I went back to the Middle Fork today, looking for the unofficial trail to Quartz Mountain. I believe I found it but my belief is based less on what I saw on the ground than on what I see when I look at one of the peakbagger’s tracks compared to mine today.
The tracks, below, are superimposed. Mine goes relatively straight to near Nordrum Lookout, the other one turns left and goes up. That’s the one from last June that a peakbagger did:
I believe I found the spot where you go off the CCC trail but I am not sure about that. I need to go back and go a bit farther off the CCC trail to get a better idea. I saw no tape and nothing resembling a trail, but there is a distinctive feature that will be easy to find next time.
The trail is excellent, the forest around there is beautiful and I saw not a single person the entire time.
I went just under 6 miles and crossed a few little streams, including this one, which required very careful maneuvering:
I will be back. Might not be able to go to the summit until next year when the snow is gone. As you can see from the picture on top, winter has arrived in the Cascade mountains.