6 dog-friendly larch hikes in Washington State: Misadventures of a girl & her dogs

The golden larch trees of the Pacific Northwest are truly special. These deciduous evergreen trees that grow at high elevations are worth a special trip for sure! They’re a bit elusive though, as many hikes are not dog-friendly, and many others are SO long and hard. In this post, you’ll find 6 great dog-friendly trails that are not too difficult, perfect to explore in the fall with your dog.

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Introduction to Larch Trees

Fall in Colorado is all about chasing the flame-colored aspen groves sprinkled amidst conifer forests. In the midwest where I grew up, the deciduous hardwood forests transform into warm-colored calico canopies. The Pacific Northwest, however, offers something elusive and special in larch trees – Whimsical, spindly conifer trees, whose needles turn a bright golden butterscotch in the fall, before floating daintily to the ground each winter.

Most of us were taught as children that coniferous trees keep needles year round, and deciduous trees shed and regrow leaves each year. Neat, tidy, and easy to remember, right? Except the larch tree proves that it’s not that simple. A rule-breaking punk of a tree is one after my own heart. 

The nerdy stuff about larch trees

“Larch, (genus Larix), any of about 10 to 12 species of coniferous trees constituting the genus Larix of the family Pinaceae, native to cool temperate and subarctic parts of the Northern Hemisphere. One species, Larix griffithii, is found only in the Himalayas. A larch has the pyramidal growth habit typical of conifers, but the leaves are shed in autumn like those of deciduous trees. The short needlelike leaves are arranged spirally on new growth and in whorls at the tips of short spurs on older twigs. There are 10 to 30 soft, light green needles on each spur.” 
-Brittanica

Each fall, people travel to high elevations in the Cascade Mountains to catch a glimpse of the fleeting beauty of the Western Larches. Folks call it the “larch march”, “larch madness”, or one of several other terms that have been ascribed to the search for the golden trees. The high elevation detail is key, and these golden beauties are not exactly easy to see. You have to really saddle up and climb up, out, and around to find the golden-tinged ridge-lines and mountainsides.

This year I decided that Bonnie, Ada, and I would hit the road in October, and finally get to experience this phenomenon ourselves. In anticipation of this trip, I meticulously scoured the internet, read reviews of various trails, poured through every photo on Alltrails, cross-referenced by season & date, and planned a wishlist of several moderately hikes where we might find some golden larch goodness, without having to backpack, or spend 10 hours on the trail in a day.

Storytime: Our Misadventures

With hope in my heart, my car camping setup stowed in my frunk, my favorite sparkling water in my mini cooler, and my two favorite pupper gals in tow, we took off on this larch-seeking adventure. 

Solo road tripping from Denver to Washington is not easy. I drive an electric car, which makes gas cost nonexistent, and the “camping mode” climate setting makes car camping a cinch. However, charging stops mean it takes a solid 3 days to make this trek.

No problem, I thought. 3 total days of driving to witness a fleeting seasonal phenomenon that serves up tons of beauty and would very likely make my tree-hugging, granola girl heart sing?! Of course it would be worth it!

Leavenworth, Washington was our goal, but little did I know that virtually nothing on this trip would go the way I expected. 

Have you heard of Leavenworth, Washington?

Leavenworth is the Bavarian-style town we’ve spent Christmas the past few years, but is beautiful, whimsical, and fun year-round. It’s known as a gateway to such recreation hotspots as The Enchantments hiking/backpacking wilderness area, Steven’s Pass Ski Area. It’s also known as one of the capitols of Larch madness, on top of being a hotspot for Oktoberfest each year.

“Leavenworth is a city in Chelan County, Washington, United States. It is part of the Wenatchee−East Wenatchee Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,263 at the 2020 census.[4] The entire town center is modeled on a German Bavarian village as part of a civic initiative that began in the 1960s.”
-Wikipedia

Getting there

The trip started out easy enough.

The mountains outside Salt Lake City were covered in red foliage.
  • Day 2: Drove from Salt Lake City to Boise – Took a detour from highway driving to stop at City of Rocks National Reserve to do a hike. (And decided we NEED to come back here, because one hike was definitely not enough). Then camped in a dispersed campsite near Boise.
  • Day 3: Drove from Boise to Leavenworth – The whole time, all I could think about was the hot steaming bowl of noodles I was going to order at the dog-friendly Yodelin Broth Company. Y’all, it’s not the german food Leavenworth is known for, but it’s SO good and I crave this place pretty hard. 

At the end of day 3, I charged the car one more time in Leavenworth, walked Bonnie & Ada around downtown, admired the various autumn festivities, and drove over to the Nason Creek Campground in Lake Wenatchee State Park. I blew up my air mattress, tucked the girls in beside my sleeping bag, set the car climate to 68 degrees, hit lock, and drifted off to sleep. 

First Hiking Day (Or Not)

My plan was to wake up around 8:00 and head up to do our first large hike. however, my body had other plans. I didn’t set an alarm clock since I usually wake up early when I’m camping, and I woke up at the ripe early time of 11:00 a.m. Usually when this happens, it’s for a reason, so I switched up my thinking on the fly, deciding that an afternoon/early evening hike would be just fine.

Bonnie & Ada know I can’t function without my morning coffee, so they know that when they hear the camp stove turn on, I’m about to come to life.

After making coffee at the campsite in my trusty Jet Boil Mini Mo french press, we walked over to the Lake Wenatchee Lakeshore. I sat on the shore, drinking in the stunning PNW surroundings, while Bonnie and Ada played on long leashes in the sand, digging, sniffing, and rolling. 

We headed over to Leavenworth to walk around and shop in the many dog-friendly stores, then grabbed a sausage and potato salad at München Haus. The girls ate these adorable pretzel treats they had for sale. 

Our bodies fueled and our car battery charged, we made the drive over to our first hike: Lake Clara & Marion Lake. However, as I descended into the Wenatchee Valley from Leavenworth, I noticed a gray haze, and a trail of smoke drifting up from one of the mountainsides. Hmm, I thought, that looks curiously like the exact direction of the area I’m headed to. So I pulled over, consulted my maps, as well as my fire app Watch Duty, and learned that there was a controlled burn happening just a few miles from where we planned to hike. Feeling a little defeated, I begrudgingly turned around, hoping that the burn would conclude so we could do the hike the next day. 

REAL First Larch Hiking Day: Lake Clara & Marion Lake

The next morning, I woke up bright and early, and learned that the controlled burn had indeed concluded, so our little pack headed out to try again. As we pulled into the extremely large parking lot we navigated to from AllTrails, I had a sudden moment of recognition. This is the parking lot for the Mission Ridge Ski Area! I’ve skied here in the winter before with my sister and niece, and the fact that this is a ski area means there is no trouble at all with parking, even if/when the hike gets busy.

Just for fun: Me and my niece skiing at Mission Ridge in the winter

Finally ready, and psyched to see the larches, Bonnie, Ada, and I started up the trail. It was a steady, moderately steep incline. The grasses, shrubbery, and underbrush were gorgeous tones of caramel, butterscotch, deep red wine, and rosy peach. We soaked in the scenery, as we hiked through the dense forest, curious when the evergreens would give way to larches. 

As we approached the top of the trail, I started to small branches strewn on the ground. I picked one up to investigate, and it’s needles had indeed turned yellow, being separated from its mother tree. The needle distribution spelled LARCH! We found them!

However, when I looked up I noticed that the larches above me were still green. They were definitely a bright lime green, on their way to turning yellow for the season, but not quite there.

Bummer, I thought, we’re a little bit too early. But no worries, this landscape is still breathtakingly gorgeous, with so much to enjoy. We walked around Lake Clara, and photographed the stunning and prolific Scarlet-leafed rose bushes filled with plump crimson hips. Bonnie and Ada took turns dipping their toes into the crystal clear water and chasing pine cones on the shore. All around us were the larches, in various shades of lime, neon, and chartreuse, with an occasional branch or two completely mustard-colored.

We walked a little bit further up to the shores of Marion Lake. The water level was super low, but I could tell would encircle a small island in the middle of the lake in the springtime. Similarly colored here, the multitude of larches had not quite put on their golden autumn coats yet. so we walked around, examined the fresh moose tracks in the muddy lake shore, soaked up the sun, and turned back around.

As we hiked down the same path, I giggled to myself for traveling all this way to observe a phenomenon that was absolutely impossible to guarantee. While sitting by the lakes, I had doodled on a photograph to entertain myself, imagining what the scene would have looked like if we had arrived at the “right” time. I came for the larches, I thought, and didn’t see them in their fall glory. What next? Do we give up? Or is there another way to see these trees?

Thinking in a Different Direction

From our Clara Lake experience, I knew that pretty much all of the trees in the Leavenworth area would be the same – Very beautiful, but not yet changed to their fall colors. So I decided to move my search north. In my initial research, I saved several trails near North Cascades National Park, and I suspected that the slightly higher elevation, paired with the longitudinal difference, would result in a successful larch march. So I pinpointed Blue Lake – Another dog-friendly trail that is not too long, or too difficult, just outside the boundary of North Cascades National Park, and we pointed ourselves in that direction. 

On the morning we got up to do the hike, however, it was raining. And it wasn’t like typical pacific northwest drizzly rain – it was POURING. I also noticed a tickle in my throat. Maybe I should have heeded these two bits of information, but I had driven 1300 miles from Denver to experience fall in the Pacific Northwest, so I was wholly unconcerned about these minor inconveniences.

Rain? No problem! I never hike without a rain jacket and rain pants. I also had a puffy coat layer, plus hat, gloves, etc. to keep me warm. And for the girls, I had packed their brand new Ruffwear rain coats. Gear-wise, we were ready! And that tickle in my throat? Nothing some good hydration, and swigs of elderberry syrup wouldn’t handle. 

The pupper gals modeling their Ruffwear Sun Shower Rain Coats

Since North Cascades was a pretty hefty drive from where we were staying, my plan was to drive in the morning, grab some lunch on the way, then hike in the afternoon. And that was mostly what happened, except when I pulled into the trailhead, a wave of exhaustion hit me like a ton of bricks. UGH, I thought, is my body trying to tell me something? After a quick self-assessment, I decided that I would take a quick power nap before hitting the trail. Sometimes driving makes me tired, and I’ve learned to listen to my body. So I grabbed my travel neck pillow, reclined my seat, gave Bonnie & Ada kisses as they followed suit and curled up in the back seat, and closed my eyes for what I anticipated would be a little 20-30 minute power nap. 

Two hours later, my eyes jerked open, I looked around, confused. My podcast had stopped playing, and I realized that what I intended to be a short rest had turned into a full-fledged car sleep, drool and all. I looked at my phone, and saw it was 3:30pm. Still plenty of time to hike (ish?), I thought, and I started to lace up my favorite, and most waterproof hiking boots. 

Another Larch Hike: Blue Lake

As we ascended through this forest, it felt eerily quiet. The Pacific Northwest never fails to astound me, and this forest somehow felt even bigger, older, and more dense than the forest by Clara Lake. As we emerged into the meadow that marked about the halfway point to Blue Lake, I felt something bite my nose – a snowflake! I looked up, and realized that the rain had turned into snow, which had been mottling the forest sounds, and packing us into a wintery landscape.

Thankful for the extra layers I packed, we continued up, up, up. The snow kept getting thicker, the temperature kept getting cooler. Ada, my little winter husky dog kept getting happier, while Bonnie, my stoic supermutt kept walking with more resolve. All of the sudden I realized that the sun was also starting to set. In my planning, I had failed to account for the fact that the sun would set earlier this far north. But it was still fine. I patted myself on the back for remembering to bring my headlamp in my backpack, and continued trudging up the increasingly snow-filled trail. 

When we emerged into a clearing just ahead of Blue Lake, I spun around, amazed by the density of larch trees dotting the mountainsides.

We did it! We found the yellow larch trees! And they were absolutely COVERED with thick, sticky snow, enveloped by an ominous sky that ranged from gray, to bright blue as the sun tried to peek through between flurries.

I had the instinct to be disappointed again by missing out on the classic PNW autumn view. But at the same time, I reminded myself that this was perhaps an even more unique and special experience. It was our first snow hike of the season, and in such a magical place.

As we reached the shores of Blue lake, the sunlight had definitely grayed to a persistent, misty dusk. The lake was not the bright blue it’s known to be, but more of a charcoal murk. And the butterscotch needles on the larches surrounding the lake could barely peep out beneath their fuzzy while blanket. But Bonnie and Ada were having a grand time hopping around in the snow, so all was well in the world. 

As we hiked down, I did all I could do to go FAST, hopping, skipping, and jogging down with my headlamp illuminated, though careful to not do something silly like slip or twist an ankle. The pupper gals found this to be great fun! But it was a bit pointless. By the time we reached the halfway clearing, it was pitch black. We were the last people on the trail, and I definitely had to work to keep terrifying images out of my head – Night-stalking PNW bigfoots, bears looking for snacks, ghoulies of the dark woods…

The benefit of this nighttime jaunt is we got to experience how incredible reflective the gals’ raincoats are, lol!

I usually quite like night hiking, but this was in an unfamiliar landscape, where the temperature was dropping quickly, and snow was dumping down. I just had to keep reminding myself to be brave for my sweet pupper gals.

As I reached our car, I’ve honestly never felt so relieved, and exhilarated, and giggly, and positively upside down. Was that one of the greatest hikes? Or one of the worst? I still am not entirely sure, although I can say that I have fond memories of it. 

After-Hike Reflections

And as I pulled out of the parking lot, I decided this would be an evening I’d pull into a hotel instead of a dispersed campsite. As I drove to the nearest town, I just kept laughing at myself for putting so much effort into a larch march adventure that had not yielded any REAL autumn larch encounters. But it was absolutely unforgettable in all the best ways. I felt exhausted, satisfied, resolved to try again in the future, and also glad that we had the experiences we did. All I could think about at that moment was curling up with my two sweet pupper gals in a cozy hotel bed after a long, hot shower, and drifting off to the most satisfying sleep. And when that moment came, it was pure bliss!

Postscript – Just in case you were wondering, that tickle in my throat evolved into one of the worst illnesses of my adult life. The trip home was a bit of a boondoggle, at best. But I’m still not sorry I marched my little pack over to Washington to see those gorgeous larch trees under their October snow blanket. 

Larch Hunting Trail List

Related Post: Hiking with your Dog: 12 Tips to Always be Pup-Pared

We only got to do the two trails listed above. Although we didn’t really get the textbook experience, these trails are absolutely beautiful. Following are the details for those, plus several others I had on my short list as possibilites, based on tons of research I did. So if you’re in the area, and looking for great larch hikes, just start here!

Leavenworth Area Larch Trails

North Cascades Area Larch Trails

Other Dog-Friendly Larch Trails

Tips for Hiking in Larch Country

  • Start your hikes as early as possible. Parking lots fill up in during this fleeting seasonal phenomenon, and the best way to ensure parking is always to arrive bright and early.
  • If you’re not able to start early, then consider going for an afternoon start. The early risers often start to clear out in the early afternoon, so there tends to be a second wave of available parking.
  • No matter when you start (but especially if you go for an afternoon start), never forget to keep a head lamp in your backpack, plus a light for your pup.
  • Larch season means shoulder season, which means cold, wet, etc. Never plan on perfect weather, and always make sure you have rain gear and warm layers in your backpack.

Always be Pup-pared: All the essentials we used on this trip

  • America The Beautiful Pass – I cannot stress how often this comes in handy! Of course it’s handy in National Parks, but tons of outdoor recreation sites are managed by the National Park Service or US Forest Service, and this pass enables waived parking fees all over the place.
  • AllTrails+ is absolutely impossible to live without as a hiker. With the ability to download maps, you never have to worry about being out of service range and losing your access to navigation.
  • Handy dandy head lamp that lives in my backpack and helps out whenever I end up out on a trail after dark (which happens often because I really like to stop and admire rocks, plants, trees, etc.) (Pro Tip: ALWAYS use a head lamp that has red light mode. Red light doesn’t ruin your eyes for nigh vision, so is always our go-to)
  • Handy dandy light collars that live in Bonnie & Ada’s backpacks
  • MiniMo compact camp stove that boils water lightning fast
  • French press attachment for MiniMo camp stove – 100% vital for coffee-drinking fiends like me!
  • Knot-a-Hitch Campsite Dog Hitching System – Ada is a runner who can’t be trusted off leash, so this system offers a ton of different ways she can run around while we camp, or just hang out in an open natural area.
    • Save 10%: Pupperscouts10
  • Sun Shower Dog Raincoat – Amazing for rain, and equally amazing for our warm Colorado snow showers – this is a comfy and completely waterproof shell.
    • Save 10%: Pupperscouts10
  • Approach Pack – Our go-to backpack for fall. Not only is orange cute and seasonal, but high visibility colors in the woods during hunting seasons is never a bad idea.
    • Save 10%: Pupperscouts10
  • My favorite human hiking boots – These are cute, comfortable, and completely waterproof. They are practically glued to my feet during all the cool months.

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