Distance: 5.6
Time: 3 hours 45 minutes
Elevation Gain: 2200
Difficulty: Hard
Potties: Yes 1 at trailhead
Pass required: NW Forest Pass
I hiked to the top of Mt. Pilchuck yesterday and it was amazing! This hike tends to be pretty crowded so hiking it on a weekday is a great idea. I wouldn't recommend this hike to children under 7 or anyone who has balance issues. The trail is extremely rocky and there is a high risk of falling or twisting an ankle.
In 1918 a fire outlook was built at the top of the mountain and was staffed until the 1960's. The supplies for the outlook had to be airlifted to the top of the mountain in order to build the shelter. So amazing!
Here are just a few pictures of the journey:)
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| Rocky trail |
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| View along the trail |
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| Sheer rock walls all along the path |
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| Yes, this is part of the path:0 |
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| Views from the clearing near the top |
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| Fire outlook and the rocks we had to climb to get there |
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| Views from the outlook |
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| Yes, you have to climb this to get to the top:) |
To get here drive Hwy 92 to Granite Falls. Turn left on the Mountain loop hightway and follow the Mountain Loop Highway east. One mile past the Verlot Public Service Center, turn right onto Forest Road 42 immediately after crossing the "Blue Bridge." Drive 7 miles on the gravel road to the trailhead at the road end.
I hope you get a chance to do this hike before season's end. Have a great day and happy hiking!
They have LADDERS to the lookout now? Kids have it so easy nowadays. When I last hiked Pilchuck, they'd launch you to the top in a giant slingshot.
ReplyDeleteThe sling shot sounds more fun!:)
DeleteThanks for the excellent post about Pilchuck! I am heading up the trail this weekend. Question? How was the air quality up there with the lingering smoke from the Wenatchee fires? Its been a challenge to see the mountain from Lake Stevens today.....
ReplyDeleteThe air quality was fine. As you can see from a couple of the pictures, there was a bit of a haze in the distance. Not sure if it's from the fires or what. But the views were amazing and beautiful despite the distant haze. I hope you have a great time, I know you will love it!
DeleteI love hiking up to the top of high places. The views at the top are such a wonderful reward. And forest service lookouts are fun to visit. Looks like I need to visit my neighbor state to the north more often.
ReplyDeleteI need to visit OR more too:) Lots of great hiking!
Deleteglad to see you did this hike--and it looks much less crowed! We should hike together, and then we could both blog about it. ;)
ReplyDeleteSounds good:) Always looking for someone to hike with:)
DeleteThere's a ladder? Hmm... I've done hikes that required clinging to a fixed rope or chain. (I don't like either one, but I'll do it if I have to.)
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure whether I think a ladder is better or worse? What's your take? Ladder > rope? Or rope > ladder?
The ladder wasn't too bad other than the top rung was loose and would spin if you didn't have the right grip. Yikes! I think I prefer the ladder, it was pretty sturdy:)
DeleteOh man that hike is BEAUTIFUL!!!! :) You're making me want to hike... LOL. Hey, I also wanted to let you know that I'm hosting a blog hop today at my blog and would love to have you join in! http://feetdominatingpavement.blogspot.com. Check it out!
ReplyDeleteCheers!
L Finch
Oh My Gosh! SO gorgeous!!!!! I wish I had such beautiful places to hike!!!
ReplyDeleteHi! Great site! I'm trying to find an email address to contact you on to ask if you would please consider adding a link to my website. I'd really appreciate if you could email me back.
ReplyDeleteThanks and have a great day!
Thank goodness for ladder! I don’t think I can reach the top without them. The rocks and boulders along the way sure makes for a great detail in trailing the Mt. Pilchuck. Great post, great photos and hopefully more adventures in the months to come. Cheers!
ReplyDeleteHello Hiker Mom!
ReplyDeleteIn answer to your question about waterfall photography, the way I get the white silky water images is to use a very slow shutter speed. At low shutter speeds, the camera has to be held very still. To do this, you have to put your camera on a tripod. Otherwise you'll get blurry photos. I also use a polarizing filter, to cut down on the white glare from the water. I know the new iphones have good cameras but I don't know if you can manually adjust the shutter speed. Hope that helps! Thanks for visiting my blog! :)
This hike looks awesome. I'm going to have to add this to my list of hikes I'd like to try. Beautiful views!
ReplyDeleteI lived in Oregon over the summer (currently in Minnesota) and so miss hiking the pacific NW! Beautiful pictures, can't wait to see where else you go!
ReplyDeleteGreat photos! Looks like a fantastic trip - might just have to figure out how to get up that way to do a little exploring of my own.
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful scenery! And it looks like you were spoilt by the weather - blue skies in all the photos.
ReplyDelete