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  1. #1
    Senior Member Chop's Avatar
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    Hammocking on the Wonderland Trail

    Hey Guys & Gals,

    Just thought I'd throw a post up about hammocking on the WT as I didn't find much info when I was looking.

    I hiked the Washington's Wonderland Trail July 17-23rd. Great trail, great tread, stellar views. I'd happily hike it again (and will).

    There are plenty of trees to hang from in the campsites on this trail. Stealth camping isn't allowed, so I stuck to the campsites. I was with 3 others. Two of us hammocked and two of us slept in a tent. We were actually able to set up hammocks in the site or right on the edge of the site, and I actually sat in my hammock rather than on the ground or on a log when we were hanging out in the evenings and mornings.

    I used 8' long webbing, and 6' long whoopies. That was adequate. There are some big trees out there for sure, but I was able to find trees that worked with the above setup without issue.

    Bugs were not much of an issue once the sun went down, and I never pulled the bug sock over me. I used a Warbonnet Yeti UQ, and that was fine. A friend used a Prolite Thermarest and that was adequate for him as well.

    If you have any questions, feel free to post.

  2. #2
    Senior Member Buenos's Avatar
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    I'm headed out there from Aug 17-26. My research leads me to feel pretty confident about hanging. I'm going to be the only hammocker in a group of 6. The ground dwellers seem sceptical about my desire to swing from the trees.

    Which campgrounds did you stay at?

    It appears that some of the campgrounds are pretty close to the trail. Any issues with privacy?

    Any issues with the rangers? I've heard tell about other national parks taking issue with hammock camping.

    How much snow did you encounter on panhandle gap?

    Thanks for your report. Makes me feel more confident about the trip.
    Jose Diaz

  3. #3
    Senior Member Chop's Avatar
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    Re: Hammocking on the Wonderland Trail

    You won't have issues hammocking...the campsites are not at any of the high elevation views that you see in photos for the WT (with the exception of sunrise, which there are still very good trees to hang from). Even Mystic Lake which is fairly high still is in the woods with a lot of easy hammocking hangs.

    No issues from rangers with regards to hammocking, as we never saw any at campsites... only on the trail, and most of them would ask to see the permit for the group immediately, not something I am used to. That being said, I asked rangers over the phone early in the year about hammocking and they raised no concerns when I asked about feasibility and the use of a hammock. I'd recommend using webbing for the tree end.

    There was plenty of snow in Panhandle gap. That was probably the biggest snow day. Some a little sketchy, but by now most of the sketchy stuff is clear...nothing really of much concern. We had a short section where there were under-snowfield rivers where one could punch through, but it was a very small section.

    I camped at South Puyallup, Mowich River, White River, Mystic Lake and Nickel Creek.

    White River was the only one that was car accessible, so it was a wee bit louder than the others, but not bad really. Mowich Lake is also accessible by car...and the sites there didn't look to appealing.

    If you can, try and stay at Summerland or Indian Bar. I'd advise against Nickel Creek, as the water is a ways from the site and the sites are poor there. You should be able to avoid the sites that are car sites. When you get to the office to retrieve your permit, you can switch up your sites depending on what is available.
    AT 2011, PCT 2012, LT 2013, WT 2013, JMT 2014, TRT 2014, WT 2014, AZT 2015, PCT 2016, CT 2017, MSR 2017, GET 2018, GDT 2018, TRT 2018, JMT 2018, MRT 2019, CDT 2020/2021
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  4. #4
    Senior Member Buenos's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chop View Post
    If you can, try and stay at Summerland or Indian Bar. I'd advise against Nickel Creek, as the water is a ways from the site and the sites are poor there. You should be able to avoid the sites that are car sites. When you get to the office to retrieve your permit, you can switch up your sites depending on what is available.
    Thanks for the reply.

    On Nickel Creek. What to you mean by "poor"?

    I don't mind a walk for water. No worse than Klapatche Park, where St. Andrews lake is the preferred water source.

    Again, thanks for the info. A real confidence builder!
    Jose Diaz

  5. #5
    Senior Member Chop's Avatar
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    By 'poor', I mean that it is a fairly non-significant place where the campsites are small generally. It is too bad that the sites were not positioned closer to the stream, quite honestly. They aren't horrible, and I shouldn't imply that the site should be avoided. We were just bummed to not have stayed at Indian Bar or some others that had some great views.

  6. #6
    Senior Member Mountnman's Avatar
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    Great trail! Got any pics of your trip?
    "I love not man the less, but Nature more."
    Byron

  7. #7
    Senior Member Chop's Avatar
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    I do! Attached...
    Attached Images Attached Images

  8. #8
    Senior Member Mountnman's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chop View Post
    I do! Attached...
    Great pics! Thanks
    "I love not man the less, but Nature more."
    Byron

  9. #9
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    My lady and I just did a 6 day WT trip and had no problems hanging. I've heard that Mowich Lake can be a hard place to hang. It's a big gravel lot with flat wooden decks to set your tents up on. It also has a ranger station there and they like you to "stay in the designated camping areas"

    Personally I really liked the Nickle Creek campsites and enjoyed having a nice cool creek to wash up at and relax by at the end of my 17.8 mile day coming from White River camp.


    -Loki

  10. #10
    Senior Member renegadepilgrim's Avatar
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    Thanks for the beta on the WT. I am heading out at the tail end of September to do it and was concerned about hammocking. You have alleviated my concerns!
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