Katie, Eric and I set out for a fun camping and climbing adventure out of Monte Cristo – and what better way to reach the old ghost town than by bike?? I had read about an old wagon road that could be a good alternative to the standard Monte Cristo trail because it bypasses the South Fork Sauk river crossing and washed-out section of trail. The road leaves the Mountain Loop highway about ¾ of a mile east of Barlow Pass. Katie and Eric would both be using E-bikes (I was jealous!) which are heavy and could make the log crossings more difficult, so we were hopeful the alternative route would work.
We got started down the wagon road and it quickly became more difficult than we had hoped. We encountered some sections of rough roadbed, and then the blowdowns started. There were several big logs crossing the road that ranged from being an inconvenience to very difficult to pass, especially with the heavy E-bikes. We were demoralized quickly and had hoped to treat the bikes with kid gloves, so we bailed back to the car and resolved to just deal with the river crossing and wash-out.
The main road-trail that leads to Monte Cristo and Gothic basin was a comparative dream and we were able to cruise on a flat surface until we reached the washed-out section. Here, we had to push the bikes for a bit before reaching the log crossing. The crossing wasn’t too bad overall. We were able to go one at a time and lift the bikes down off the log to each other.
From there, more flat road awaited us until we reached another short section of cobblestones and rubble that was unrideable. At this point we were beginning to doubt the merit of bringing the bikes – it certainly hadn’t saved us any time and seemed to be more hassle than it was worth.
Beyond this point, though, the riding was smooth and quite enjoyable. We cruised (cruised is generous description for me, compared to my e-bike riding partners) for three miles into the Monte Cristo ghost town. This part was quite fun, and we all ultimately agreed we were happy we brought the bikes and looked forward to the quick ride out.
Monte Cristo was a cool area to check out, and a fascinating part of PNW history. I particularly liked the massive railway turntable which could still be turned with a big push.
We stashed our bikes at the convenient bike rack and began adjusting to hiking. My body was definitely a bit more worked than it normally is at the start of a hike after all the uphill pedaling. The hike was pretty straightforward up to Poodle Dog Pass, with great views of Wilmans Spires as the trees began to thin.
Beyond the pass, the trail was deceptively difficult, with many ups and downs as we traversed the ridge toward Twin Lakes. It was a hot day, and it was later in the day than we expected when we reached the intersection with the Columbia Peak climbing route. Eric and I had originally planned to climb the peak that afternoon, knowing that the next day’s weather was supposed to deteriorate a bit, but we ultimately decided we would rather spend the glorious warm day relaxing at Twin Lakes.
This proved to be the right call. After cresting the divide above the lakes, we were treated to a great view down to the brilliant blue lakes. It was further down to the lakes than we expected (about 500 feet) and when we reached the upper lake shore, we traversed all the way around to the narrow isthmus between the two lakes. Here we found a great campsite right next to the stream that plunges down to the lower lake.
We then spent a great and quiet afternoon swimming and relaxing by the water. The face of Columbia Peak was impressive from this vantage point and caught some nice light.
The next morning, Eric and I arose early to tackle Columbia. One drawback to our decision to climb it on day 2 was that we would have to gain the 500 feet up to the ridge above the lakes and lose it on our return, only to climb it again after meeting Katie and gathering up all of our camping gear. We accepted our fate and brought whatever camping gear we could and stashed it in the rocks on the eastern shore of the upper lake. We then made the climb up to the ridge in the dark and began traversing over towards the peak at around the 5200’ contour line.
This terrain was surprisingly pleasant, and any boulders we crossed were quite solid. We followed a clear bootpath up to the ridgeline and were treated to a nice sunrise view looking over Twin Lakes. There were clouds mounting, but the sun cast a nice orange under-glow on the horizon.
We traversed across a flat ridge before beginning the scramble in earnest. There was one class 3-4 move right way, and another that followed shortly thereafter. Neither was exceedingly exposed, and both were made easier by being relatively tall, so we were able to surmount them without too much difficulty.
The scrambling on Columbia I found to be quite nice, and was much less loose than other chossy Cascades peaks I’ve been on. It had a cool stone staircase formation as you neared the summit, that was particularly fun. Before long we were on top, and clouds were swirling around us. We had good views east toward Keyes, but Sloan and the peaks to the north were shrouded in cloud. It was still an awesome summit to stand on, and it deepened my love of the Monte Cristo range.
We made a quick descent back to Katie at camp and lounged a bit as the weather grew clearer and sunnier. Before long it was a clear, sunny day! We then began the hike out, reaching our bikes in relatively quick succession.
After playing on the railway turntable, we hopped on our bikes and cruised down. This ride made all the pain on the way in worth it. The afternoon light was streaming into the woods, and we hardly had to peddle as we coasted along the river. We negotiated the log crossing and wash out, and were soon zipping back to Barlow Pass, passing the hordes coming from Gothic Basin. We had barely seen anyone during our time at Twin Lakes, so it was interesting to compare how busy a place could be only a few miles away.
We rolled into our car very satisfied with the adventure and hyped to do more bike approaches in the future.
Final Stats: 25.43 miles / 7346 feet of gain (including biking)
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