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Whittier Ridge-Lakes Loop

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Featured In: Day Hiking: South Cascades, by Dan A. Nelson and Alan L. Bauer.
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This trail is indeed difficult but you won't find a more scenic hike. This trail was carved out of cliff faces and mountaintops. The route is long, sun-baked, and incredibly scenic, while the trail itself is rough, steep and very exposed. One section on the flank of Whittier was blasted from a sheer rock face-anyone with acrophobia should be prepared for a case of the jitters, as the trail on this section features a sheer drop. Indeed, given the rough-hewn nature of much of the Mount Whittier section of the route, we join the national monument officials in recommending that only experienced hikers comfortable on scramble routes attempt this trail. Those who don't want to deal with the vertigo-inducing exposure and rock-strewn trail can still enjoy this route-just make it an out-and-back trek on the northern (lakes region) section of the loop component, skipping Whittier's rugged slope altogether.

From the trailhead, hike west along the Boundary Trail, climbing steadily through blown-down forests as the trail angles southwest to a ridge crest (4600 feet). The way then turns northward, following the ridgeline to reach Norway Pass (4500 feet) at 2.2 miles. From the pass, enjoy great views down the ash-laden valley to Spirit Lake; note the huge cluster of logs that cover the lake surface, the remains of the once great forest that surrounded the beautiful lake.

Continue north 1 mile from Norway to Bear Pass (5000 feet) and the start of the loop section. For best views, stay right to do the lakes portion of the loop first. The trail rolls north, weaving through acres of timber stacked like toothpicks in a box. In the next 5 miles, you'll pass several small lakes, set in the blast-scoured landscape like fine gems in a tarnished ring. You'll skirt the eastern edge of Grizzly Lake, travel between Twin Lakes and Boot Lake, and swing around the southern shore of Panhandle Lake to reach the north side of Shovel Lake.

At 8 miles, the trail splits. Stay left to climb the Mount Whittier Trail southeast, and in just a mile you'll be on the summit ridge, oohing and ahhing over the scenery laid before you. To the south resides the still-steaming mass of Mount St. Helens--you can peer directly into the breach of the northeastern face of the once-great mountain to see the building lava dome in the crater. Between you and the crater stand Coldwater Peak and The Dome. To the north are the many pretty lakes you just hiked past, and far to the east stands Mount Adams.

Continue along the summit ridge another mile to a trail junction at 5600 feet on the flank of Mount Margaret. Turn left to traverse along a mile-long ridge back to Bear Pass, 11 miles from the start. Turn right and hike the 3.2 miles back to the trailhead.

Driving Directions:

From Randle, drive south on Forest Road 25 to its junction with FR 99 (found just past Iron Creek Falls). Turn right (west) onto FR 99 and drive 9.2 miles before turning right (north) onto FR 26. Continue about 1 mile on FR 26 to the Norway Pass trailhead.

Recent Trip Reports

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There are 2 trip reports for this hike.

Whittier Ridge-Lakes Loop — Oct 15, 2011 — seattleboy98107

Overnight

Features: Wildflowers blooming | Fall foliage | Ripe berries

Issues: Blowdowns

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WHITTIER RIDGE TRAIL IS WASHED OUT!!! Trailhead is located about 39 miles outside of Randle. You will see the Iron Creek...

WHITTIER RIDGE TRAIL IS WASHED OUT!!!

Trailhead is located about 39 miles outside of Randle. You will see the Iron Creek Campground and then about 13 miles later, the Iron Creek Falls. Start looking for FR 99 there.

Trailhead is located at an established parking lot with latrines. No water available.

We began our hike at 2pm on Saturday. Trails are very established up to Bear Pass (Trail 211). Beautiful views of Spirit Lake once you hit Norway Pass. Decent climb up to Bear Pass. From there, trail is less maintained. Some blowdowns and water on the trail. Nothing too difficult though. Small patches of snow higher up.

Spent the night at Panhandle Lake. No bugs. Beautiful area. The trail that accesses the established camps is located near the tail end of the lake. Blueberries and salmonberries on trail.

Next morning, continued hiking west on Trail 211 to the Mt. Whittier Trail (Trail 214) intersection. Trail 214 begins easy enough but within a few hundred yards, turns into a goat trail with very steep drops (at some points, the trail is only 18 to 24 inches wide with a several hundred foot drop). Continued for another 200 yards or so and the trail virtually disappears under boulders and blowdowns. Stopped and spent a few minutes analyzing where the trail went. Quickly realized that even if we could get over the boulders and blowdowns, the trail was washed out in two separate places about 50 yards ahead to the point that you would need to anchor in and literally swing over the washouts.

AT THIS TIME, WHITTIER RIDGE TRAIL (TRAIL 214) IS IMPASSABLE TO ANYONE WITHOUT CLIMBING GEAR. DO NOT ATTEMPT IT.

Turned around and backtracked around the lakes back to the Norway Pass trailhead. Had to race the sunset but made it back with about an hour to spare.

One of the most beautiful hikes we have ever been on. Highly recommend this hike to intermediate to experienced hikers.

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Whittier Ridge-Lakes Loop — Nov 04, 2009 — John Speth

Day hike

Issues: Washouts | Snow on trail

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Any Mt Whittier trip report demands a stern warning: don't hike Mt Whittier Ridge unless you're an confidant and experienced...

Any Mt Whittier trip report demands a stern warning: don't hike Mt Whittier Ridge unless you're an confidant and experienced hiker, have good boots, not afraid of heights, and have favorable weather conditions. Mt. Whittier gets so little trip report coverage on the web so I find it necessary to report on our hike.

I and my sister/partner decided that the window of opportunity to hike Whittier would rapidly close at the end of the week. We decided to hike the Lakes Loop and do Whittier from the north to the south. We started at the Norway Pass trailhead on the Boundary Trail #1, hiked up to Bear Pass, down to the lakes on #211, and around to the pass which marks the #211 and #214 trail junction. The trail was snow-free except for shaded portions where we found solid but bootable snow. We saw three small elk herds in and around the lakes basins.

The southbound Whittier Trail from this pass is obvious. We could see trails that went to the climbers right and the left of a rock huge block. We chose the right which might have been a mistake because within 100 feet we encountered a 50 ft section of trail that was washed out but passible only with extreme care. It required three-point traversing and at times I wished my arms were longer. There were some solid handholds but most of the holds were loose rock. Sometimes it was necessary to grab plants or dig fingers into the dirt for a solid grip. Fortunately there was very little snow or ice to cause any slippage problems.

We successfully crossed the washout, climbed back up to the ridgetop, and discovered a well-worn trail that would suggest that the better route up would have been the left hand trail. Only a return trip would confirm that. Next time I'll take the left.

Continuing on the trail was challenging but passible even with occasional snow patches. Sometimes the snow would obscure the trail and cause us to go off trail for a bit, but the trail was always findable with a little searching. The elk surprisingly use the ridgeline often. There were elk tracks everywhere. In fact most snow covered sections of the trail had elk tracks which, lucky for us, make it easier because an elk track was perfect for setting my boot into making for some surefooted walking.

After our two hour ridge traverse, we made it back to the Boundary Trail and enjoyed an easy and scenic hike back to the car.

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