Trip Reports

A couple of years ago I attempted Mt. Pugh but ran out of gas at Stujack Pass(pass the Geritol).Today I hit the trailhead at 6:15 and in the nice cool,clear air started my solo journey in quest #2. Trail was great to Metan Lake, switchedbacked further up to the meadow and the talus switchback slopes to the pass. Powered up with a bit of Cliff Bar and hit the scramble to the summit. This section is not as airy as I thought it might be but you do need to concentrate on where you put your feet and hands(stow the Trekking Poles). It's cool to be on the knife edged ridge and be able to look at the drop off below you and on the other side. Made it to the top in 4 hours flat and had the area to myself for an hour of pictures and snacks. Great views of Glacier,Baker,Shuksan,Fingers,Whitehorse,Pilchuk,Sloan(The Matterhorn of the Cascades)and Stuart and Rainier. Good boots,plenty of water and common sense recommended for this hike/scramble.

My partner and I tackled Mt Pugh on slightly overcast warm and muggy Sunday. Trail head is well marked, with a new sign it seems. The switchbacking through the old growth forest was nice, trail in good shape, appreciated the shade. Needed a little bug spray, but the bugs were not oppressive. After several hours, we left the forest.

There is a avalanche talus field that is large and steep. Lots of wild flowers, but the hike was quite strenuous at this point, hard to enjoy them. Stujack Pass is small, and rather insignificant with Mt Pugh overhead. We started the ascent, and were cognizant of all the talk of this being a class 3 scramble. The knife ridge was nothing really.. the scrambling was easy. Mt Aix/McClellan Butte are more difficult.. The tough part is figuring out if you are still on the trail or not. Lots of rock. Getting to the top is a non stop going up, tiny switchbacks, and it seems you are going around and around. (prefer Navajo Pk which is direct straight up.

We were running out of time, so back down we went. The steep Avalanche Talus field with the fastly growing berry bushes and sharp rocks has to be the worst thing to hike through we've experienced. We had poles, my partner slipped, fell twice, I twisted my foot twice. We wear boots. Falling on those sharp rocks is not a pleasant thing. I'm surprised no one has written about this, instead of this overblown technical scramble.

I think one of the issues with Mt Pugh is its so steep and really a high elevation gain hike, with the humid warmth, we were so tired by the time you get to the top.. We are both runners, so we are in great shape.

Its a great hike, great views at the top (although it was increasingly more overcast as time went on). Makes you feel good when done, that feeling of; ""I did it!""

Forest Service sign-in sheets were completely full at TrailHead, and makes me wonder if they are checking out if all hikers are back etc. We could not make an entry in it.

Went up Saturday morning. We only saw a few other folks the whole day, probably 10 in total, and some hiking solo. The forecast was clear, supposedly nearing a record 93 degrees. We made it all the way to the top, and had a beautiful view of the Cascades, Mt. Baker, and Glacier Peak. Wish I had a map to identity more the mountains in the Range, though. Again, like the other posts, the trail was nice. No snow -- leave the ice axe at home. There was a little snow in places, but again, NOWHERE on the trail, itself.

As for the Scramble, it's a T2-T3, for sure. There are definitely some exposed parts of the climb. Once you reach the last part of the climb, it gets pretty steep with some definite exposure. There are some tricky moves, so watch your footing. Didn't see any animals on the trail.

Left the car around 8:30, got back at 4:00. Stopped for lunch for 30 minutes. Pretty good pace!

Recommend the hike to everyone! Beautiful views, great workout and some beginning climbing experience!

A lovely trail on a lovely day. Trail is in very good condition. No blowdowns. Went to 4700' without encountering snow. Is probably clear all the way to Stujack Pass, since this is a west-facing slope. Saw quite a bit of trail work, both shoveling and sawing.

The sign at the turn-off from the Mountain Loop Highway is gone, as is the sign with the road designation (2095). Going south, it's a left turn about 13 miles from Darrington. Someone has tacked up a tiny paper note saying ""to Mt. Pugh."" Access road is also in good condition.

The trail is clear of snow all the way to the summit of Mount Pugh. We brought ice axes, but did not need them. The blow-downs have all been cleared off the trail as well, very nice. Wildflowers are in full bloom, especially right below Stujack Pass. Many other groups were out on the trail and made the summit as well. Great hike!

The trail is in excellent shape due to WTA efforts. While I would not recommend this for people that cannot bend or stoop, because there is around 20 trees over the trail in various places.

The route is clear to the lake. After that, everything is good until 4500 ft where you loose the trail due to snow. This should be gone by 7/1/2008. At about 5200 ft, there is snow over the open areas, but it is thin and slick. For this, you will still need the ability to self-arrest/ice axe. I did not go past Stujack, however everything above about 5500 ft is clear of snow.

Parking remains severely limited at the trail head and I would recommend carpooling and hiking up.

The view, as always is excellent at about 5200 ft and up, but this is about 5 miles in and after 3,000 ft in elevation gain.

I spoke with a FS ranger at the lake, the valley approach to Dickerman / Forbidden is fairly clear, but there is still significant snow dropping/avalanche into the valley. This should be gone by next weekend.

Turn left off the Mntn Loop Hwy 3.6 miles south of the end of pavement coming from Darrington(rectangular pullout on right, yardarm on left). Park 0.8 miles up this sideroad at first swithback (1500')due to blowdowns. Walk 0.9 and 400' to trailhead. There a quite a few blowdowns in the first mile, most not bad, then they suddenly disappear and did not return as far as I went. I got to around halfway between Lake Metan (3200') and the clearing at 4500' and saw no evidence of snow.

Dry to Stujack. Crampons afterwards to knife ridge. Chickened out doing the ridge alone. Too icy and too much exposure. Takes too long to heal at my age!

I had wanted to hike up Pugh for years but put it off thinking the 5200 feet of elevation would be extreme. But I also thought if I didn't do it I might regret it in my senior years. Don't put it off as it's now one of my favorite hikes.

I drove the long way through Darington as the loop was still closed. The logging road to the trailhead is filling in with alder saplings but was still passable for this fall.

I started my hike at 9 AM and being alone set a steady pace hiking through woods to Lake Metan in about an hour. From there you can see Pugh, which looks like it's a long distance away.

Onward again through forest on switch backs that were laid out very efficiently. Arriving at a clearing in about an hour you can now see the pass upwards to your left and Pugh to the right.

In about forty-five minutes I was at the Stujack Pass having enjoyed being out of the woods and seeing where my elevation was taking me.

The climb up the ridge is quite breath taking, somewhat airy but most impressive that this trail was constructed through such rough terrain.

I summited around 12:30 PM and enjoyed lunch hiding behind rocks as there was a strong wind from the north creating clouds on the south end of the peak.

My return to the trailhead was uneventful though very enjoyable. I arrived at my vehicle at 5 PM.

Don't let the elevation scare you off. This trail was well thought out and is also a marvel at the top.

Pugh is one of those magnificent peaks that you ""just gotta' do!"" And this absolutely picture-postcard day called us to 5300' of gain and 10+ miles of up. We got started late - 9:30 a.m. Apologies, Joe, terrain and time were working against us. Driver had to be back in Seattle by 6:00 p.m., so we bailed before the summit - but we got close. I did this hike about 10 or 15 years ago, and I remembered it being a ""quick hike."" The memory fades! In any case - trail is in great shape. No snow to worry about. There were two groups ahead of us. We later learned, one group had camped at the lake. Trail starts right out with the upward movement. Some trees had slipped away and took some trail with it in spots - but easily negotiated. We made relatively good time to the lake - less than 2 hours. From the lake, its uphill to the boulder field - you're in forest shade all the way from the trailhead to the boulder field - which is a nice relief in the afternoon sun. Even though you gain good elevation to the boulder field, the switchbacks lessen the steepness. At the boulder field you finally break out of the forest and can easily see the next destination - Stujack Pass. I didn't expect so many wildflowers this late into the season, but they were lovely. On we hiked and soon were at Stujack Pass intent on making our way on up to the ""airy"" part of the hike - but first the view from the Pass. We made it quite a way - about 4600' before we reached a turn around - but first lunch! We watched a couple of guys coming down while we dined. We probably could have made the summit with no problem, but we'll save it for another day. On our way out, we saw a mining relic (not you, Joe!) - something we hadn't seen on our way in. We were surprised on our way down Stujack to pass three different groups heading up - one guy with a dog. He seemed to think the dog would be ok to the summit. I took Sadie up to Stujack a couple of times - but we never summited. Hope all turned out ok. The closer we got to the lake, we saw a group of about 7 heading up - and this was at 3:00 p.m. - fortunately they were only headed to the Pass (didn't quite look prepared for a summit attempt anyway) and then further down, a solo guy heading in - seemed late - but he probably knew what he was doing. Other than that, rather uneventful and we were back on the road before 4:00 p.m. and back in Seattle before 6:00 p.m. Lovely day and great company - thanks, Joe!!! We'll bag another one.

Decided to take the day off from work and make it a 4-day Holiday. A great way to spend the last day of August--Head up to Mt. Pugh.

It proved to be all of the adventure I thought it would be. The lower trail through beautiful giant forest up to and beyond Lake Metan. When you come out at timberline and the ascent up to Stujack Pass ; you're in a world of color with lots of late summer flowers decorating the path.

The trail beyond Stujack quickly turns into a faint boot path/ scramblers route up to the summit. One encounters some steep, exposed areas here and short knife-ridge sections ;all to add to the experience of Pugh. It's a good idea to pay attention to your footing through this stetch, but with perseverance and determination the summit is reached.

Unfortunately on this day the higher reaches had quite a bit of low clouds/fog, so I missed out on the awesome views that would certainly be seen from the summit--Oh well...A good reason to have to return to this hike at a later date.

Even tho I missed some of the views this was an awesome hike. Surprisingly ,I encountered not one other person during the entire 8 and a half hour hike. A very mystical day with a lot of solitude and quiet time in the great out-doors. Even now, looking forward to a return trip in the near future.....

Gate open, can drive to trailhead. A few blowdowns along the first half mile, but otherwise trail is in pretty good shape. Trail is snow-free to about 4400, just below the basin below Stujack Pass. The trail disappears in snow after the pass and following it becomes difficult for a bit until you get on top of the ridge and the trail becomes visible again. The 30' class 3 crux section and most other rock scrambling areas are snow-free. There are a few very steep snowfields that must be traversed with no runout (bring an ice axe!). Be careful in the basin below Stujack as the snow is melting and thin; try not to fall into the holes between rocks! I had miserable weather with no visibility...snow was falling and later turned to freezing rain being blown sideways by the wind. I might suggest waiting until the snow melts a bit more off the trail and for nice weather!

First time here for all of us. Frank, Nax, and I were in for some great views today. Almost three miles all in the woods at first with very moderate swithbacks. There is a lake, Metan I think, that is the half way point, but it is kind of pondish.

The trail really opens up the last stretch. The veiws of the upper cliffs of Mt Pugh and Stujack Pass are immediate. Then, as you gain elevation, everything west starts appearing. We saw everything from a different perspective.

The trail gets steep just before Stujack pass. Now we can see Baker and alot of other peaks to the North. Right there in front of us was Whitechuck Mountain. Sloan Peak was also very close as well.

We didn't have as much time as we had hoped to, so we promissed a return trip some day to tackle the summit. Another hike along the Mountain Loop that I can't believe I never went on before today.

Looking for a good stretch of the legs, I ran up Mt. Pugh with a couple of friends. The weather was perfect and the trail had little in the way of concerns ... all told, about 30' of snow interspersed and none that required an ice ax or more than casual attention. Don't be careless, though ... lots of exposure past Stujack Pass.

We drove to the trailhead via Darrington. Take I-5 to I-530 and then head south on the Mt. Loop Highway after driving through Darrington. We found out it was fortunate to have taken this route as, on the way home, we found the Mt. Loop Highway blocked about 3 miles north of Barlow Pass ... you couldn't get to Pugh from Verlot.

The parking at the trailhead was sparse but ample as only two other parties were on trail ahead of us. The trip to Metam Lake fell quickly (~40 minutes) but the route to the scree field below Stujack Pass seemed longer than I remember. At the lake there were a modest number of black flies but nothing too terribly annoying.

Ascending the scree field we caught one fellow on his way down who asked if we could enter his name in the summit register if we found it ... he didn't. I didn't find one and don't recall hearing that there was one on Pugh.

At Stujack we bumped into the only other party ahead of us at this point but they headed out while we took a break. The views were astounding but the sun was beginning to feel hot.

Above this point we hit a few small patches of snow but no real problems. The exposure is exhilerating but the trail was in solid shape and no threat beyond the normal level of concern you should have on this trail. The summit was clear of snow and we basked for an hour before heading home.

Just off the summit, one of my partners had the toe of the sole of his boot come unglued. He flapped down to Stujack where the rest parted from the boot and he tried to hobble down without the sole. That left his foot, a thin sock (he failed to bring a bedding for the boot), and then the shank. At the bottom of the scree field he finally accepted a roll of medical tape from my first aid kit and managed to tape the sole on. It actually stayed until the car!

Which, I suppose, is testament to how easy the trail is ... a guy who'd taped the sole of his boot on was able to make it down without mishap.

Went up to Mt. Pugh on Sat.,the 15th of July.

I was surprised to see no snow all the way to the top. Lots of wild flowers made the relenless swichbacks leading to Stujack Pass even enjoyable. From the pass, you can command a magnificent view of White Chuck. From there, an easy scramble continues to the summit. Ridge walking is not scary, but there are 2,3 places where you want to be careful because it is exposed. But over all, it is a relatively easy T-1 to T-2 rock scramble.

Unfortunately, the summit was clouded over, but the view to the summit was more than satisfactory. This is a ""must"" scramble. You will never forget this mountain once you are there.

The dogs were not welcome on this big long scary hike. I was neurotic enough without them.

The first four miles and 4,000 feet of elevation gain are a piece of cake. Lovely soft trails, no people. It's that 'knife-edge ridge"" that nearly did me in. My human companion remarked that he needed a cattle prod to get me up that mountain. MOOOOOOO!

The scary part is indeed scary, realizing that at any moment I could slip and plunge to my death. But the scary part is only a few hundred feet and then you're back on a nice trail with wildflowers to admire and views to Timbuktu. The summit is nice and flat (good for praying for a safe return).

5,500 feet up. It took me four hours without a cattle prod or sufficient nutrition. I'll do it again!

Steep but sweet, Stujack Pass-Mt. Pugh is a great hike for those with strong legs.

The forest begins with a giant game of pick-up sticks of trees. It looks like an angry mountain god or logging company went crazy yanking up humoungous tree roots still clutching car sized boulders. Trees are strewn randomly and there is no undergrowth. Suddenly the trail ventures into old growth with beautiful soft moss covering the floor. We expected trolls to greet us - it was like when Dorothy lands in Oz and the whole world goes from balck and with to color. Only to be enhanced by a magical trail of candy bars that must have fallen from someone's pack.

Metan Lake is a lovely snacking place if you don't mind stinging bees (ouch!) and human poop and toilet paper. Clean up your messes you disgusting pigs. Gross.

The lovely trail continues up gently for another miles or 2 to what we named ""Deception Pass"". Still travelling in heavy fog, we couldn't tell if we were at Stujack without consulting our guidebooks.

Up through the rocks and still vital wildflowers to the pass. Continue up to break through the fog to the side of the glacier and on to the knife-egde ridge, our destination for the day.

The ridge would not accomodate anyone with a size 10 rear end. It is pretty dang exposed. Don't go up on a wet day and leave dogs at home (it would be too scary to see my precious pup on that ridge!)

Spectacular views, good trail conditions, trail to ourselves, lots of flowers and even a mysterious forest made for a great day. We left the car at 10:30 AM and returned at 6 PM. No bugs except those crazy stinging bees at the lake.

The first 3 miles are well graded and well maintained, but in heavy forest. There is no water on this trail past the first mile. Metan Lake (more like a swamp) is not a water source. The rest of the trail is unmaintained, but easy to follow. Ice axes are not needed. The wild flowers are still at their peak on the way up to Stujack Pass. This is a beautiful hike, and the views are fantastic once past the trees. Peggy Goldman rates Mt. Pugh a t-1 in her book ""75 Scambles is Washington"". We think there is as much exposure on this hike as some of the ones she rates as t-3 or t-4. We did Three Fingers two years ago, and in our opinion it is more interesting and scenic than Mt. Pugh.

Distance: 11 miles RT El. Gain: 5323 ft. Total time RT: 8 hours

Nice Saturday day, first three miles in forest shade, then crossing open slope full of flowers. From Stujack Pass trail in the open with great views. Route to summit clear of snow, easy to follow. Most bugs involved in Lovefest, not bothersome to hiker, at least not at the moment. Elevation gain 5,300 fet, round trip eleven miles

After reading the previous 3 Mt Pugh trip reports we headed out on Thursday for one of our favorite hikes. We stopped at Verlot RS to ask about the road to the trail head only to discover that the Mt Loop Road is closed at Barlow Pass. This is the most useful information that MBSNF could have mentioned on the previous trip report. This means one must drive via Darrington to the trailhead. We aborted that idea and headed for Vesper Peak instead.

To find this trailhead drive out of Darrington on the Mt. loop Highway for 12.6 miles turn left on #2095 and head up 1 mile. A very small trailhead parking area so if you arrive late you may have to walk a little, after parking farther up the road.

Going through the thick forest crossing about 8 creeks and heading up 1 1/2 miles to Lake Metan. Bring plenty of water, as there is none after the small murky Lake. With the fresh dew the walk to the Lake was so enchanting. There are Indian Pipes along the trail just off the road and Coralroot Orchids were everywhere along the trail up to the Lake. The forest floor has blankets of moss with small twinflowers, Foamflowers, Bead Lilies, ferns and Salal bushes. The huckleberries and Salal won't be ripe for a while as they were still green. Look close for the Yellow Violets and Bunchberries along the trail. After breaking out into the Meadows the switchbacks are relentless but the ""Flower Show"" is well worth the effort. With so many flowers in full bloom and so many more to come out. The Red Columbine, Thistles, Tiger lilies, Purple Lupines, Indian Paintbrush, Yellow Daisies, Yellow Wallflowers and so many more.

We headed up to Stujack Pass at 5,500 feet and the cloud cover still wouldn't give us a view. So on through the pink heathers and small trees to the knife-edge rock ridge. This is where we stopped to have lunch and wait for the view to open up. After a long, cold and windy 45-minute wait we decided the views weren’t to be today. The clouds danced up and down the blue ice glacier to the top of Pugh and over the side but never let us see a view down to the valley below. Just white fluffy clouds so we didn't venture onto the spooky trail to the top. This is for another day when the sky is clear and the trail is dry and we leave Yorkie at home. Two other brave hikers went on to the summit but later coming down the trail said they couldn't see any view either. The two other hikers were the only other people seen on the trail today. All in all this is a great hike but not for small kids, dogs or inexperienced hikers going past the pass. Stay in the flower fields and enjoy the view from there or stay overnight at Lake Metan, where some nice campsites are. A few bugs at the lake and at the rock meadows, but deet kept them away. A few blow downs that were easy to get over in the woods. A fat whistling Marmot sitting on a rock above the flower fields was a sight to see. About 8 mile round trip with a 4,000+ elevation gain, a good leg burner trail. I expect to have sore legs for a day or two. See you on the trail :)

B&T began at the trailhead 9am - low clouds (i.e. 6,000 ft and above) suggested not much of a view.

The trail up the lake is fully wooded - ran into one person there. Continued up to the end of the maintained trail at the foot of the rock field. Continued up to Stujack Pass where snow became apparent.

Not having been up this way before, we were still able to figure out the trail underneath the snow. A few yards beyond the pass we brought out our ice axes and continued up a snow field that we could see covered the normal trail. Over the first ridge and we came upon the glacier basic area.

Following previous snow tracks, we spent about a third of our time on the snow, the other two thirds on the trail on the ridge. Soon we hit the summit block and continued to follow the trail up. Three times we had to cross snow fingers with no way to see the run out below - however the snow was consolidated and stable so we continued.

Made the summit by 12:30pm with nothing to see - a bit of a let down after having viewed the summit from so many other places!

We headed down after a brief lunch - and got back by 4pm seeing two others on the trail. All-in-all, with good ice axe skills a really wonder day - some challenge but nothing dangerous.

With warm weather or more rain should be all clear within a month or so.

There wasn’t a Mount Pugh report for quite a while, so here goes: What a great hike. We arrived at the trailhead around 9:45 to find no other cars there and had the mountain to ourselves all day. The weather was high clouds but dry until after we were back in the car.

The road has quite a few miles of gravel and some potholes, but could be traveled in normal clearance vehicles. Once looking for FS road 2095 the sign can’t be seen unless you pass it then look back. If you get to the narrow bridge, turn around because you missed the road just like us. Parking is limited to few cars.

Once on the trail it consists of long switchbacks beginning at the trailhead. The trail winds through dense second growth woods with few bugs and blow-downs (easily negotiated) and quite a few exposed roots. Overall an excellent trail for this time of year and the difficulty of the climb. No snow for most of the way up. (We carried crampons, ice axes, and snowshoes but we didn’t need them at all.)

Once you get to Lake Metan the trail goes left, but if you go right it turns into game trails in a few hundred yards, but I suggest you do that. It’s an easy place to catch your breath and it’s a gorgeous path surrounded with moss. There is one campsite there.

The trail climbs snow free until the giant boulders. There the snow was about 3 feet deep, but disappeared in a few hundred feet. Once we climbed a little higher (around 4800 feet) we came to fresh snow about ½ inch deep. It was just enough to make the tread a little slippery (careful there.) We quit at Stujack pass because just past the pass there is about 8 feet of snow blocking the way. The trail is narrow at that point and to continue would have been dangerous even roped up.

I wanted to take advantage of this stretch of nice weather; decided to boot up Pugh; there was intermittent fog/clouds but overall had great weather. Look for remnants of the old tramway a couple hundred feet below (west) of the summit; also down below on the ""knife edge ridge"". As previously reported remember to take Mt. Loop Highway from Darrington; farther up it is closed. Road 2095 is easy to miss, be looking over your left shoulder - I measured 12.8 miles from the intersection in Darrington where you take a right turn.

Due to 2003 flood damage, the Mountain Loop Highway is closed between Barlow Pass and Bedal Creek, until further notice. Thanks to Whidbey Walker’s report of July 22, 2004, we knew we had to drive through Darrington to get the to Mt. Pugh trailhead.

Started out at 9:10 a.m. and had the trail to ourselves. Dan and I took turns breaking through spider webs strung between the trees. The trail is in great shape, clear except for a few mildly brushy spots. We encountered no insects on the way up (except for a cluster of butterflies at Stujack Pass).

While we were climbing the steep area blasted out of rock, in the final half mile, clouds started moving in around us. By the time we summited at 1:20, we had no views to the south or west. We stayed on the summit for an hour, seeing only partial views through the teasing clouds.

On the way down, Dan cooled off in Metan Lake. I stayed on shore swatting black flies. Still, the insects weren’t bad enough to consider a problem. Good trail; no snow; few bugs.

Mountain Loop Highway coming from Granite Falls is closed at Barlow Pass. You must approach Mt. Pugh from Darrington. Ranger at Verlot said ""It may be two years before road is restored."" We did not have this information so we climbed Vesper Peak instead.

The previous trip reports cover things just fine. Just wanted to add that all snow is pretty much gone now. Yeah... you can find it if you want it, but no ice ax is required. Leave that heavy thing home and bring more water! You'll want it.

Good trail to Stujack Pass. Good trail from there to the summit, although quite exposed in places - but still just ""trail.""

For the casual hiker who isn't keen on scrambling over rocks but wants more views, if you continue just a bit farther past Stujack Pass along the trail, you end up on the east side of the ridge above you, just below a big wooden A-frame used in the old days. Just beyond (before you get to the ""notch & ledge"") is a great place to have your lunch and turn around, and gets you waaaaaay more views than you had at Stujack. This section of the old trail is a little bit exposed in a couple places, but way easier and gentler than the route above.

First things first. I'd like to say thanks to the party of three who gave me a PB&J bagel, two granola bars and a chocolate pudding in a tube. I met them after I discovered at my first snack stop that my carefully prepared lunch and assorted snacks were still sitting on the counter at home!! These folks were on their way down. I offered to buy the goodies from them, but they just gave them to me. Thanks, you all are building good karma.

The hike itself was great. A spotted owl was patroling Lake Metan. I grabbed my binoculars and watched in for ten minutes before it flew off into the forest.

Clouds hugged the lower mountain in the morning. While moving my glasses were foggy. I'm glad I could not see the top. I might have gotten discouraged. Instead I just kept plodding up and up. Stujack pass is an amazing feature, more of a notch in the ridge line really. The last 1.2 miles to the summit took almost two hours. The extra time was looking around for cairns. A couple times I mistook a chute for the trail. I piled up a small cairns by one of these places. From Stujack the trail climbs to a knife edge ridge. It ends in what look like a wall. On closer inspection, you'll see a steep ledge has been blasted out of the rock. This is a real scamble of 50ft or so. After that it's mostly steep hiking.

The view from the top was ... 360 clouds. Once the east side opened up a bit granting a glimse of the valley way, way below. On the way down the cloud lifted yielding views of peaks to the west.

As I drove I-5 back to Seattle, there was a cloud wrapped mountain in the distance just north what I think is Sloan Peak. I wondered if that mountain was Pugh still wrapped in clouds.

WTA trip reports (specifically from fall of 2003) with photo links, already document the route to Mt Pugh exceptionally well. Here’s a 7/5/04 update:

Contrary to some reports, the trail is not washing away at any point. There is some benign (hemlock, huckleberry) intrusion, that could use a whippin', but the trail is not “extremely brushy.” All the ‘03-’04 blowdowns have been logged out.

Once you attain Stujack Pass, you switchback up to a south-trending ridge. This narrow ridge leads to the final ascent to Mt Pugh. To the west (right) of the ridge are the brushy rocks of the avalanche slope you crossed on your way up to Stujack Pass. To the east (left), is a broad gully, whose permanent snow gives a hint of the narrow glacier that once filled the space.

The trail that switchbacks up from Stujack to the ridge crest has a couple of snow patches that run out to heather and small trees. Not a big deal and the snow is almost gone. More significant, is the disappearance of any real snow on the ridge trail as it passes above the steep snow of the east gully. Crossing snow along this steep stretch might be more than a casual hiker would want to deal with. But as of 7/5/04 the trail is clear of snow, except for a patch or two, whose upper tips actually slope inward.

Much of the ridge trail is actually west of the crest where snow is long gone. But a couple trail segments on the west side deserve a little caution – particularly on the way down – because of loose soil. The slope is just friendly enough to keep loss of traction from seeming like an obvious factor.

At its south end, the narrow ridge hooks left and ends with a small saddle that connects the ridge to the larger block holding Pugh and a couple of false summits. This saddle or notch forms the head of the permanent snow gully. Immediately after crossing the notch the route climbs up though a little niche blasted out of the rock face. (The photo shows the upper half of the ""niche at the notch"" and the first false summit, as viewed from across the notch.) The “niche at the notch” is not a real big deal, once you get into it, though it looks a little intimidating when viewed from the ridge top. It’s not all that steep. And, since it's inserted into the rock face, the route had an almost sheltered feel to it. The niche has been covered by other hikers in previous reports. I mention it here because I have far less experience than some of the previous reporters, and I found this and the other scramble portions to be fairly tame.

From the niche to the summit, there remains one, 40-foot snow patch covering the trail. A slide here would be unacceptable. An ice axe is really in order. Or, fully retracted, fully inserted poles would probably provide adequate self-belay for the crossing. In fact, self-belay is probably the best application of an ice axe here as well. IMO, a person would be into the rocks before he or she could make an arrest. A simple workaround for those wary of steep snow would be to bypass the patch altogether on the rocks above.

Wildflowers were striking, but not very numerous. Bugs were evident but not remarkable. Heather near the top was blooming, creating broad carpets of green with lemon yellow and white speckles.

Like most lookout sites, the summit of Mt Pugh has adequate space for a sleeping bag or two. I have been known to enjoy the sunset/moonshine/sunrise experience. I could see where Pugh wouldn’t be a bad place to take in a meteor shower. A second, less rocky camp spot is located along the ridge trail.

The summit has a fair amount of area and the view is 360. I could see from Baker to Stuart between scattered cumulus clouds. A broken canopy of very thin high clouds extended south to about Stevens Pass. The cloud activity was pretty dynamic. Overall visibility got slightly better by the time I was ready to shove off, but watching the constant change in the clouds was kind of entertaining. I hung out at the summit longer than I should have, banking on the assumption that the lower trail would easily accommodate an evening descent. But I actually arrived at the car well before sunset.

As a consequence of delaying my departure, I had the opportunity to walk the forest below Lake Metan with the sun at a very low angle. The large trees provided a mostly dark ceiling. Warm light spilled in as it wrapped around 36-inch trunks. The young hemlocks of the under story caught the light and bounced it upslope. It made for a post card scene. Which probably explains why my camera batteries expired at that point.

If you're not a serious mountaineer, but would like to taste a little mountain goat action, Mt Pugh isn't a bad place to get a sample.

Blowdowns have all been cleared :-) Half a dozen smallish steep snow patches from 5850' to 6500'. Axe recommended. Looked for summit register for over an hour, with no luck. (It was there last year.) Besides our group of four, only one other hiker to the windless summit today.

Just got back from Mount Pugh. I wish I could say that the views were outstanding...truth is I only saw one patch of blue sky and that was when I reached Stujack Pass. Other than that, it was an excellent view of the inside of the clouds. But seriously..it was a really good hike/scramble.

I left out of Renton at 5:00 AM and was on the trail by 8:00. I made it to Lake Metan in a little under an hour. I was at Stujack Pass by 11:00 and was on top of Pugh by 12:40. Back at the trailhead by 3:50PM...a little under 8 hours rount trip (counting a few short break and a short 20 minute lunch). Total elevation gain is in excess of 5200' and about 11 miles RT. Be aware - this is Class 2 (and maybe 3 in places) to the top.

My compliments to the trail crew. There were NO blow downs on the trail all the way to the top. Somebody's been busy recently and we do appreciate it.

PS - There are still 6 - 8 patches of snow after Stujack Pass. I brought my ice axe and I used it. The snow is hard and the run outs are exposed.

I've attached a couple of picture: one is the view from the top and one of the sun (veiled in clouds).

PPS - Excellent hiking weather and the bugs were relativly well behaved (until I returned to my car).

The trail to Stujack Pass is somewhat surprizingly snow free right now. That was cool. There are a fair number of blowdowns on the trail, nothing unusual. Only one of them kinda sucks to get over. There were mosquitoes up until about 30 feet below the pass. There weren't very many, bug spray not required if you're moving most of the time. Of course, just after writing that I find a tick on my neck. Hmmm... Just a little above the pass, I ran into a pretty big snowfield. It would have been easy to cross (not steep), but I had a pretty severe time limitation today, so I turned around. Hopefully Baker will go better on Friday.

The road to the trailhead is in good shape. The trail has a few blowdowns - all are passable. Snowfree in the forest. A small snowpatch in the basin below Stujack Pass. From Stujack Pass it is mostly snow to the trail running south along the ridge the the mountain itself. Just three small patches on the way to the summit. Met 6 people all day.

Got to the trailhead at 8:15. The skies were blue with a few innocent clouds pillowing away. The trail was soft, due to a recent shower. There were a few squishy-squashy areas, but for the most part the wet areas were avoidable. There were about 5-10 blowdowns, most of them easy step-overs. However, about 3/4ths of a mile in there were a string of 4 downed trees that required my friend and I to go over, duck down, and go over.

It took us about an hour to get to Lake Metan, which was steaming from the first sunlight. Mount Pugh was actually visible this time (two weeks ago, we hiked to the talus field below Stujack and there was thunder/lightning), with noticeably less snow then before. About a 1/2 mile before the clearing to Stujack we ran into an old rockfield that had countless trilliums (white and purple). Unfortunately, all of them were wilting and a little past their prime. We hit snow as we approached the clearing. It was hard and we followed old bootsteps. Not one posthole! As I mentioned before, the trail was soft due to recent showers. Higher up, just below Stujack, this meant a slight dusting of snow. However, it was so little that on our way back it had melted. The switchbacks leading to Stujack were brutal....short and steep. The last switchback gave rise to the first view of White Chuck Mountain, it's summit was being scraped by a thin cloud. Baker and Shuksan were periodically in view. Looking the other way from Stujack, all the peaks around the Mountain Loop Highway were visible, as well as Rainier! We then began to see how far we could get towards summit of Pugh. It got hairy immediately after the first few handholds from Stujack. Be careful, or else you'll find yourself tumbling down the snow cirque to the White Chuck River. In a couple of weeks, the approach should be a little easier. We climbed a little then hit a super steep snowfield. I took my time, kickstepping into old boot prints knowing that the return would be easier with them. For the most part, the climb up the snowfield was 30-45 degrees, but at some points it was 60 degrees (!). I would suggest bringing an ice axe, as well as a lot of wits. After a lot of huffing and puffing, we decided to stop at the point in the trail where true summit is visible and there is an rock outcropping you can walk up, which reveals Sloan Peak. We saw two eagles soaring very high, nearly touching the clouds, which were higher then Pugh. It was an amazing sight. A few moments later, the echo of a helicopter rang in the valley below paralleling the Mtn. Lp. Hwy. The winds at the top were a little chilly because of the surrounding snow and the stationary cloud looming above us.

Nevertheless, this hike fulfilled everything I wanted. Great pictures, great views, a fair amount of difficulty, and perfect weather. Left the car at 8:15, got back to the car at 5:11. This included several stops along the way for photographic purposes as well as the grueling snowfield we climbed immediately after Stujack.

Mt. Pugh is a scramble that has been on my to do list for years. I finally crossed it off the list. Three friends were going up. They met in Arlington for breakfast. I decided to sleep in a little longer and still get an earlier start by missing the restaurant. The day was forecast to be foggy by the Sound all day but sunny in the mountains. The fog was fairly thick until Verlot but completely clear to the east. There was one other car at the trailhead when I hit the trail at 8:20. It was already warming towards the forecast high in the mid 70s. The lower trail is terrific. There are no roots or rocks. The trail must be fairly steep to gain 3800' in 4+ miles up to Stujack Pass but it doesn't seem so. At 1 1/2 miles I reached Lake Metan. From the lake I could see above the forest to the area of the summit. It looked every bit of 4000' above the lake. The trail continues to climb at a reasonable rate with many switchbacks. At about 4900' is a campsite at the end of the forest. Stujack Pass came into view. The trail is a little poorer as it switchbacks up through talus, dirt, and gravel towards the pass. There was a little fall color along this stretch but it wasn't great. I reached the pass at 10:45.

Once above the forest views began. They improved at the pass with easterly views added to those to the west. Whitehorse and Three Fingers were most obvious to the west. Low clouds and/or fog was below in the Stillaguamish valley up to about Darrington. Now the real fun began. I had heard and read much about the route from the pass to the summit. Some said it was a tough scramble with much exposure and others describe it as an easy trail. I think the truth is somewhere in the middle. It is not a difficult scramble but it is not a trail walk either. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

From the pass the trail switchbacks quickly up to the ridge top. There are small trees, lots of heather, and lots of rock. The trail reaches the narrow ridge section and crosses it on one side, the other, and along the top. There are spots with a considerable drop along here but the trail is wide enough for enough security. At one spot I saw the old tramway used to winch materials up to the summit for construction of the old lookout. After crossing the ridge I reached the first scramble section. The route has several scramble sections and ends with an easy walk to the summit. I found poles here left by the only person ahead of me. Both hands were needed for a short section. In the middle was a huge old bolt standing vertically in the rock. Above this the route reverted to a nice trail again. Several high points seem to be the real summit but are not. There is 1500' gained from the pass and it felt like at least that much. Although sketchy in places the route is not too tough to stay on. I contoured around another high point and startled a ptarmigan. It moved a few feet off of the trail and froze making for an easy photo opportunity. A few minutes later the real summit came into view. I saw the early hiker just starting down. Not long after passing him I reached the top. It was 11:50 and I was just in time for lunch. 3:30 up seemed to be a reasonable time for me. I was slowed a little by taking 40 photos from the pass to the summit.

The views are outstanding from the summit. It was a little hazy this day and I can imagine how nice it would be on a perfectly clear day. Pugh is over 7200' and has no equally high peaks close by. Sloan is the closest peak that is higher. Glacier Peak finally was visible from the top. It is very bare. Whitechuck Mt. is to the north with Baker on one side and Shuksan on the other. I could pick out Big Four, Vesper, Sperry, and Del Campo to the south. El Dorado and Dome still had lots of ice showing on their south sides. I had about 15 minutes along before another hiker arrived. He had passed three others at Lake Metan so I was fairly sure that my friends were on the way but still a ways away. When he left I again had the summit to myself. Part of my reason for leaving early was to have a long summit stay before the others arrived. That's exactly how it worked out. At 1:00 Ed arrived. Emory was next and then John arrived. It may have been early October but it was quite warm. After that much work the guys had earned a rest and we stayed on top until about 1:50. I had a nice two hour stay.

The climb down turned out to be much easier than I expected. Even the steep scramble spots were no problem. I went last to make it easier to take more photos. I really liked the upper sections of the mountain. It was mostly heather and bare rock with tremendous views of mountain peaks. We passed several more groups still coming up. It's a little bit of a knee grinder getting back down to the nice trail where it enters the forest. Still, it wasn't anywhere near the worst that I have done. We were in no hurry to get back to town and took our time coming down. We arrived back at the trailhead at 5:20. I took the road back via Darrington and by the time I reached it the low clouds were overhead and remained that way all the way home. It was a good day to be in bright sunshine above the clouds. This scramble proved to be all that I had hoped it would be. It's a fun route with great views along the way and especially on top.

38 photos on 4 pages have been posted at: http://www.hikingnorthwest.com. Go to ""Trips-2003"" on the left margin.

This was a much easier hike than I anticipated, given the description in the 100 Hikes book and slightly more than mile (5300')of elevation gain. The trail has a reasonable grade all the way to Stujack pass. Beyond the pass the trail is easy to follow and for the most part there's good footing. It's an easy scramble for most of the way, as long as you don't trip while enjoying the views: Baker, Rainier, Sloan. Glacier doesn't come into view until the top. 2:45 up, 2:10 down.

Another spectacular hiking day in the summer of ’03! Mark and I head up the Mountain Loop Highway from Granite Falls to the Mt. Pugh trailhead early Saturday morning. We are the first up the trail (7:00 a.m.) and see only 5 other groups on the way down. This is a great trail if you want some relatively peaceful wandering. The first leg up to Lake Metan goes quickly on a well maintained trail. The lake is quite small and is obviously down even more than usual due to dry conditions all around the Glacier Peak Wilderness Area. Not much going on here, so we take the next leg up, which involves a series of switchbacks (some 30 if you count every twist and turn in the trail) through forest with occasional peek a boo views to the surrounding Monte Cristo peaks. At roughly 3 miles, the trail breaks out into a clearing beneath the steep slope leading up to Stujack Pass. The slope was literally ablaze in wildflowers, primarily Larkspur, Indian Paintbrush and Beargrass, with a few blueberries scattered about and what was either Elderberry or Kinnikinnik. A few piercing whistles from a marmot announced our arrival at Stujack Pass. Fantastic views of Baker and Shuksan to the North, Glacier to the East, Three Fingered Jack, Whitehorse and the Olympics to the West and Big Four and Rainier looking South. After a short respite, we scramble up the ever steepening trail to about 6,000 feet, but a combination of circumstances, primarily schedule, required us to call it a day and head back to civilization. Roundtrip to the first step above Stujack was about 4 hours. The trail is narrow in places, but in excellent shape.

A fairly strenuous hike/scramble (5300 ft elevation gain; 7201 ft summit), but well-worth it for the views! The trail is in good shape all the way to the summit... Dry, clear, and easy to follow (and very few bugs). Plus many beautiful alpine flowers! A few narrow places nearing the summit with some loose rock, but nothing to worry about. Mt Baker was visible through the heat-haze from the summit, as well as a close-up view of Glacier Peak! Going down was pretty exhausting on the legs. 11 mi round-trip. We started at 9:40am, finished at 4pm with 45 mins at the summit, but were hiking pretty fast. Maybe 15 others on trail... not bad for a beautiful Saturday!

What a perfect day for a hike! The weather was just right, not too hot and not too cold. The trail was in great shape and we got a lot of different views depending on the weather pattern. After reaching Stujack Pass, we climbed up about 400 more feet and were socked into a rain cloud. I loved that part...couldn't see a thing...but it felt great! There were lots of flowers blooming and some really cool configurations of phlox in the rocks. What a wonderful way to spend a Sunday, hiking with friends, getting a workout, and having some good conversation. Happy Hiking :0)

9.4 roundtrip, and 5000 ft altitude gain. Mt Pugh was a great workout, trail is free & clear, and a great hike for anyone all the way up to Stujack pass. (Minimal bugs) Then the ridge trail kicks in and you need to really watch your footing. Even the ridge trail is free of snow at 6000-6500 ft., but there are three snow/ice fields still up there at about 6500 ft on up you'll need to cross before you summit in the last 1/2 mile or so. Crampons or even instep crampons and an ice axe are recommended. When you summit at 7200 ft, the view is second to none for a trail off the mountain loop highway. The day was crystal clear and we could see Seattle skyscrapers, the Olympic mountains, and the pacific beyond that. All the cascade peaks were in full glory. Definately a must do once trail.

Despite five days of 80 degree weather, we three hikers (JT, NM, and myself) and one black labrador still truly expected that we'd be doing much of the hike up to Stujack Pass and beyond to the summit of Pugh in the snow. Yet when we reached the base of the switchbacked ascent to Stujack--the first point on the hike at which the views truly open up--it was clear that other than a small and quickly melting snowfield we'd be on rock all the way up to the pass.

We reached Stujack under clear skies at 11:30 and found that plenty of snow remained on the north side. It was at this point that my dog, Anna, had had enough. She watched us ascend up the steep first snowfield (one of the more treacherous spots on the hike) and decided that she'd stay behind. JT and NM stayed mum on this point; leaving the dog was my decision. I agonized, but left her. ""Stay,"" I told her. ""We'll be back soon.""

Several hundred vertical feet of snow ascent put us on the ridge above the small glacier, looking roughly east across to Pugh. We traversed along the ridge, staying just to the left of the ridgeline on snow for the first half, then up onto the bare ridge for the remainder. Reaching the main mountain, we were surprised to find a long section of bare rock scramble. The snow had obviously been melting quickly. We followed cairns and boot trail, staying always to the right of the ridge, before crossing two final snowfields and making our approach to the summit at 1:00. After a 40-minute lunch in temperatures just warm enough to stay in shirt sleeves, under clear but hazy skies, we headed down for a quick trouble-free descent to the pass in softening but still well-compacted snow.

Nearing the last snowfield before the pass we passed a bare-chested single hiker who reported seeing a black dog at the pass, eager for company. I was more than a little relieved, and then quite overjoyed to find Anna right where we had left her several hours before. There was one mystery, however: Anna had somehow gotten a nasty gouge right between the eyes, a hook-shaped scar that will probably always remind us of this hike (and of her limits--she appears not to like much exposure.)

Trip conditions: The trail to Stujack is lovely, smooth and root-free, much appreciated by weary legs on the way down. There are a few minor treefalls across the trail, but nothing major. As of Friday, June 6, the scramble route is no more than half snow and the quality of the snow is good. I wouldn't want to do the snow fields without an ice axe. There's some real exposure on a couple of the snow fields; an unarrested fall would be a disaster. We did 5.5 hours up and 3 back. The Mirror Pond at Fred's Rivertown Alehouse afterwards was delicious, as always.

Road is gated at Mtn Loop Highway 1.5 miles to TH, bring bikes for an easier descent Trail is nice all the way up to stujack pass, then once on the other side of the ridge there is solid snow that is hard and requires crampons and ice axe. Even the higher south east facing slopes had some snow on them which made the scramble to the summit a little more interesting. 13 miles RT little under 5 hours to summit, 2.5 down nwog.org

It was a perfect October day for a hike - not a cloud in the sky, temperature around 70. This hike is not for the aerobically challenged, with a 5300' gain, the biggest I've ever done in one day.

The trail climbs steadily for 1.5 miles to Lake Metan, which is rather homely but there's a tremendous view of Mt Pugh towering above. Another mile and a half of steeper trail, and you break out into the open section that switchbacks up a very steep slope to Stujack Pass. As you approach the pass, the views across the valley to Mt. Forgotten and Three Fingers get steadily better.

Above the pass, the trail became sketchier, and snow patches appeared, especially on the shady side of the ridge. I had no ice axe, and some of the crusty snow patches were a little hairy, but not impassible if you took care. The trail winds its way back and forth along the top of a steep, rocky ridge, then climbs steeply over rock slabs. For a while the way is not real clear, but there are cairns here and there to help show the way. Lots of moderate scrambling here - nothing too difficult, but it's a looong way down!

Eventually you get back to some real trail and reach the summit, whose broad expanse is welcome after all the cliffs you've just traversed. There's a bit of junk up here, remnants of an old lookout: cable, nails, tin cans, etc. The 360 views are spectacular: Mt. Baker and Shuksan to the north, the Sound and Olympics to the west, Rainier and the Monte Cristo area peaks to the south, and of course, Glacier Peak, just a few miles east. Now is a particularly beautiful time, with patches of golden and orange foliage sprinkled among the evergreeens on the mountainsides.

After a long lunch soaking up the sun and views, I headed down. On the way down, I noticed an odd sort of timber structure above the trail on the knife-edge ridge... looks like a winch or something. Two questions come to mind: what was it for, and how in the world did they get the timbers up there? By helicopter?

As usual for me, the hike down was much harder than coming up. I felt every inch of the elevation loss in my legs and feet by the time I got back to the car. It took me almost three hours going up, and about 15 minutes less coming down.

I would highly recommend this challenging hike. The spectacular views make the grind to the top worthwhile. The top-most section of the trail won't be ""hikeable"" much longer. A little more snow up there and it will require some mountaineering skills and equipment.

I admit I was a little intimidated by what I had heard of Mt Pugh. A knife edge ridge and plenty of exposure... What I found was an airy, exciting and creative ridge trail, with occasional need of hands to steady oneself, but nothing that any reasonably seasoned hiker couldn't handle with pleasure. Earlier in the season with smow or ice on the ridge, or even a rainy day would be a totally different situation. Do this on a sunny, dry day for maximum enjoyment.

To get there drive to Darrington on Hwy #530 from Arlington. When the highway makes a ninety degree left, go right on the Mountain Loop Highway 12.6 miles to Rd #2095. This is not marked until you turn off onto it. Go 1.5 miles to the trailhead at 2000', just after the second switchback. The roads are in great shape, take your Ferrari if you want.

The excellent trail takes off at a steady 15% grade in cool forest, passing a couple small creeks in the first mile, the only water of the trip this time of year. Passing quiet little Lake Metan at 1.5 miles, the trail continues up another 1.5 miles or so to a large open talus basin below Stujack Pass. Now the trail tilts upward a bit to arrive at the tiny pass via a series of switchbacks on the meadowy north slope of the basin. From the pass the trail climbs even more steeply, sinuously clinging to the infamous knife edge ridge, then crossong a notch to the main summit mass. From here it's good but steep trail to the 7201' summit.

The campsites were not that appealing to me, the upper one where the trail enters the basin is nice butlacks easy water, and Lake Metan's dark and murky waters were not that enticing either. There are a couple of sleeping bag size spots that sombody excavated right on the knife-edge portion of the ridge, and the summit itself has a level sandy area that would hold a half dozen folks.

Summit times for the various folks I encontered varied from 3.5 to 5.5 hours, one-way. Descent time is up to you. Have fun!

Today was the PERFECT day to do Mt Pugh! We set out from the trailhead at 8:15 ( would have been 8:00 but the sign for the turn-off is gone. Mileage from Barlow Pass is 10.6 mi by the way) The first 1.5 miles to Metan Lake are in lovely cool forest. The next few miles before Stu-Jack Pass are nice ,too, but seem to take forever to gain any elevation. (The gradual grade was appreciated at the end of the day, though...)Once above the pass, the beautiful views were endless. And the sense of exposure was exhilarating. Beyond the knife edge, I think non-experienced folks should seriously think twice about proceding.It is an easy scramble, but a scramble nevertheless. The summit ,with an elevation gain of 5300 feet in 5.5 mi (according to Harvey) is one of the most challenging hikes with the most superb payoff. 360 degree views, with gorgeous rocks below, and the winding river WAY below. We reached the summit at 12:50. Unfortunately, we could only spend a few minutes up there because we had to get home to let the dog out... So we hurried back down, made it back to the car by 4:00, and home just in time to free the hound. This hike is now my all-time favorite, especially this time of the year. See you up there next year!

This is a great trail with the best view in town. The trail is in great shape all the way to the top. There is some scrambling in the final half mile but it is easy, fun, and 'airy' (trail is not for the faint of heart, be prepared to feel like you earned your lunch). There is one decent camp site at the lake. Not much activity, saw 6 people coming out on the evening of the 29th but had the whole mountain to ourselves on the 30th. Rank this as absolutely one of the best.

Tried to head up to Green mountain, but the road was blocked 1 mike from turn off of river road. Headed to Mount Pugh instead. The grunt up to the lake on this hot day made me wonder if all that snowshoeing in the winter had kept me in shape or NOT. The gate is lock at the botom, which adds 1.5 miles each onto the hike. No snow until you reach the lake. The lake (1.5 from the start) is still frozen and snow is ankle deep. The snow deepens to knee height as you head up the pass and is very slushy. Great views from the pass. Did not want head onto rock with the slippery conditions, so I eat a late lunch and head down. Snow is melting fast on the exposed rock, and you should be able to hike right to the top within a couple of weeks or so.

We started on Saturday morning well below the overcast, but we saw so much blue sky on the way to the trailhead that we knew we'd get lucky! The gate was closed at the Mtn Loop Hwy - bonus mileage and gain. The trail was mostly snow free up to the basin below Stujack pass - just a few small blow-downs.

We put our gaitors on in the basin and hiked up through a few inches of new snow to the pass. Beautiful deep, cobalt blue skies - fabulous! After Stujack, we switched to ice-axes and within a few minutes added crampons. From there to the summit it became more sporting as we scrambled the ridge on rock and ice covered with a few inches of loose snow.

The last section above the ridge to the summit was more rock and ice lightly covered with loose snow. These were not the best conditions, but okay for experienced alpinists. Near the summit the snow started balling up in our crampons, but we just front-pointed and low-daggered into the underlaying ice for the last stretch to the summit.

Incredible views from the summit! And cold - my ice-axe leash froze into some wierd shape during the 15 minutes we spent on top. We scrambled back down to Stujack without any problems.

I definitely recommend the hike to Stujack - not enough snow to be a problem, plenty of exercise and incredible views! Stujack to the summit...only for experienced groups with ice-axes and crampons.

After a pleasant sunny and cool trip on Saturday to Gobbler's Knob (see Mr. Trailhead's report), I hoped that the weather would hold off on Sunday for a trip up Mount Pugh. Things looked OK as we traveled the Mountain Loop Highway past Barlow Pass and north to the marked trailhead turnoff. The side road was not gated so we saved several hundred vertical feet of gain of road walk to the actual trailhead. Per previous reports, the trail is nicely graded to Lake Metan and on up to the base of the meadow below Stujack Pass. Here the first snow pellets started to land. The trail steepens through the meadow and there are several step-overs, -arounds, and -acrosses but the trail is in pretty good shape to the pass. At the pass, the wind is blowing pretty hard and it is definitely snowing. I put on almost everything in my pack even though we are still going up. It had been several years since I had been to Mount Pugh. I did not remember such a well worn boot path above the pass but I did remember the knife edge features higher on the ridge. On that first trip our leader mentioned that we would be tempted to look around as we walked up the ridge with the request that we only do one at a time. By the time we reached the short saddle and the ""ramp"" up to the left at about the 6500 foot level, I was ready to cry uncle. Visibility was low, the wind was cold, and the rock was wet.

Beautiful Day, no clouds, and the bugs were on vacation. Great hike up to metan lake, then the switchbacks up to Stujack Pass were great. Some overgrown shrubery up to the pass, and then some nice exposure along the ridge towards the summit. There are some great backcountry camping spots all along the trail, and the one near the ridge above Stujack pass is killer! Once at the base of the summit, class 2 and class 3 scrambles make your way towards the top. This is not a route for the inexperienced, or for folks carrying heavy packs. There are a few slabs of granite where there was water and small pebbles that made for a less than perfect trail with such high expposure. Left the trailhead at 815am, and made it to the summit at 12 noon. Hung out on top for about 1 hour and soaked in too many rays, and then descended down the long arduous trail. 5.3 miles one way, and 5000 vertical feet. It's a grind, but well worth it. Can't wait to hit this in the winter!

Arrived at the trailhead around 8am. We strapped on the boots and off we went. The first 1.5 miles to the lake went fast through beautiful ancient forest. Trail was in great condition.. After reaching the lake the trail begins heading uphill and around 4800 ft we reached the tree-line. After downing about 1 liter of water we headed up the never ending switchbacks that lead to Stujack Pass (Elevation 5720ft). From here the trail becomes quite amazing as it follows knife ridge towards the summit. Exposure increases in the area right above the glacier. This is the area that was blasted out of the rock during the Fire Lookout era.. This exposed section is minor and short. Once above the blasted area a more traditional trail appears and leads you to the 7202ft summit. We reached the summit around 1:30pm to overcast skies. The cloud ceiling was around 6800ft with occasional clearings. We ate lunch on top and headed down around 2:30pm. Enjoyed a nice trip back down the mountain. Arrived back at the vehicle around 5:30pm to an ice chest full of cold beer. Boy did that ‘taste great’. Wonderful trip.

We arrived at the trailhead at 6:00 AM and began our accent. The weather was cool (in the mid 50’s) and overcast, which complimented the hike quite nicely. The way to the lake seemed rather easy through cool dense forest and mild switchbacks, with no obstructions of any kind. We arrived at the Lake at 7:05 AM, rested a bit and donned our packs once again were on our way. The trail from here was a bit more difficult as the switchbacks became steeper. About 1-1/2 hours went by and we arrived at an open slope with very steep switchbacks leading to Stujack Pass. We rested at Stujack Pass for a short time, as the wind was blowing and the temperature had fallen to 41 degrees. We traversed the knife-edge ridge without incident, and began our final trek to the summit. I was a bit intimidated with the steep rock cliffs at the base of the peak, but Dan and I managed to make it to the more gentle switchbacks that led to the summit without incident. We made the summit at 11:30 AM. The temperature was 36 degrees and the wind was blowing at 12 knots from the west, with occasional fog and low clouds rising up and over the summit. This was a bit depressing as we were unable to see much of the scenery we had worked so hard to see. Incidentally, we encountered no snow what so ever on the trail, except of course the beautiful permanent snowfield that sits to the north below the mountain We stayed for 1-1/4 hours and began to head down. The way out was a bit challenging, and the decent from the peak had a moderate pucker factor to say the least. After traversing the knife-edge ridge the way got much easier, and had little trouble (besides sore knees) from there to the trailhead. We arrived at the trailhead at 5:00 PM and were very thankful for our success in obtaining the summit that I’d wanted to do for nearly 20 years. I know for sure I will return to this fabulous place next year, hopefully on a sunny and clear day.

It took 2 hours to drive here from Duvall. Just a little too long to do frequently. I liked this hike because of the vert gain. I got close to the top (6900'). Couldn't see very far and it was getting cold. Saw the last group coming down and I was alone so I turned around. The trail is easy all the way to the pass. After the pass it is still easy but requires a little rock hopping and a couple of short scrambles up the rock. Hey, if you get that far then I am sure you can go all the way. Got a couple blisters comming down.

The route to Mt. Pugh is entirely snow-free. There are two minor rock slides on the trail shortly after Stujack Pass. At this point only a modicum of mountain sense is required to follow the route.

I heard/read many conflicting statements about how challenging Pugh was; a few can be found in this database! Having just climbed it, here's my conclusion: If you feel comfortable doing the Si haystack, which is a solid class 3, you will find Pugh quite easy, since the toughest section is no more than class 2+. I got a late start, about 1 pm from the trailhead. The first few miles are through pleasant forest on gentle to moderate switchbacks. Be sure you head left when you reach the lake at 1.5 miles or so. The 'bench' at the campsite straight ahead apparently doubles as a trail warning! At about 4 mi you come to the edge of the timber with views up to the pass. The next 1/2 to 3/4 miles up to stujack pass are fairly steep. The trail is dry, so bring plenty of water. No snow is on the trail, so leave your axes and crampons behind! The mile or so from the pass is mostly on a knife-edge trail reminiscent of Mt. katahdin (ME). Some exposure, and one section requiring use of hands, but not too tricky. There is somewhat of a false summit before you wind your way to the actual summit. I had decent views on the way up, but the summit itself was chilly, windy, and fogged in! There were about a dozen other climbers on this day (Sat); i was the last one up/down. Took me about 3hrs to the pass, another to the summit. A real fun trail, but if its scenery youre after, i hear Dickerman's out in bloom right now. Cheers.

What a great day for hiking! Talk about georgous! It was warm and sunny, but the trail is through forest for the entire length. I had never been to Lake Metan before, so I thought this would be a great day for the trip. It's only 1.5 miles to the lake and a measly 900ft. so this hike you can do with your kids. There a several pretty creek crossings and the lake is a great spot to cool off. It's a tough go from there to the top of Mt. Pugh. The rangers don't recommend anyone go further than the meadows unless you have climbing experience. Try this one, you'll be glad you did.

We figured Mt. Pugh in early season would be a good practice snow climb/endurance training. So, under drizzly skies and a not particularly encouraging weather forecast, Jakub and I loaded up the packs (about 65 lbs and 55 lbs respectively -- major groan factor!) and headed up. There are many blow-downs covering the trail, which slowed our pace a bit. The snow started around 4400'; Lake Metan, at 3180', is completely snow- and ice-free. The big meadow below Stujack Pass (5700') is filled with chunky avalanche debris. There didn't seem to be any recent slides or imminent danger but we crossed the diciest parts swiftly nonetheless. The wind has scoured the snow clean off of the scree just below the pass, exposing a bit of the trail (although it's safer to stick to the snow). In contrast, the lee side of the gap, just a few feet away, has several feet of snow accumulated into a shallow cornice. This is where we set up camp for the night after leaving the trailhead about 4.5 hours earlier. We weren't greeted with any monster views at the pass, as the weather hadn't improved at all, and while we were eating dinner it began to snow quite heavily for about an hour. We crawled into our sleeping bags and awoke the next morning to about 2"" of new snow and the pastoral sight of low, wet clouds slowly crawling up and down White Chuck Mountain to the north and Mount Forgotten to the south. As we cooked breakfast, we stared up the 60-degree snow slope leading to the summit... stared down at the undeniably recent avalanche tracks below us on the lee side of Stujack... contemplated the new snow, the clouds moving in on the windward side, and the inherent risk of a two-member party... and decided to call it a summit. We packed up and had a fun glissade down to the bottom of the avalanche bowl, where we picked a nice safe slope to whip out all that climbing gear we brought and practice two-person crevasse rescue scenarios (I won't mention a certain fatal mistake I made involving some 'clever' engineering to my rope setup that required setting up a separate double C system just to extricate myself from the trap I had created before I could properly ""rescue"" Jakub...). The weather even cleared up a little for us in the afternoon. All in all a worthwhile and educational trip. Remarkably, even though it was Memorial Day weekend, we only saw two other people the entire time.

Started out the day thinking that 5400 feet of elevation gain would be pretty brutal. I was pleasantly surprised of how well maintained the trail was and it never felt that we had gained that much elevation. Beautiful fall colors. Encountered fresh snow approximately at 5700 feet. Once we reached the pass and started up the ridge there was ice in places and fairly slick. About 3/4 across the ridge, two of our members decided to turn back bacause of the slickness. Two of the other members proceeded for the summit. Definitely icey on the scrambling portion. They had a great view from there and luckily the ice had somewhat melted for the descent. Otherwise would have been pretty tricky coming back off the scramble.

This is a fantastic hike! A beautiful forest and then great views at the top, including Rainier, Stuart, Glacier, Baker, Shuksan, Sloan, the Olympics...It's a lot of elevation gain, but never seems that steep. There is no snow until after Stujack Pass and then only a minimal amount, just enough to make the trail a little tricky when it is icy. Until there is more snow, an ice axe difinitely not needed. From other reports I thought there would be a bit of scrambling to reach the top but there really wasn't and it was quite straightforward, a thin ridge but not exposed. This section near the summit was trickier down than up and you should be careful not to lose the trail. It was a warm day and I was the only hiker. What more could one want' Total time: 3.25 hrs up, 2.5 hrs down.

This trail is well graded and well maintained. Hiking was a pure delight; the miles just flew by. First is an old clearcut, then a thinning of the trees. Next is Lake Metan, with two campsites. Up, up through many trees, arriving at a boulder basin. The trail winds and switchbacks through a huge talus and scree slope, with only a few trees available for shade. There are many flowers, but it's not a real meadow. The view from the gap is a worthy objective. Just a few hundred feet higher the ridge narrows and the views really pick up, including the permanent snowfields and polished granite on the north face. From here the tread occasionally narrows, and even disappears as it becomes a scramble. There were only two small sections where it felt airy. The black cloud hanging over the summit broke just as we arrived. Nothing like having the top all to yourself, sitting and sunning, feeding all the mosquitos! Pugh stands apart from most of the surrounding peaks, so views include some straight down stuff. While the sights are great, there are other places with bigger rewards for less effort. We saw several groups on the way out. I can't decide if the 75 year old man on the top ridge or the 17 year old girl backpacking by herself intrigued me more. This hike is not for the faint of heart, or weak of knees. Approximately 10 mile roundtrip, 5300' elevation gain. Four hours up, two and a half down.

I had great weather for my trip to Stujack Pass. The trail is in great shape thanks to some recent trail maintenance. (No, I wan't involved in the work party.) It was a bit of an uphill march, but the switchbacks through the trees were enjoyable due to the filtered sunlight and an open airy feel as there isn't an overabundance of undergrowth. After the meadow at 3.5 miiles the trail becomes about 5 times tougher up to the pass. There were plenty of wild flowers here and since I was bent over going up the steep grade, I had ample opportunity to see them up close. With out being too technical there were red flowers, and blue ones, two kinds of yellow ones, a couple different kinds of purple ones, and a lot of different white flowers. The views were great as advertised. One easy small snow patch at the meadow. Another group came down from Mt. Pugh so it's open to the top.

[Online Editor's note: The recent work was done on National Trails Day by the Everett Mountaineers and the WTA and on the following weekend by Boealps and WTA. The Darrington USFS trail crew was there as well. They did most the work on the new puncheon bridge.]

Excellent conditioning day hike. Made great time on the way up past the lake -- the trail is in superb condition. The basin below Stujack Pass has a large snowfield in it still, but higher up we hit boulders and located the trail again, switchbacking up to the pass through a meadow with wildflowers beginning to show and being serenaded by whistling marmots the whole way .... View from Stujack Pass is quite good, over to Baker/Shucksan one way, and Rainier and the Central Cascades the other. But, much better views await from the top ...... It is still quite a bit further to the summit. Large parts of the trail are snowed under almost immediately after leaving the pass, and we had to scramble over heather and brush as there was way too much exposure on the short and steep snowfields to risk a fall. After a bit of that, we were safely up on the ridge, and traversed over to the summit block on trail and snow. A good bit of scrambling, and two smaller snowpatches, and we were on top. 4.5 hrs total up. Wonderful views, looking right into Glacier Peak, as well as all the Cascades from North to South. A nice large flat area where the cabin used to be, so we took a nap in the sun. 3 hrs back down to the car. 5300 ft total el gain, and about 10 miles round trip. My legs are sore. Bring ice axe.

This is an outstanding
trail but you must pay the price in effort. The highlight of the hike are the great views from the top, but the forest on the way up is spectacular in its own right. The trailhead is 12.8 mi from Darrington off Mountain Loop Drive. The first mile takes you through forest that was burned within the last hundred years. There are a few remaining fire scared giants scattered about a forest of small dense trees. About ½ mi from Lake Metan is a cathedral of beautiful tall Douglas firs. Lake Metan is a nice small lake with a view straight up to Mt Pugh. The next 2 miles are in excellent mid elevation old growth. I counted the rings on an average sized 2.5 ft hemlock that was cut to clear the trail and it was 400 years old. About ½ mile from Stujack pass a steep broad rock fall area is entered with a view Pugh once again. At this point it looks as if it is impossible to reach the pass but somehow the trail switchbacks through it all albeit at a steeper pitch. The pass affords you great views to Whitechuck mountain and the Sauk river valley. A very good trail continues on for ½ mi to a ridge with much better views of the entire North Cascades National Park area. The extra effort is definitely worth it. This is a good turn around point for wimps like me. Getting to the very top is a little hairy and requires some nontechnical but exposed scrambling. The entire journey is 8.5 miles round trip and 4300 ft in elevation gain. The trail is in excellent shape and it doesn’t get any horse or bicycle use (I also didn't see any cell phones, trash, boyscouts, GPS units, hunters or dogs - except for Umbo of course).

Please see the other
excellent report on Mount Pugh. I don't have much to add, except for the fact that I saw two mountain goats on the top. One was much smaller than the other. Coming down from the summit I passed two hikers headed up. This was the first time I had seen a mountain goat. She told me that the baby goats are called ""kids."" I guess you learn something new every day. This is a great trail and if you hike it on a day like Saturday the views from the top will put a twinkle in your eye that will make other people wonder what you have been doing! Have fun. Questions, comments: write Jay at jjano@emeraldnet.net