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Resurrection Pass Trail (page 2)
Click here to jump to Resurrection Trail Map I.
At mile 6.9 we found another small camp area. A sign tacked to a tree stated that there was a wasp's nest under the bridge and advised to tread lightly. There were a number of wooden bridges in this stretch of the trail, so we walked carefully on all of them. At mile 7.2 there is a signpost with arrows directing travelers to Juneau Lake (which we wanted as this is the Resurrection Pass Trail) and a side trail to Trout Lake. Click here to jump to Resurrection Trail Map II. At mile 8.4 we reached Falls Creek. There were campsites around the bridges here.
At mile 10.1 there was another campground marked by a post. At mile 10.7 there was another campground.
At mile 12.9 we found a sign that indicated an alternate route to Swan Lake. I would imagine that, instead of staying on the main trail, a party could take this trail, stay at Swan Lake cabin, and then meet up with Resurrection Trail at mile 12.1. Click here to jump to Resurrection Trail Map III. At 13.6 we found another campsite. At 15.7 we found another campsite.
At mile 18.9 we reached Resurrection Pass Summit, with an elevation of 2,655 feet. We were in the middle of beautiful lush green alpine meadows completely surrounded by mountains. Click here to jump to Resurrection Trail Map IV. At mile 23.8 we reached a campsite just before East Creek. At mile 25.9 we found a campsite on the right side of the trail.
At mile 26.8 we reached the last cabin we would stay at on our trek - Fox Creek Cabin. The cabin is about a tenth of a mile off the trail. It is the same style of cabin as Romig and East Creek and features the same facilities, with spectacular mountain views from the front porch. All I could do for about an hour after arriving was sit and dangle my feet over the porch and take in the view. The floor of this cabin is very weak, and I suspect will eventually become hazardous. For some reason, porcupines come at night and gnaw on the bottom of this cabin. Several entries in the cabin's journal discuss the gnawing sound at night. I did not hear a thing, but I was probably too tired. Click here to jump to Resurrection Trail Map V.
At mile 31.2 we found another campsite. A tenth of a mile after that, at mile 31.3, lies Caribou Creek Cabin. I did not go in and check this cabin out, but I understand it is the same as the Romig, East Creek and Fox Creek cabins. At mile 33 there was another campsite. Click here to jump to Resurrection Trail Map VI. At mile 34.2 we found the last campsite on the trip.
Last visited: June 2005
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The following is a description of our hike beginning from the Cooper
Landing Trailhead and going to the Hope Trailhead. Buzzkill brought
his GPS so we would have more accurate mileage information than when I had
previously been using a pedometer. For the first four miles of the
trail we climbed slowly and steadily upward. Despite the fact that I
was carrying 40 pounds, once I had been going for about a half an hour my
lungs and heart adjusted.
At mile 4 there was a wooden post with an arrow pointing and indicating
a quarter mile to the first campsite. At this post we turned to the
right and followed a short side trail to an overlook of a huge
waterfall. There Red Leader spread her ground cloth and we sat and
ate lunch. The area appeared big enough for about three tents and
would be a terrific site to camp if you like the sound of a crashing
waterfall. 
Two tenths of a mile further along the trail across a bridge we found a
large enough campsite for four or five tents. This was the first
accessible creek where drawing water is easy. This was the first
area we encountered that we considered heavily populated by mosquitoes.
It would be a mistake to pass the waterfall without repellant on, unless
it was either very windy or raining hard. Unfortunately for us, it
was sunny and beautiful, with just a slight breeze.
At mile 9 we reached Romig Cabin. The cabin sits right on Juneau
Lake. It features four bunk platforms, the bottom two of which can
sleep two. A table sits between the bunks, so the bottom bunks
double as seating for the table. There is a small wood burning stove
near the entry door and a place to prepare food next to that. The
cabin is bug tight, so as long as nobody holds the door open, the cabin
provides refuge from insects. There was an axe and a saw for cutting
and chopping wood for the fire. Next to the lake the forest service
leaves a rowboat that has seen better days. Patching an aluminum
boat is yet another proven use for duct tape! The oars and life
jackets are behind the door in the cabin. We had fun taking an
evening paddle around the lake, and spotted a beaver as the sun was
setting. A fire ring lies just a few yards from the door of
cabin. Across the trail and up a short path, one can find a forest
service toilet. There was no toilet paper.
At mile 9.4 we came across Juneau Lake Cabin. It is exactly like
Romig Cabin, except it has a better looking boat.
At mile 12.1 there was a post indicating go straight to Swan Lake or
turn right to Devil's Pass. We turned right and continued on
Resurrection Trail. Rumor has it that the Swan Lake trail features
a cabin about a mile in.
At mile 16.6 we reached Devil's Pass Cabin. This cabin is
different than the previous ones in several ways. First, all four
bunks are single person. But there is a loft that can sleep another
two to four people, depending on how cozy they want to get. Also,
there is no wood stove. We were at 2400 feet, well above tree
line. So for heating, there is an oil heater. Unfortunately,
the heater was out of oil. There are clear instructions on how to
run the thing, but these instructions indicate that oil is
necessary. Next time we do this, we will probably bring an MSR
bottle of either #1 stove oil or kerosene. The instructions
indicated that either one would work. Even though we were
hiking at the warmest time of the year, it was cold and rainy up at the
cabin. We were so glad we had our polar fleece clothing to keep us
warm. Red Leader explained that the reason she never does this hike
without Devil's Pass Cabin reserved rests on the fact that more often than
not she runs into inclement weather in the Pass. Just behind the
cabin flows a creek, so we refilled our water containers using our filter
pumps.
Right in front of the cabin, the trail forks. The trail leading
out to the outhouse continues on down to Devil's Pass Trailhead that can be
found between mile markers 39 and 40 on the Seward Highway. Red
Leader explained that if she wants to do a three day hike instead of four,
she would either start or finish using the Devil's Pass Trail, which is
about 10 miles to the cabin.
Just a few steps beyond the campground was East Creek Cabin.
Again, this cabin is the same style as the one at Romig, but it has a
creek from which to draw water rather than a lake. We stopped at
this cabin to rest and eat lunch. People often do this, but if the
adventurers who rented the cabin show up, it should be vacated immediately
to allow them to settle in. Fortunately, nobody stopped to claim the
cabin while we were eating lunch.
At mile 28.7 we found a campsite.
