I am a glorified babysitter. A hiker that sits behind a desk 5 days a week and dispatches service technicians for a living while she dreams about the next trail. As a child growing up my family would go for drives on the weekends through the Okanogan Valley, most of the time a snack or an ice cream was involved and that pretty much summed up my interest in the surrounding area. As I got older and had my own car, a drive once or twice a year up the Methow Valley, possibly all the way to the overlook on highway 20 was something that I enjoyed. Snap a few pictures and that was it till next year. On August 8, 2009 my baby sister and I piled into a suburban with 6 nieces and nephews. We had plans to picnic at a high mountain lake...short hike...eat lunch...simple plans. As we headed up the Methow and reached the North Cascades overlook on highway 20 we decided we would stop and eat our lunch there. The weather was chilly and slightly breezy. From there we headed farther down the road, not really knowing where we were going, having never been to a trail head. At the Rainy Pass Picnic area we figured out that we had reached our trail. So after unloading and getting 2 very unsuitable backpacks ready to go we realized we were standing in a parking lot full of cars with lots of hikers around us, not having a clue what lay ahead of us we stuffed a few water bottles, a bag of chips and some dried fruit in the backpacks and off we were. We headed down the trail and ended up at Rainy Lake. Beautiful quiet Lake, looked around and decided to head back towards the trail we saw that headed up the mountain. Not too far up the trail we realized a few things....Lake Ann, our destination was a long ways away....we were not wearing the proper clothing....Jeans....to hike in....but after taking a vote to continue or turn around....we breathed deep, sucked in more air....and pushed farther up the mountain. Not to much further down the trail we talked to a hiker heading down the mountain and inquired how far it might be to Lake Ann....at this point we realized that we had taken the wrong side of the trail to get to the lake....but we were still out numbered by the young in shape hikers to continue on. At some point from the time we actually got a view of Lake Ann and the mountains behind it I had realized we had a glimpse of something absolutely beautiful. I don't think I can every explain the beauty and the amazing views that we saw that day...it was unreal to someone that had never hiked...and it made me realize there was a whole new world to explore around me and had been there all my life. I grew up just like other kids at the mouth of the Methow River....climbed hills....played in the sage brush...explored rock piles ...picked sunflowers in April...all that good stuff...but I had never saw view as spectacular as I saw at Maple Pass that day....we got about half way around the loop and realized a few more things on our trek...we were tired....not in shape for a hike like this....we didn't pack enough water for the amount of kids we had with us.....It was a long way back to the car....It was a hike I will never forget, from the moment we crested the pass and saw the view of all the mountains I was in heaven. I knew that I would return again and again no matter how hard I thought the hike was. Since that day I have spent weekends exploring trails up the Methow Valley, Winthrop and Twisp area. I live for hiking and when the snow comes...I can't wait till it's deep enough to go snowshoeing on those trails. When the weather in the Methow is not real wonderful we explore trails in different areas...such as Leavenworth, Cle Elum and Loomis area. In all the places I have hiked in and out of state, I can't say there is a more beautiful place than the North Cascades.
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