Good Views From Summit

This summit has a generally well-maintained (and well-traveled) trail with a great view of the surrounding mountains. The top is mostly detritus with a few trees and boulders around for convenient lounging/operating. I liked the fact that two peaks can be activated off of the same trail – W7W/OK-159 is quite close, and well worth the additional time and effort. These peaks are located near Mazama, WA off of Hwy 20. There are plenty of campgrounds nearby and lots of other SOTA peaks in the area.

When you consider this peak for an early season trek, think "beautiful flowers, peaceful solitude, and great views". Early in June this year the hills are festive with colorful wildflowers. There is no trail, no signage, no parking lot... no hikers! And finally, the view - an unubstructed 360 degree view of green valleys, and snow-capped mountains. If you're comfortable with a little cross-country navigation, I recommend this one.

Dragontail Peak, near Leavenworth, WA, is a committed and remote alpine climb - it can't really be considered a hike. This trip report can only give an impression and some basic facts - you will need to prepare carefully and appropriately by reading guidebooks and climbing websites, and making sure you have the necessary skills, experience and equipment. You will need to be able to handle wilderness route finding, high angle snow ascent and descent, rock climbing, and challenging terrain. Adequate physical conditioning is critical to ensure success and safety.

Mount Baden-Powell is 2,865 meters, 9,399 Feet High.  Blue Sky & Rarified Air.

Throop Peak is 2,785 meters, 9,138 feet elevation.  Blue Sky & Rarified Air.

On a brief vacation in Southern California to visit family, I managed to activate three (3) SOTA peaks.  This is report 1 of 3 for this trip.

San Gabriel is 1,878 Meters, 6,161 feet elevation.  It is a 6 point SOTA Summit.

This Friday afternoon activation happened on a cool day with the sun breaking through a few clouds for a beatiful sky above the epic scenery. It takes a ferry ride from Anacortes to Orcas Island to get here, but it's sure worth the trip! The main road goes from the ferry dock right through Moran State Park. Turn left at the Y onto the Mt Constitution road, which can take you all the way to a sizeable parking lot at the top. A brief pathway leads up to the peak with a stone lookout tower that is just too cool not to climb. 

There are at least four trails that approach the summit of Big Huckleberry Mountain - we choose the Pacific Crest Trail from the south for about 8.6 miles round trip and 1400 feet of net elevation gain (1900 total).

Here's a six point summit to tackle on a nice summer day - we tried it with lots of snow and found a blizzard at the top in mid-April. The trail is on a road of about 7 miles round trip and about 1800 feet of gain. 

On 27 March Etienne (K7ATN) and I activated Silver Star mountain. The weather report called for rain with a break around mid day. We headed to the trailhead, Route: Washougal, WA to Washougal River Road (approx. 10 mi), to Skye Rd to 412th AVE to Skamania Mines Rd. Follow the signs to silver star. We reached the TH at about 0840 and started up the trail. At about 1/8 of a mile the trail splits, take the right split. We found out the hard way and got about 1/4 mile down the trail before I checked the map and realized we were on the wrong trail.