Since I first sampled the Pacific Crest Trail south of Snoqualmie Pass I've pretty much been badmouthing it. That's more than 20 years of, "It's trash. Lots of clearcuts. Garbage." For that, I apologize.
It turns out in those 20 years the clearcuts have filled in and the logging roads have become less roady. Between Mirror Lake and Tacoma Pass are 20 miles of quality long-distance hiking trail. Some ups. Some downs. Some views. Lots of big trees. Everything you could ask for.
It's not fair to compare this section to the jaw-dropping quality of the PCT as it passes through the unparalleled beauty of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness north of Snoqualmie Pass. Judged on its own, these 20 or so miles make for great less-than-stellar-weather-day hikes.
And if you have two cars capable of dirt roads you can do them as a couple of point-to-point trips so you're only carrying a daypack. Yeah, sure, you'll get looks from the thru-hikers that are beat up from the previous 2,000 miles, but it'll be great for you.
Pro-tip: If you're starting at Mirror Lake, don't. There's a decommissioned, one mile road labeled on maps as the Twilight Lake trail (1302.1) that gets you to the PCT and saves you 0.75 miles and 250 of unnecessary gain. Sure, you don't get to visit Mirror Lake, but surely you'd do that when climbing Tinkham Peak.
📍On the lands of the np̓əšqʷáw̓səxʷ (Wenatchi) people.
