A View of Skagit - Squires Lake to Alger Alp

Right now I'm only getting about one "real" day off every 2 weeks between school and internships. Inevitably, I dedicate this day to homework. One of my instructors then told me I had to get outside and get some vitamin D.

My husband also got his fishing license and wanted to go do that, so we decided to go to Squires Lake so he could fish and I could hike with the dog.

Squires Lake to Alger Alp

Skagit County Parks & Rec

(Original PNT Map)

Parking Permit: none needed

Distance: 4.5 miles round-trip

Elevation gain: 1200 ft

To get to Squires Lake, you want to take I-5 exit 242 to Nulle Roa and head East until you see the trailhead on the left-hand side of the road. It's a decent turn-out with lots of parking.

And an accessible privy!

Squires Lake park itself is fairly nice on its own, with a loop trail that wraps around the lake and an off-shoot that leads to a nearby beaver pond.

Helpful map!

It's a quick warm-up to get to the lake, with plenty of steep switch-backs, but it's not too long.

The husband climbing with his gear.

Fun fact, the first time my husband went fishing, he called me freaking out slightly. He had just recently moved to the area.

Hubs: "There's something rustling in the bushes nearby and it makes a weird sound."
Me: "It's Sasquatch."
Hubs: "I think it's getting closer."
Me: "Sasquatch is coming for you."

Then in the background of the call, I heard a weird sound.

Me: "Did that sound just happen again?"
Hubs: "Yeah. What is that?"
Me: "I really don't know, but I think it's Sasquatch."

Eventually I found a matching sound clip online. As it turns out, beavers make really weird noises. Go figure.

Anyway, back to our hike. We reached the lake, and from there we went our separate ways. The husband headed left to go clockwise around to the other side of the lake.

Squires Lake.

I in turn went right to head south. To get to Alger Alp, you want to follow the Pacific Northwest Trail for a bit. Part of it intersects the park. I turned on South Ridge Trail, following the white paint marks that are indicative of the PNT.

Trail markers

You'll quickly come to a short "viewpoint", but it isn't much.

"Viewpoint"

Keep hanging right on the trail, and you'll eventually leave Squires Lake Park.

Goodbye, park!

The trail follows the ridge you're on south, and has much better sights than the "viewpoint" that's in the park.

This is better!

The trail is more primitive than what is in the parks, but it's still easy to follow. When in doubt, just keep an eye for the white paint marks.

Eventually, you'll break out into a clearing of an old skid road.

Old skid road

Looking back at where the trail breaks out

You'll still see PNT trail markers, but since we're going to the summit you now want to pay more attention to the roads you're on instead of the trail. Though you won't see it at first, you're starting out on Road 1300.

Some people make their own trail markers.

You'll want to follow the road until you find Road 1000. It should be the third left. There are several junctions, and they all look the same, so just pay attention to where you're going.

Just don't veer off the wrong junction.

When you meet 1000, take it up. It should lead you around some nice rocky cliffs.

This is Road 1000. It looks like all the other ones so pay attention to signage.

Rocky bits.

There are some nice peek-a-boo view of the foothills to the east, including the patchwork clear-cuts that dot this part of the landscape.

Logging!

It's a nice, steady climb all the way up as the road coils around the hill. At the top, relax at a viewpoint to take in views of Skagit Valley and Blanchard Mountain.

View!

My cell phone camera didn't quite cooperate, making it look hazier than it was, but I could see all the way out to the Salish Sea and Fidalgo Island.

Behold the view!

In the pic below between the two foreground hills, you can just make out Mt. Erie and Sugarloaf in the distance.

Hills!

On the descent I saw a bit of Mt. Baker hiding behind some clouds.

My phone decided to photograph the blue sky, too.

On the descent don't forget to turn back on Road 1300 to head back to the lake!

If you get lost in thought you might miss it.

Back at the lake, I met back up with the husband.

Gone fishin'

He actually caught a fish. I think it's a trout? I don't know fish.

It's some sort of gill-bearing creature.

It was quite edible. The dog kept trying to snack on it as we hiked back to our vehicle.

Something fishy

I did not permit the dog to lick me on the drive home.

Hidden Gems - Big Rock Garden to Northridge Park

I'm starting my internship! I'm super excited. It's going to be the first of four. It's only five weeks, but it's going to keep me crazy busy. I did have enough time to squeeze in an "urban hike" though.

We went atop Alabama Hill and parked at Big Rock Garden Park. From there, we hiked out to Northridge Park and back.

Big Rock Garden Park to Northridge Park

Bellingham Parks & Recreation (original map)

Parking Permit: none required

Distance: ~2.25 miles

Northridge Park has a 0.7 mile loop trail. It does not have its own parking, but I put a red "P" on the map at the end of Woodside Way as there is limited street parking there. We always park at Big Rock Garden Park.

Big Rock Garden is a small, understated park near the end of Sylvan St off of Alabama St. Many locals are unaware of it, or maybe they visited it that one time a while ago. Despite having only a handful of parking spaces, you'll nearly always find parking here.

The trailhead at Big Rock Garden Park has pictures of all the sculptures, so you don't have to go in...

The trailhead to Northridge Park goes to the left of the signage. If you want, you can go right through the gate and into Big Rock Garden Park itself. It's worth a visit. Dogs are not permitted, so I left the pooch in the car and ducked in quickly to give you some photos!

What does it look like to you?

 There's actually a virtual tour of the garden available/

Scultpures around every corner.

 It's mostly a permanent collection. These three musicians have been here forever:

Forced to pose with their instruments for all eternity...

I do like the Gazebo near the middle of the park. You can rent it out for events, and it was on my maybe list as a wedding ceremony site.

It's pretty scenic in the spring and summer.

Here's just a few more to give you a taste of what's in there:

"Blue Thing" (my name for it)

Korean War Memorial

Various sculptures, including a Kwakiutl Sun Mask on the restroom wall...

Rock figure

Back outside of Big Rock Garden, it's time to head out to Northridge Park and hey, easy signs to follow!

That's pretty simple.

Every trail junction you reach will direct you to Northridge Park, so you just need to follow the signs.

Silver Beach Trail is where you start, and it's an ease gravel path to Klipsun Trail which you will see just before Springland Ct.

Klipsun Trail is a dirt path so it can get a little muddy. We hit some muck due to recent overnight rains. In the summer it's seldom a problem.

Klipsun.

Klipsun Trail will take you across Sylvan St. If that sounds familiar, it's because Big Rock Garden is just down the road! Head across Sylvan, then look for the tunnel that takes you underneath Barkley Blvd.

Tunnel!

Hang a left and stay on the main trail. There's a duck pond...

Too cold out for ducks today.

Eventually you'll pass a small playground as you enter Northridge Park.

Also, a bag station to remind you to pick up after your dogs.

Northridge Park is a newer park. It's just a trail loop for now. There have been discussions of adding proper parking, but neighbors have objected. So far if you want to try and reach the park directly, you're faced with parking in the nearby neighborhood and taking a trail in. Woodside Way has the most direct parking right now.

Woodside Way trailhead; most likely site of future parking development.

The loop is fairly popular trail with the local neighborhood. We saw lots of joggers and other people with their dogs. It's an easy loop with just one hill on the north end (I prefer to do the loop counter-clockwise so I can get a shorter climb out of the way rather than a longer, more drawn-out climb). It's also very clean and safe-feeling compared to other city parks. Being out-of-the-way has it's advantages.

Easy trail.

One thing I've noticed on this trail more than others is that a lot of dog walkers take their dogs off-leash. It's not designated as an off-leash area but the local culture doesn't seem to care, and if your dog is like mine and gets neurotic around other dogs it's something to be aware of. I will give other dog walkers credit; their pooches all seem to be well behaved enough to handle being off-leash for the most part. (I hate it when other dogs just run right up to my dog, because my dog has a serious Napoleon complex and doesn't like dogs bigger than him. He's only 15lbs, so that means most other dogs.) I encourage everyone to respect appropriate leash laws.

At least everyone here picks up after their dogs. On so many other city trails, I find poop-bags lining the paths. I never understood that. Thankfully, even though there are no trash cans in Northridge Park, the paths are kept (for the most part) poop-free!

Not a good perspective, but there's really only one hill to contend with.

The park is right atop Alabama Hill, so you can get a few peek-a-boo views through the trees at downtown Bellingham and the bay.

Peek-a-boo!

To get back, just retrace your steps. Unfortunately, signage back to Big Rock Garden Park is not as good as the signage to Northridge Park, so follow the signage in this order if you don't remember which way you came: Barkley Blvd, Klipsun Trail, Silver Beach Trail, Big Rock Garden park.

Extra Credit: Klipsun Trail will take you all the way down Alabama Hill, where it connects with other trails. It is possible to park in Barkley Village and take Railroad Trail to Klipsun Trail and go all the way up Alabama Hill and then do Northridge Park, if you're looking for more of a challenging walk (but that's a blog post for another day).

Gone Fishin' - Fragrance Lake

The quarter is beginning, so this is my last "real hike" I'll be able to do for a while.

Since I first went to Fragrance Lake, I've wanted to take the husband. He enjoys fishing, and my first time out there in the heat of day I was hearing a fish jump every 15-30 seconds as I looped around the lake. It seemed like a great fishing spot (though I don't fish, so take that as you may). It was time to show the husband! So we headed south of Bellingham to Larrabee State Park.

Fragrance Lake

Larrabee State Park

Parking Permit: Discover Pass ($10 per day or $30 per year)

Distance: 4.75 miles round-trip

Elevation gain: 950 ft

The main trailhead is off of Chuckanut Drive right across from the main park gate. Parking there was full, so we parked a few yards south at the next trailhead.

It's smaller, but it will still get you there.

Both trailheads will connect you with the Interurban Trail and I've noted both routes on the map. If you park at the north trailhead, you're almost straight across from the route once you hit the Interurban Trail. If you take the south trailhead, you'll want to take a left on the Interurban Trail to get to the junction you want.

If you come across this big concrete....thing....you're at the south trailhead.

Either way, you'll want to find Fragrance Lake Trail. It's marked just by a "Hikers Only" sign.

It looks like this.

Then, start climbing. In less than 2 miles you'll gain that 950 feet of elevation. Fortunately, there are many, many conveniently-placed benches along the switchbacks. If you're not sure about your endurance and want to give a hill climb a go, this trail may be a good one with the ample rest breaks.

Bench located right at the switchback bend.

In the past I have totally struggled on hills. The first hike I took the husband on was up Blanchard Mountain and I struggled. I was severely out of shape then, with all sorts of back and ankle problems at the time. I worked to change that.

Trees desperately clinging to the rocks next to their fallen comrade...

A couple years ago I climbed Mt. Constitution without difficulty. I had spent an entire summer hiking each week. Then last year I started school and traded hiking boots for textbooks. When I hiked Mt. Constitution again (which feels about the same steepness as Fragrance Lake, though it's a longer and taller hill), I felt like I was dying.

The dog and husband stare at each other as the dog rests on one of the many benches.

I mean, I literally collapsed by the side of the trail and started crying. It was pure sadness.

There are seriously a lot of benches on this trail.

Anyway, the point is I totally understand struggling on hills since I've been there and done that. So I am totally suggesting this hill as a good starter due to the built-in rest stops if you haven't done a hill in a while (or ever).

The husband wasn't too thrilled with the climb. Admittedly, it had been a couple years since I made the hike, so my memory was fuzzy. But I thought I had explained it to him well.

Hubs: "You seriously undersold how steep this was."
Me: "I told you I felt it was sort of equivalent to Mt. Constitution."Hubs: "I didn't remember which one that was."Me: "I told you we were getting almost 1000 feet of elevation gain."Hubs: "You said it was only steep at the beginning of the trail. Half the trail doesn't count as the 'beginning'."

Translation of his look: "You betrayed me, woman."

As you climb, you'll come across a turn-off for a viewpoint. It will add about half a mile. It's decent but not spectacular in my opinion (there are other trails with better viewpoints), so we skipped it.

This is my photo of the viewpoint from two years ago, just to show it. 

We found a trillium along the trail. I never seem to be able to catch these in bloom. They are my favorite flower, so I was pretty stoked to find a couple along the trail.

So pretty!

Eventually we made it to the lake! It's a 0.75 mile loop around and is nice and flat after all that climbing.

The lake isn't big. Fishing is an option. I've seen swimmers, too. It's still a bit chilly for either, though.

Lake!

We also found a pair of ducks.

Mr. and Mrs. Duck

They were relaxing on shore until we came up and the dog chased them into the water. Sorry, ducks. Once we corralled the dog, I was able to get closer for them and they posed for me.

Pretty boy!

The lake loop trail is well-maintained with boardwalks over the swampy bits.

Boardwalks!

Inquisitive pup.

The south end of the lake is more level and marshy. The north end has cliffs to walk along the base of.

Rocks and trees and....water!

Looking up

We passed plenty of skunk cabbage in the marshy bits. I'm not sure if that's how Fragrance Lake got its name or not.

No one said it had to be a good fragrance.

We hiked back down the way we came, for a total mileage of 4.75 miles. If you follow Craig Romano's guide, he leads you back down along Fragrance Lake road, which is an old skid road and will bring your total mileage to 5.5 miles. It's a decent route that's less-steep and easier on the knees. We had homework and errands waiting for us though so we skipped the extra distance.

Fragrance Lake road highlighted in lavender.

You can also normally take Fragrance Lake Road uphill to the Cleator Road trailhead for a shorter route to the lake (good for fishing!). Unfortunately a landslide has blocked the road with no current ETA for a reopening. They're working on it, though! I imagine it should be open by summer.

You can still hike up there. Craig Romano suggests hiking to the lookout at the end of Cleator. When the road is open I normally would suggest driving up there to sit at the picnic tables, enjoy the view, and then using it as a launch point for the new-ish Rock Trail (not pictured, as they haven't made maps yet). In my opinion, the reward isn't worth the effort (it's a tree-blocked view), but that's me.

Despite the whining husband, I think it was better to hike with someone. I apparently was fairly ambivalent about this hike the last time I hiked it (according to my old Facebook album). But this hike was sunny and pleasant, and wasn't at all bad!