake Caroline, so be sure you stay on the trails. There’s also a pit toilet at Lake Caroline (a bonus if you’re camping). Continue past Little Caroline Lake—this is where the trail really starts to get fun. At about mile 6.5 you reach the alpine meadows…expansive views, lots of animal tracks (where were those darned goats?) and an incline that is not too taxing. Windy Pass arrives a lot sooner than you would expect…I kept thinking we were aiming for a different destination, when “voila” we arrived at the pass. The pass has plenty of room for stretching out and looking at the views through half-closed (and drowsy) eyes. The 360-degree views can’t be beat.
Misc: Don’t be faked out by the weather at the trailhead. We have done this hike several times and generally are stunned by the conditions we find at the pass. In one of my younger and dumber moments I started this hike on a warm fall day dressed in shorts and a T-shirt with minimal extra clothing. Everyone I met coming down the trail was dressed in down coats, fleece hats, and what appeared to me to be excessively warm gear. The higher I hiked, the more obvious it became that I was significantly under-prepared. The pass was cool and misty—perfect hypothermia weather, so I was forced to abandon the hike before I reached the pass. This time I hiked with the full complement of gear: wind pants, fleece hat, gloves, and down coat. And “No”, I didn’t need it, but it sure made a great pillow at the pass.
Uses Allowed: Hiking, horses. This is part of the Enchantments, so dogs are not allowed.
Fees/Permits: This is part of the Enchantments, so overnight use requires a permit that must be obtained in advance. Permit season for overnight trips is mid-June to mid-October. Call the Leavenworth Ranger Office (509-548-6977) to get the details. Day trips do not require an advance permit. Just sign in at the trailhead for day trips. You will need a Northwest Forest Pass to park at the trailhead.
More Info/Links: Related article: Backpacking Like a Girl
Reporter: Carolyn Griffin-Bugert, October 2006
Leave It Better Than You Found It: This should be every outdoor user’s goal. Pick up trash left by others, pull noxious weeds along your route, disperse old fire rings (they encourage more fires), throw branches over spur trails and spurs between switchbacks (make it harder to do the wrong thing than the right thing).
Important Disclaimer: Treat this information as recommendations, not gospel. Things change, conditions change, and those contributing these reports are volunteers--they may make mistakes, fail to give complete information, or may not know all the issues affecting a route. So forget about finger pointing: If things go wrong, you are completely responsible for yourself and your actions. If you can’t live with that, you are prohibited from using our information.