Overview
The Cascadian Wilderness Endurance Series events present an exciting opportunity for outdoor enthusiasts to participate in a multimedia adventure blogging contest. These self-supported/unsupported events are open to trail runners, backpackers, fastpackers, and hikers, and each event features a unique and defined route which participants must complete on foot and in one push. Unlike traditional endurance races, there are no course markings or aid stations along the way, providing participants with the freedom to create their own adventure. It’s all up to you! Participants can choose to tackle the route solo or with a couple friends. There are no cutoffs, so participants can take as much time as they need to complete the route without pressure. This unique event is not just about the physical challenge or exploring wild and beautiful places, but also about the opportunity to capture and share the beauty of the wilderness through captivating multimedia content.
1. After finishing your route, share your trip report about your experience. You can do this by posting in the Facebook group, tagging us in an Instagram post, making a YouTube video, creating a photo album, or any other artistic endeavor you can imagine.
2. Submit your time via the event page on Ultrasignup. If you have a GPS track, please include it. If you happened to get the FKT for the year, you must provide GPS proof.
3. Each year a meetup will be held in Seattle to wrap up the previous year, kick off the next year, make any big announcements about new routes or changes, and hand out patches, awards, and prizes for the previous year’s participants. If you are unable to attend the event, arrangements can be made to mail your patches to you.
We strongly encourage all entrants to join the CWES Facebook Group and/or follow the @CascadianWildernessEndurance Instagram to ask questions about the routes, gather and share trail beta, connect with other participants, scope out the competition, and keep up to date on the most recent news, information, and general goings on. This contest is brought to you by the Cascadian Wilderness Endurance Company LLC.
Spider on Steroids
This is a challenging route that includes sections of cross-country travel and route-finding. Consider carrying traction devices, or even an ice axe, to navigate permanent snow fields.
Starting at Little Giant trailhead, go over Little Giant Pass and then drop down into the Napeequa Valley. (The Napeequa Valley is stunning and has been referred to by some as “Shangri-la.” That said, it is a very steep descent on an abandoned trail from Little Giant Pass to the bottom of Napeequa Valley, so caution is advised. From a previous trip report: “...Two horses died falling off the trail here. They reportedly tumbled many hundreds of feet before coming to rest. So don't doubt that it's steep.” Apparently the bleached bones of these unfortunate animals can still be seen from the trail.)
Travel up the Napeequa Valley on the Boulder Creek/Pass Trail (#1562). As you near the northwestern end of the valley, approx 1 mile NW of Louis Creek, look for the North Fork of the Napeequa (NFN) heading north to High Pass. Follow the NFN up towards High Pass - there is no maintained trail and some route-finding may be necessary. Go up and over High Pass, at which point it’s mostly trail back to your car: From High Pass, take the High Pass Trail (#1562.2) to the Buck Creek Pass trail (#789?) to the PCT.
The PCT connects to the Suiattle Pass trail (1279), which takes you from Suiattle Pass to Cloudy Pass. At Cloudy Pass, drop down to Lyman Lakes on trail #1256, where you pick up the Upper Lyman Lake trail (#1256.2) which leads you to Spider Gap. From Spider Gap, descend into Spider Meadows, and follow Phelps Creek trail all the way out to Phelps Creek TH Road. Walk/run back to Little Giant Trailhead (this is part of the route - no car shuttles!)
Little Giant Trailhead is down a dirt road that should be easily traversed by passenger cars. If you choose to start at Phelps Creek Trailhead, you may want at least a Subaru-type vehicle or better, as the road can be a little rougher past Little Giant.
Rationale
Why should you pay $20 to complete one of the endurance challenges? A small part of the fee will go to cover website maintenance and domain registration, as well as getting patches made and other small goodies/swag. The majority of this fee will be donated to trail maintenance organizations.
Why are we even doing this? To get people out into the wonderful wilderness areas that we have here in the Northwest and to build the community of adventurous people! The trip report is just as important as actually finishing the route, and we love it when people come up with creative ways to share their experience. Information isn't always readily available for these areas, and maps can be scarce and not always reliable (especially the Pasayten and Frank Church/Selway Wildernesses.) That can intimidate some that aren't as experienced outdoors-people. The goal is to empower people to get out into these wilderness areas and hopefully to protect them into the future.
Event's current local time: 2:38 PM PT
