Information about this hike provided in partnership with
Mountaineers Books.
Copyright © Craig Romano/The Mountaineers Books Evergreen Mountain Lookout
Featured In:
Day Hiking: Central Cascades,
by Craig Romano.
A portion of all book sales from the links above benefits WTA and helps protect and maintain our trails. Starting in an old burn surrounded by old cuts (that will take quite some time to recover due to the high elevation here), the well-built trail takes off steeply up Evergreen Mountain's southwest shoulder. It's a tough start, and the immediate views and, in season, abundant berries may slow you down further. But the verdant meadowtop of Evergreen looming above should help provide stimulus to pick up the pace. Between switchbacks take in the sweeping view south of the broad U-shaped (evidence of past glaciations) Beckler River valley. At 0.6 mile enter the Wild Sky Wilderness, leaving young regenerating forest for groves of old-growth mountain hemlock. Now on a gentler grade, traverse the ridge, reaching a small gap at about 0.9 mile (elev. 5100 feet). Almost there! Continuing along the ridge crest, leave forest for glorious meadows. Purple, red, yellow, white-evergreen it most certainly isn't. Swing around the north side of the mountain, and after one final push reach the 5587-foot summit with its restored fire lookout at 1.4 miles. The trail continues along the ridge for another 0.1 mile or so, and you are encouraged to follow it, taking in excellent views all along the way. Look south to Stuart, Daniel, Hinman, the Snoqualmie Pass peaks, and big, beautiful Rainier hovering above them all. West it's Merchant, Gunn, Spire, and Bear, jewels of the Wild Sky. Look north to the Monte Cristo peaks, Sloan, and White Horse. East it's the meadow country of Fortune and Grizzly, with a backdrop of the Poet Peaks, White Mountains, Nason Ridge, and the Chiwaukums. This is without a doubt one of the finest viewing posts in the Central Cascades. And the lookout? It was built in 1935 and revived by the Seattle Explorer Search and Rescue in the 1990s. It's available through the Forest Service for nightly rentals. Just imagine the sunsets, sunrises, and night skies from this lofty perch.
Driving Directions:
From Everett head east on US 2 for 49 miles to the small town of Skykomish. Continue east for 1 more mile, turning left onto Beckler River Road (Forest Road 65). The pavement ends at 6.9 miles. Continue north for another 5.7 miles to a five-way junction at Jack Pass. Take the road to your immediate right Recent Trip Reports
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Day hike
Issues:
Snow on trail | Road to trailhead inaccessible
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It's always fun to make an easy summer dayhike into a snowy adventure. Evergreen Mountain is a good route for...
It's always fun to make an easy summer dayhike into a snowy adventure. Evergreen Mountain is a good route for that. There's even a snow-encased lookout. Plus, the 5,587-foot summit offers alpine views in every direction. Dominating the scene are Glacier Peak, Mt. Daniels, Columbia Glacier, Kyes Peak, and Henry M. Jackson Wilderness.
In the summer the hike is short but steep (1412' and 1.5 miles to summit). In the winter when snow blocks off the higher sections of road, it is typical to park just after the pavement ends on the Beckler River Road, at the turnoff for Rapid River Road (elevation 1375'). Just tackle the timbered ridge of Evergreen Mountain straight up from here. This makes it 4212' and 4.35 miles to summit, or 8.7 miles round trip. We encountered snow right from the beginning, and about 1/3 of the way up it became deep enough to put on snowshoes. With a recent dump of a few feet of fresh snow making avalanche conditions a consideration, Evergreen Mountain was a good choice since the route mostly maintains a timbered ridge and does not involve crossing any major slopes. Despite the forecast calling for clouds and 50% chance of snow, it turned out to be a beautiful sunny day with just enough cloud cover to make photography more interesting and give rise to some unique halos and sundog formations. And the fresh snow was pristine and powdery. It took us 4h20 min to arrive at the lookout on the summit, and after a quick lunch which inspired us to get moving again, it took us 2h20 min to descend to the cars. A fun day in the mountains! (This trip was another recovery milestone, one of my first real "climbs" since nearly loosing my leg the previous September in a climbing accident. It's nice to start getting out in the mountains again!) Day hike
Features:
Fall foliage | Ripe berries
Issues:
Snow on trail
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This was an excellent fall hike on perhaps the last sunny and snow-free weekend to this destination in 2011. ...
This was an excellent fall hike on perhaps the last sunny and snow-free weekend to this destination in 2011. The trail is in good shape, with the first quarter mile brushed of encroaching vegetation. New snow is present on shady spots of the trail above 5,400 feet. The alpine blueberries have purple leaves, and the mountain ash leaves are changing from yellow and green to red. Surprisingly, there were still a handful of straggler lupine, aster and bluebell wildflowers. Watch out for big game hunters. It's a good idea to wear bright orange outerwear this time of year.
Day hike
Features:
Ripe berries
Issues:
Bugs
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Road up to trailhead was in great shape. the flies and skeeters were a problem but seemed to disappear...
Road up to trailhead was in great shape. the flies and skeeters were a problem but seemed to disappear at the windy summit. Wild flowers are all but gone and the blueberries probly have a few more weeks till they are gone. 1:15 up :40 down. WTA was on the trail clearing back the summer growout. Thanks!!
Evergreen Mountain Lookout
— Sep 22, 2011
— Karen Daubert
Day hike
Features:
Ripe berries
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WTA Staff had mentioned that way back when, they visited Evergreen Mountain Lookout as a team. In addition, I...
WTA Staff had mentioned that way back when, they visited Evergreen Mountain Lookout as a team. In addition, I had recently participated in a trail planning meeting regarding current and future trails in the Wild Sky Wilderness so I thought I would visit this as a start.
The road is in excellent condition, having recently been repaired with Recovery Act funds, but the trail head could sure use some help. There is a small parking lot but no sign except one that says something like 'don't damage federal property.' The trail is in very good shape and it took less than an hour to reach the lookout. However it took probably two hours to return due to the fantastic huckelberry bushes - the best I had seen all season. I brought home enough for Jared and me to enjoy huckelberry pancakes and ice cream topping for several days! The view of Wild Sky is excellent and I highly recommend this short day hike. A great for beginners and families. Day hike
Features:
Wildflowers blooming
Issues:
Blowdowns | Overgrown | Bugs
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Did this trail as part of a WTA work party. A little work, a chocolate break, and an amazing hike...
Did this trail as part of a WTA work party. A little work, a chocolate break, and an amazing hike - not a bad way to spend a Friday.
First off the road is in amazing shape. My little economy car had no troubles getting to the trailhead. We spent the morning brushing the trail then decided to hike up to the top and enjoy our lunch at the lookout. The trail is short but steep and a little brushy. We cleared some of the most overgrown parts of the trail but it was small crew and it has been awhile since this trail had seen a pair of loppers. You start off in the woods but soon break out into some amazing meadows as you head up towards the lookout. The flowers are in their prime right now, which is good because it is better to look at the lovely blooms then up towards the fire lookout which doesn't feel like it is getting any closer. The day was clear and warm and the views as we climbed higher were outstanding. Couple of blowdowns on the the trail but nothing that wasn't easy to go over or under. There was one very small patch of snow right before you reach the lookout but otherwise the trail is in good shape. From the top it was so clear we could see both Glacier Peak and Mount Rainier not to mention the many other peaks in between. But really the star of this hike was the flowers - wow! |
Photo by Laura Myhre.
2011
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