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Trip Report

Mount Pilchuck — Saturday, Jun. 29, 2024

North Cascades > Mountain Loop Highway
Snow cover crossing the open area below the ridge

Very glad to see the road restored after years of deteriorating conditions. Hope that it stays. 

Got to the trailhead around 7am on a Saturday, with only two other cars in the lot. The first mile up is easy and snow free. The first patches of snow come at about 1.3 miles, and then goes from intermittent patches to full cover as you navigate below the ridgeline. The last half mile is a mix of rock and snow, although the top of the mountain is bare and makes it easy to approach the lookout, thankfully. I made it to the top in trail running shoes, but used microspikes for the descent and there's some unavoidable glissading in a couple places. If you're aiming for the summit, I'd still recommend at minimum shoes with traction, spikes/traction, and optional gaiters - my feet were soaked through. However, everything is warming up and melting fast, so you can likely also wait a few weeks and the trail will likely be cleared out of snow. 

360 views from the top; lookout is open to sit inside, although the shutters are still lowered. 3 hr round-trip car to car, including 20 minutes at the top; moving as fast as I could, but the top half over the snow is very slow going. About 30 or so cars in the parking lot when I returned. 

Boot track doesn't always match the path
Very top part of the summit is dry
Inside of lookout
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