White mountain is a great long day hike to a stellar view of Glacier Peak!
Starting at the North Fork Sauk Trailhead, wander through a gently climbing trail through shaded old-growth forest. There is just one major tree down on the trail to climb over. After a tough climb up the last 3 miles to the Pacific Crest Trail, turn right at the junction, south on the PCT. Hike for less than a mile, to the edge of the ridge just before reaching White Pass. You'll see an established bootpath trekking up the ridgeline to the top of White Mountain that you can see the top of from the bottom. Follow the path up and greet some marmots on the way. Sometimes the bootpath crosses to the meadow side on the left side of the ridge to avoid rocky exposed areas you'd have to scramble over. Peak the top of White Mountain to suddenly be wow'd by the magnificent view of Glacier Peak for the first time, and the whole range behind! There are 360 views of the North Cascades all around you!
I did this in a day hike which equated to about 21 miles roundtrip in about 10 hrs total, with 7.5 hrs of that actively hiking. It's about 7100 ft of elevation gain hiking. The summit of White Mountain clocked out at 7024 ft on my GPS. You could also backpack up to White Pass and then climb White Mountain as a side trip. But I liked not having to carry heavy pack all the way up there!
Comments