Mt. Grant with Blake // Don't Take Eaton Lake for Grant(ed)

One of the best trails, one of the best alpine lakes, and one of the cloudiest summits I've been on. Bummer. I will definitely go back again!

With a shared day-off from work, Blake and I set out to explore a new area. Since it was overcast, we didn't want anything too cloudy, instead hoping for a straightforward hike.

Ever since the 2021 floods in the Fraser Valley, Skagit valley was closed due to the river eroding the road. Thus, all of the amazing hikes up that valley were off-limits until they finished repairs. Finally, in 2024, the road was re-opened! Blake and I settled on a trail up to Eaton Lake and Mt Grant. We had thoughts of adding Eaton Peak as well if we had time.

We rumbled along the FSR early in the morning, parking at the trailhead for Eaton Lake. Quite quickly, we recognized some efforts from the parks service to resurrect the old trail. Frequent flagging, and branches brushed aside, the trail was easy to follow. I must say, the vibrant green forest was one of the most enjoyable I have ever hiked in, and it was not too steep. We crossed some log-bridges below waterfalls, and

After climbing 900m in 5km to Eaton Lake, we negotiated a tricky section where a bridge had been washed out and not yet repaired. If we had just committed to crossing the stream it would have been a better choice. The views of the lake were stunning, and our eyes were immediately drawn to cliffs on the other side of the lake - I'd like to come back with a packraft and paddle the lake.

From the lake, we crossed back over the mouth of the river and headed North up towards Mt Grant. It was clear that the trail had not been maintained past the lake, so we switched into navigation mode, carefully picking our way up the steep slopes of mossy and chossy rocks and dirt.

After just under 4 hours, we found ourselves socked-in on the summit of Mt Grant. We bundled up in our layers, hoping the clouds would move away for a view. Unfortunately, the fog would not relent, and we decided to head down. Earlier, we had considered attempting Eaton Peak too, but we decided it would be nice to do a shorter adventure for a change and come back on a clearer day.

We took our time on the way down, enjoying some last views of the lake before plodding down the trail to the car.

All in, it was just over a 7 hour day at a relaxed pace, but it was a very steep day, climbing nearly 1900m in 16 km round trip!