Toot Poot - Sugarloaf and Whistle Lake

I am nearing completion with my final internship! I'll be job-hunting in the upcoming weeks and preparing to move. I don't know where yet. Someplace with good hiking. I do not know how quickly I will find a job or where, but moving will definitely be involved. It's scary and exciting and nerve-wracking and stressful!

I did recently get out to Anacortes for some hiking. I wanted to hike Sugarloaf again, which I have detailed before, but I wanted to make it longer. The map showed "Sugar Cube" and "Toot Swamp" nearby. I didn't feel up for going for both, since I had homework to get back to, so I put it to a vote on Facebook.

Everyone wanted Toot Swamp, that's what I went for. This hike took me around Whistle Lake as well.

Sugarloaf/Toot Swamp/Whistle Lake
City of Anacortes
Parking permit: none needed
Distance: 6 miles
Elevation gain: 893 feet

I started off finding parking at a very busy trailhead off Heart Lake Road south of Anacortes. First thing I did was summit Sugarloaf, a short but rather steep climb to a lovely lookout. You start out on trail 215, and it climbs quickly after the first junction.

It gets a bit steep

"Do we really have to go up this way?"

It doesn't get much better when you see the trail junction for 227.

Actually, as steep as the junction is, it starts to level off shortly afterward, and then opens up to a lovely meadow with views of Puget Sound.

Cute hiking buddy is cute

You can see I still have purple fuzzy handcuffs on the hiking pack...oh yes I do!

Island views and stuff

We met a couple mountain bikers and their dog up top as well. There's no biking at the very top, but they were tearing down the lower trails.

I was hoping to see more wildflowers. I missed the blooms somehow. There were some nice purple ones though.

I took trail 226 down the other side of Sugarloaf and made my way toward Whistle Lake.

Looking back uphill toward the summit.

Pretty sunlight and stuff

Root-ball with a puppy-sized hole

226 lead to 230 which lead to 21, where I found a handy simplified map for anyone who was lost in the labyrinth of ACFL trails.

I then took trail 22 toward Toot Swamp. As I got closer, the bugs increased, so I reapplied bugspray.

There's always lots of checking and double-checking your trail numbers out here, but once I turned on 205 toward the swamp, my route became simple: 205, 204, 203, until I rejoined trail 21.

Toot Swamp was...not spectacular. You could barely see it through the brush.

This is it. This is all.

Hiking around the south end of Whistle Lake was rather steep and rocky. There was a lot of up-and-down.

Emphasis on the rocky here

 The lake views from the south end are obscured by lots of trees and brush.

Creative place for trail junction signs.

Steepish lakeside hills

Eventually you join up with Trail 20 briefly, and the shore opens up. There's a not half-bad swimming hole.

Mt. Erie in the background

Open space at the end of Trail 20

Would make a decent swimming spot

I did not bring a swimsuit. But next time, I may consider it. It was a very hot day out, and that water looked inviting (though it was likely freezing cold).

Trail 20 leads you to Trail 204, and I started heading back to the trailhead from there. Trail 204 had a special dedication.

Once I reached Trail 21, I stayed on that one almost all the way back to Heart Lake Road. Trail 320 provides a connection back to the trailhead parking.

When you look at the overview of the ACFL trails, there are lots of different ways to mix and match routes. Anacortes does a good job of marking all the trails, so as long as you bring a map with you, you shouldn't get lost.

Short, Sweet, and Steep - Sugarloaf Hike

So earlier this week I was annoyed. I had two days off, and guess what was forecasted?

Guess which days they were?

So Thursday morning when I woke up to sunshine, I knew I had to do something!

It was again also the Husband's day off, so we went back to Fidalgo Island to hike Sugarloaf.

Sugarloaf

Anacortes Community Forest Lands

Parking Permit: none needed

Distance: ~ 2.5 miles roundtrip

Elevation Gain: 893 feet

How I always reach the trailhead is to turn on Lake Campbell Road from Highway 20. Follow that until you reach Lake Erie Grocery and hang a right at the fork; that puts you on Heart Lake Rd. From there, go past the two big trees (you'll know them when you see them) and turn right at the sign for Mr. Erie Lookout. You can drive all the way to the top of Mt. Erie if you want, but for the Sugarloaf trailhead park in the lot at the base.

Here's a zoomed in map:

I need to point out the little hill east of Sugarloaf is called Sugar Cube.

The trailhead is right behind the big information station.

Ozzy the dog decided to add his own trail marker

For the most part, the trails are well marked. The map can seem a bit intimidating, as the ACFL has a pretty extensive trail network. As long as you plan your route ahead and note the trail numbers, you'll be fine. To get to the Sugarloaf Lookout, we take trails 215, 227, and 238.

Each trail marker also shows what uses are permitted on the trails.

 The husband found a snail shell (snail missing) not too far from the trailhead:

And the dog found a fashionable wig!

While most trail junctions are well-marked, some are a bit more vague. Usually unmarked trails will loop back to each other, but when in doubt, just go uphill.

The total hike is pretty short; just about 2.5 miles round-trip. You climb almost 900 feet in about a mile, so while it's short, it has a pretty good grade to climb up. It's a great conditioning hike that you can do in a short afternoon.

The junctions for 227 and 238 tend to sneak up on you, so always keep an eye out. Remember, we're always turning uphill!

Recent rains from last night made the trail a little muddy and the rocky parts a bit slick, but compared to a lot of other trails I've been down, it wasn't bad at all.

Once you reach the top, you can enjoy the views! There's a nice meadow on top which makes a perfect picnic spot.

There are lots of rocks to sit on. I also discovered that they're good for reflecting sound, so you can get some Pandora going on your phone and place it just right to amplify the sound and have a mini mountaintop dance party!

Husband: "What are you doing?"
Me: "It's a dance party! Come on!"
Husband: "I will once you take your medication."

Long story short, he refused to join me and I was left awkwardly dancing by myself.

I tried to get the dog to join in, but he ran away from me.

One thing I love to do is bring snacks for the dog and toss them for him to make him run up and down the hill. It wears him out with minimal effort from me!

There were a few flowers just starting to peek out.

Today was fairly bland, however in a few weeks as we go into April you can expect this meadow to explode in color! I may have to try and make another venture up here around then, as this place becomes wildflowers galore. Alas, it's too early for them right now.

Final shot of the husband and dog taking in the view.