Two Beers Ambassador Announcement + Barclay Lake Hike

Have you heard the news?! We’re excited to announce that we are brand new brand ambassadors for Two Beers Brewing Co!

​Here’s our first Day Hike blog (which we totally messed up by using last year’s can, lol). So while you won’t see this one on the official Two Beers blog, we thought we’d post it here as a preview of the content we'll be creating for them this summer. Cheers!

We're excited to share @beersatb will be joining us this summer as Day Hike brand ambassadors! Read their introduction and check back to learn about our other two hikers! □ □ □ □ #beer #craftbeer #drinkWAbeer #twobeersbrewing #Seattle #PNW #beerstagram #upperleftusa #outdoors #hike #DayHike #summer #adventuretime #hiking #wild #freshair #optoutside #TwoBeersInTheWild #pnwonderland

A post shared by Two Beers Brewing Co. (@twobeersbrewing) on May 12, 2017 at 3:07pm PDT

For our first #TwoBeersInTheWild hike, we chose an easy ramble out to Barclay Lake. Because this trail tops out at just 2,500 feet, it makes for a perfect early-season spring outing.
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Like most trails between between Monroe and Stevens Pass along Highway 2, this one’s best saved for a weekday or early morning weekend walk. But don’t let that deter you. Barclay is well worth the (minimal) effort it takes to get there.
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We set out on a sunny Sunday in May. After navigating several sizeable potholes along the gravel forest road, we discovered vehicles of every shape and size at the packed trailhead parking lot. Even hitting the trail around noon, we still managed to find some solitude in the woods.

The trail itself follows Barclay Creek for 2.2 miles, rolling gently with just 500 feet of round-trip elevation gain. You’ll pass big trees and stumps along the well-maintained path, beneath forest cover all the way. The trail is muddy in places and a few streams require hopping — but nothing too extreme. Watch for trailside trillium and winter’s last lingering snow patches just off-trail.

At the lake, pull up a log and crack open a can. Baring Mountain towers overhead, “bearing” down on you from its 6,125-foot heights. Barclay Lake and the trail that leads to it are surrounded by — but not included in — the Wild Sky Wilderness, meaning that wilderness regulations don’t apply here. But it’s still pristine. Help keep it this way by always practicing Leave No Trace principles. Pack it in, pack it out!
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Barclay Lake also makes for a great beginner backpacking destination. Campsites are large and spread out, so noisy neighbors aren’t generally a concern. We camped out here last year, and the only sounds we heard overnight were Barclay’s resident frog population and the drizzle of rain upon our tent — typical tunes in a place that receives up to 200 inches of annual precipitation.

For more info and to read the most recent trip reports, visit Washington Trails Association.