Purple Pass / Boulder Creek Loop

This demanding 22.4-mile loop starts behind Golden West Visitor Center, climbs Imus and Purple Creek to Purple Pass, descends Boulder Creek, then follows the lower Rainbow Loop to the valley road and 2.6 miles back to Stehekin Landing. The published itinerary gives 19.8 miles from the visitor center to the lower Rainbow trailhead; adding the road return closes the walking circuit. Expect about 18 hours of hiking, usually spread over two or three days.

The climb to 6,900-foot Purple Pass is about 7.4 miles with 5,800 feet of gain. Much of Purple Creek is sun-exposed. The only reliable water before Juanita Lake is the Purple Creek crossing about two miles up; the next reliable source is beyond the pass at the lake. Treat water before drinking. Snow can linger around Juanita Lake into early July and make route-finding difficult. A marked spur after the pass adds about half a mile each way to 7,350-foot Boulder Butte, a former lookout site with wide views toward Lake Chelan, Cascade Pass and Mount Goode; the spur is not included in the mapped route.

An overnight backcountry permit is required, and permits are limited, so plan the trip before arriving. Juanita Lake has backcountry camps; fires and grazing are prohibited within a quarter mile of the lake. The party limit is 12 people, including stock. Keep pets leashed on the route.

The lower Purple Creek drainage still shows the 2006 Flick Creek Fire's patchwork of black snags, new growth and fireweed. Near Juanita Lake, larches turn gold in autumn. The lower Rainbow trail climbs across sandy deposits and a bedrock bench left by glacial carving and later river erosion; look for small ant-lion pits in the sand.

Stehekin has no road connection to the outside. Reach the Landing by passenger ferry, private boat, floatplane or on foot; the visitor center is a short walk from the ferry landing, and the Purple Creek approach begins behind it. The lower Rainbow trailhead is 2.6 miles up-valley from the Landing, and the seasonal shuttle serves trailheads along the valley road.