Playing on rock on Hidden Lake Peaks

I celebrated my final required hike for the Mountaineers scrambling course I’ve been taking by posing for a photo.

I was perched on a skinny little rock at 7,088 feet at the top of Hidden Lakes Peaks North. I was feeling rather pleased with myself. I’ve gained a lot of skills since I started the course.

Then the woman leading the trip teasingly pointed out my white knuckles.

OK, so maybe I’m still not 100 percent comfortable on high perches.

Still, her joking made me relax enough to let go.

For this trip, we hiked up the Hidden Lake trail off of Highway 20. The trail ultimately ends at a lookout on the south peak, but our goal was the north peak.

The trail is beautiful. It passes through forest for about a mile or so before opening up into a wide gully. It switchbacks up, the views getting better by the minute. The flowers are blooming, and look like they’re going to keep getting better. We saw many butterflies and several hummingbirds. We also saw marmots. Adorable, adorable marmots.

The trail wanders through thick, lush meadows. It’s fascinating to watch the vegetation change as you climb. It was easy to see that many areas had snow very recently.

The snow is melting quickly in this heat, but the trail is still covered in many places. We had our ices axes and pulled them out many times. If you take this trip, I strongly suggest not crossing the first snow field. It looks like it’s going to melt through soon. We went below it, which seemed a safer route.

The melting snow means there are many little streams tumbling happily down the slopes. No shortage of water on this trail right now. And it’s blissfully cold.

Eventually, we turned off from the trail and scrambled up toward our peak. It was a good mix of rock and snow. The snow felt good on such a hot day.

The final approach to the peak is all rock, and it’s fun. I had a blast scrambling around like a kid. I’m still no mountain goat, but I’m getting better.

The view from the top was stunning. We could see Glacier Peak, Mount Baker (mostly; it was partially hidden in clouds) and Mount Shuksan. We could also see down to Hidden Lake, which was larger than I’d expected and still almost completely covered in snow.

If you’d like to do this hike, I’d wait awhile until the snow has cleared out, unless you’re comfortable using an ice ax. I can’t recommend the hike enough, though. It was a gorgeous trip.

If you’d like, you can continue all the way up to the lookout on the south peak. You can even stay there, if you’re lucky enough to be the first group to arrive. Word is it’s pretty posh for a lookout.

WTA has a great write-up of the trail here. That’s also a good spot to check for trip reports to give you an idea of how much snow is on the trail.

I am now done with my scrambling requirements for the Mountaineers course. All that’s left is trail maintenance and the wilderness first aid course. I’m both looking forward to that course and dreading it. I hear there’s a lot of fake blood in the practice sessions.

If you’d like to learn more about the Mountaineers, click here.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.