Abernathy Peak is one of the most straight-forward of Washington’s Top 100 mountains, so I decided to make a day trip out of it.
I started from the Scatter Creek Trailhead, which is a couple of miles before the end of Twisp River Road, shortly after 9 am. The route is immediately a little confusing, because you have to turn off the Twisp River trail by making a right onto the Scatter Creek Trail shortly after departing. Once I found the right trail, it was a matter of switchbacking up through a burn zone and into the Scatter Creek valley. The whole Twisp River valley has been affected by wildfires in recent years, including this slope. The area around Scatter Creek is starting to recover and is weirdly beautiful as plants recover and the blackened trunks of trees remain. Still, I wouldn’t want to be hiking up this slope in the heat of a summer day.
Eventually I left the burn and made it further into the valley, following the trail as it bent west into the larch country and towards Scatter Lake. The larches were just a bit past prime, but it was still a treat to see them in their golden coats. I cruised into Scatter Lake just about 2 hours after leaving the trailhead after covering 4.3 miles with minimal blowdows or other obstacles.
At the lake I took a minute to survey Abernathy, rising up on the opposite shore. It looked like a steep, 1200-foot scree treadmill but not technically difficult. I turned out to be exactly right on this, it was a two steps forward one step back kind of affair but I was able to make steady progress straight up the hillside. It would probably be more pleasant to ascend this slope with spring snow cover, but I didn’t mind not having to use an ice axe or really think about the consequences of a fall in this location.
It took bout 45 minutes to get to Abernathy’s summit from the lake, and about 3 hours from the trailhead – pretty quick for a Bulger! The views were stunning, particularly back in the direction of Silver Star and the rest of the North Cascades. Mostly all the peaks were either snow free or had just received their first light dusting of the fall. It was weird to think that this was one of the last snow-free days these mountains would see until the summer.
After savoring the views, I began plunge-stepping down the scree hillside. It was actually kind of fun and I allowed myself to more or less surf down the mountainside. I was back to the lake in no time, taking another break to appreciate the gem of lake and its larch neighbors.
The rest of the hike out was speedy, and I got back to the Twisp River Road 5 hour and 46 minutes after I started.
Final Stats: 10.8 miles / 5,066 feet of gain
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