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Not as long as it sounds -- you can get there and back on foot in under two hours. Better yet, bring a horse or a mountain bike. Both are allowed.
Take 1-5 exit 215 and turn east on 300th Street NW. At almost one mile, turn left on English Grade Road (note the sign to “Pilchuck School of Glass”). After 1.3 miles, turn right on 316th Street NE (again, noting the “Pilchuck” sign). Turn left again at final sign to the school through the Pilchuck Tree Farm’s Fire Gate 35. The Tree Farm is open to mountain bikers and equestrians from May 1 to Nov 1.
Park at N 48.17.336, W122.14.844. This is the equestrian parking lot; make certain to leave ample room for the vehicles with horse trailers, too. If you feel brave, you can continue up the road in your car to N48.17.659, W122.14.844, Gate 37, parking on the small grassed-over roadway. However, there is a gate back at the equestrian lot, and you might not want to chance getting your car stuck on the wrong side.
Once out of your car, proceed through the gate eastward down the road from Gate 37. This may seem counterintuitive, if you’ve already logged in the final cache waypoint, but it is the best way to get there without blowing through private roads past the Pilchuck School of Glass, which allows visitors only by prior arrangement. You’ll want to stay on the main and plain roads or trails, the only exceptions being diversions mentioned in the following route.
Take your first left turn at N48.17.617, W122.14.713. Alongside the road, notice the beautiful meadow, and gape at a giant Douglas Fir that wasn’t cut with the rest. I’ve noticed deer in this meadow each time I’ve been here. Continue on past trees planted in rows. They’re spaced at regular intervals like soldiers standing for inspection. 12 x 12, 302 trees per acre. 10 x 10, 435 per acre. 8 x 16…you get the picture.
Turn left again, onto a trail at N48.18.083, W122.14.527. Again left, onto a smaller trail, cutting down a ravine, at N48.18.140, W122.14.325. At the base, turn right; you should read N48.18.215, W122.14.268. You will soon come to a fork, stay left, and continue on until you find a trail to the left at N48.18.324, W122.14.323. Put in your final coordinates of N48.18.341, W122.15.028. You’re on your own until you come to the final spot, where a surprising sculpture awaits.
Stop at the sculpture and enjoy views to Devil’s Mountain, Ebey and Sugarloaf, and Puget Sound. After taking in lunch, stand at the sculpture and look around for a very old huckleberry bush.
The cache contains:First aid kit; plastic clothespin; bottle of hotel lotion; package of happy face stickers, three lens cloth packages; two product cookbooks; map of Skagit County; large paper clip; package of tissue; and two Sierra Club 70s era Totebooks. These are Wilderness Skiing by Lito-Tejada-Flores, and The Best About Backpacking, edited by Denise Van Lear.
This is my first cache. I visited this place while looking for an old lookout site atop McMurray. It’s long gone and has no view, but for those interested, the coordinates are N48.18.186, W.122.14.171. It is located near the third left turn on the route.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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