Wazuks will be at Liberty again this Memorial Day weekend. As of last weekend (~May 6) the lower trails are already being logged out, and with our current weather pattern (80* in Seattle this weekend!
), all of the trails should be open by then (except of course the Table Mtn. trails, which are closed until June 15.)
Directions:
From I-90 eastbound, take exit 85 towards Wenatchee (Hwy 970). Follow 970 North for about ten miles, at which point it will merge with Hwy 97. Continue north on Hwy 97 for three miles to Liberty Road. Turn right on Liberty Road, and follow it for about one mile. we will camp either in the large meadow on the left or in the smaller meadow on the right, after you cross Williams Creek (there is a vault toilet here for those without facilities) - Look for the Wazuks signs.
Note: The turnoff for Liberty Road will sneak up on you, especially if you have never been there before. About a mile after you pass the Liberty Cafe (on the left side of 97) and the WSDOT sandpile on the right side, you'll come to a long, sweeping turn to the right. On the left side is a Wenatchee NF sign, and on the right is a (pretty small) sign for Liberty. Start slowing down early, as it is a sharp right turn onto Liberty road.
If you need provisions, you can take exit 84 into Cle Elum - there's a Safeway with gas right there - then follow that main road through town (that is actually part of Hwy 970). Not counting stops, it takes just over an hour to get to Liberty from North Bend without traffic, but if you head up Friday afternoon, you will almost certainly hit traffic going over Snoqualmie Pass. The worst traffic over the pass is usually between 3:00 and 6:00pm.
If you would like to join us, post up or email me at stevec at lj10 dot com. The forums at
www.wazuks.com/forum are working again, and have pictures/details of prior runs. If you have not registered but would like to, please let me know, as we still have spammer issues, so new users must be approved.
