Quick-and-dirty version
Access: Granite Creek Trailhead
Round Trip: 8.5 miles
Elevation Range: 860′-4659′
Essential Gear: microspikes, snowshoes
Dog-Friendly: with guidance
The Trail
- An excellent path to our turn-off at mile 2.8
- First viewpoint from the lone log bench faces South Bessemer. Benches in another quarter of a mile back in the forest view to Green Mountain
- An climber's path appears soon after leaving the trail at the second switchback past the bridge crossing.
- Trail hugs the north of the creek and ends by the decommissioned roadway around 3200 feet
- Incredibly dense ridge crest due to the second-growth from old logging
- A tight squeeze through younger vegetation to the forested summit
Our Route
- Leave the trail at the second switchback after crossing Granite Creek to the east.
- Locate a climber's trail and continue uphill to the decommissioned road at 3200 feet.
- Continue uphill via rocks and snow to the ridgeline before dropping slightly onto the broad saddle with great views.
- Stay on the crest and traverse the dense crest to the forested summit.
Highlights
- Despite being a forested summit among the newer trees following the old logging, views of the Snoqualmie River Valley and nearby peaks from the top were surprisingly good.
- Mailbox Peak, Russian Butte, Revolution Peak, and even the Olympic Mountains behind Puget Sound were visible
- Late morning sunshine and solitude
Lowlights
- Minimal sunlight in Granite Creek Valley until late morning
- Without snow, rocks in the talus were largely unstable
- Dense forest along the top and both sides of the crest
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