Mailbox Peak - Old Trail — Saturday, Apr. 26, 2003

Snoqualmie Region > North Bend Area

Take the time to stop and admire the beautiful, shaded creek at the bottom of the trail. It's the last creek you're going to see! The hike up was muddy and steep. The trail is well known for being steep and rough. We assumed it would be comparable to Storm King near Lake Crescent, but it's actually twice as long and gains twice as much height. It took us almost three hours (including creek-admiring and one snack) to go the three miles to the summit. Maybe 80 percent is under big woods, which are beautiful. The squishy mud on the trail was both good and bad. You didn't feel like your boots were going to roll out from under you as sometimes happens on steep but dry trails with bits of gravel on them. But definitely wear boots, not sneakers. Also a pair of walking sticks would have greatly speeded up our time up and down - not that we were in a hurry. This trail is obviously no secret locally, judging by the number of cars parked at the bottom, but it also wasn't crowded. We would be passed or meet someone maybe every twenty minutes. Near the timber line, there was a lot of snow on the trail and the steepness did not decrease. It was slippery and if we did it again, we'd pick our way across the adjacent boulder-field instead of the snow. That's what we did on the way down. After you pass the snow and/or boulders, you're in the sun and on the last leg to the tantalizingly visible summit. The steepness does not let up. The summit is small and pointed like a mountain drawn by a child. Check the mail in the mailbox, then step carefully aside to eat your lunch! Careful going down, it's very treacherous and hard on the knees.