Lake Ann (Mount Baker Highway) — Saturday, Sep. 4, 2021

Know your hike and yourself before you go..

This is an absolutely beautiful hike that should not be missed if you are in Mt. Baker area and, your fitness level allows you to do it.  I wanted to bring a little perspective from an overweight hiker that is working on increasing her fitness to give some context to those that are new to hiking or, like me, are working on their fitness.  I hope this is helpful to some.   

The hike information provided by WTA for Lake Ann is 8.2 miles with 1900 ft elevation.  This does not seem much to many, including myself.  I had already hiked an 8.5 mile/2200 ft. elevation the prior week, this was definitely doable for my fitness level.  You should keep in mind that you will be hiking a good portion on loose rocks debris (scree) and rock boulders. Not all hikes are equal. This will require additional leg/knees/butt work.  This hike also starts on a downhill.   You will need to have enough energy to get you back up the hill for the last 2 miles of the hike.  This hike took us @ 6:30 hours to complete.  The last two miles felt very hard after the previous four hours of up/down the open loose rock trail.  All and all, this hike felt much harder than my previous one, which was the soft dirt in the forests.  Our GPS devices tracked 9.7 miles  and 2330 ft. elevation.

Rewards are spectacular, none the less. The views were beyond my wildest expectations and dreams.  This is my first visit to Mt. Baker and being able to have lunch with the amazing views of Mt. Shuksan is an experience I will never forget.  The landscape is beautiful and we are very lucky that we can experience the alpine landscape by just hiking 8 miles, thanks to the Mt. Baker highway and the work of many volunteers, pioneers.

Bring your sturdy hiking shoes, your poles, your camera, nice lunch and enjoy the show and the workout.  Happy Trails to all of us, we are lucky to be able to enjoy paradise on Earth.  Let's help preserve these beautiful places for generations to come.