Sahale Arm via Cascade Pass used to be my favorite day hike. Today, the partly sunny forecast is a miss. The sunny part wasn't where we were. However, the clouds and mist made the scenery mystical, and the temperature was very comfortable for hiking. A bit chilly even. I wore a fleece, packed a down vest and a wind breaker. Yes, my umbrella too.
As usual with a large group, we are slow to get ready. Didn't start hike till after 9:30am. We marched in foggy forest in quick pace, unencumbered by any views all the way to Cascade Pass in 1.5 hours (3.5 miles, 1800' gain). Still too cloudy to take a single photo.
Take a left turn, zigzag to the plateau above Doubtful Lake. The clouds started to shift in and out, quite pretty. Some flowers too. The gentle slope of the plateau is a heather meadow, even though the pink heather was withering. Quite a lot Gentian and Partridge Foot. On the arm towards Sahale, views were obscured by clouds. Dew on leaves.
Regrouped at the base of the glacier, where the Sahale Glacier Camp is. Saw quite a few tents with semi circular rock walls. Views of distant mountains came and went. Chilly here. ~7600'. I put on my down vest. Gave my windbreaker to Feng. My group took many silly photos, the guys posed with bare chest. 
After lunch, some of us decided to continue up. Michelle, today's organizer, turned away two folks with no traction devices half way. There were some crevasses on both side of the boot track. The slope is fairly gentle. Probably okay to walk up without any traction. It's good to be cautious. In the end, only 4 of us went above the glacier to a saddle before the rock climb to Sahale Peak. On the way, my Black Diamond Z-pole "broke": the handle came off. The saddle offers great yet foggy view down to Horseshoe Basin and Basin Creek. Michelle didn't want us to climb, because none of us carried helmet. So we scrambled a few minutes to a rock butte on the opposite direction. It has a geological marker, but no name. ~8400'.
The rest of the group waited for us at the bottom of the glacier. We hiked down together. Clouds were not as thick as on our way up, so took a few more photos. On the way back in the forest, some hikes saw a black bear. I didn't. Saw a couple Butterwort flower, new to me.The group decided to eat at Mundo's in Marblemount. I had a halibut burger with fries. Food is so so, but good variety and fast service. By the time we arrived back at the P&R, it was 10:50pm! A long day.
Total 42K steps. 0 bug bite.
