Hiking Hurricane Peak in the Glacier Peak Wilderness

 5/5

Hurricane Peak Hike Information

Difficulty: Difficult
Distance: 16.00Km (10 Miles)
Elevation Gain: 1,200m (3,940 Ft.)
Highest Elevation: 1,955m (6,414 Ft.)
Average Gradient: 15.00%

Effort/Reward Ratio: High / High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 9 – 12 Hours
– Moderate: 8 – 9 Hours
– Fast: 7 – 8 Hours

Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: Year-Round
4×4 / High Clearance Required? Yes
Scrambling / Exposure: Class 2 Gully, Short Class 3 to Summit

Hurricane Peak Trail

Trailhead Coordinates: 48°19’02.4″N 121°21’18.2″W

Disclaimer: Winter hiking (snowshoeing) involves significantly more risk than summer hiking. Hikers should be prepared with appropriate education, training and equipment for all possibilities, including but not limited to avalanches. A mistake such as going off trail, getting lost or injured can be far more dangerous in winter than summer. You are responsible for your own safety, and while I am happy to give my opinion on this website as to the avalanche risk of a specific hike, do not take this as fact and please do your own research. Everybody has different risk tolerances and mine might be different to yours.

Hurricane Peak Overview

Hurricane Peak is a summit located on the western fringes of the Glacier Peak Wilderness in Washington. Accessed from the Boulder Lake trail, slightly east of Darrington, Hurricane Peak doesn’t see a whole lot of traffic, despite its obvious beauty. There are a couple of standard routes up Hurricane, with one ascending a steep gully on its western slopes, and the other route ascending via its southern ridge, typically after summiting the nearby Boulder Benchmark. Neither route has any trail, so hikers will need to self-navigate in order to reach the summit. The route here will describe the gully route.

Either route you take will begin by following the Boulder Lake trail, which in itself is a bit of an adventure as it’s not a maintained trail, and thanks to recent fires in the area some sections of the trail go directly through burned forest. Navigation will be tricky and the route is a rough one, with scant trail and plenty of blowdown to navigate through. Once at the lake it’s either a case of crossing directly over it (in the winter, when frozen), or circumnavigating around it to the base of a gully, which you’ll then ascend.

Hurricane Peak is predominantly a summer hike, with the shoulder seasons working fine as well. Winter will also work if the trailhead is accessible. Depending on conditions the gully will either be snow filled, in which case you’ll want to bring crampons and an ice axe, or it will be a steep, mostly class 2 rocky scramble up. A helmet is advised in case of falling rock whatever the season. As far as winter gully’s go, this is a good beginner option as it never feels too steep or exposed. Obviously there is significant avalanche risk on this route, so only go in favorable conditions and prepare accordingly.

Access to the Boulder Lake trailhead is from the end of Tenas Creek Road. This is a fairly rough road, but most SUV’s should manage just fine. A 2WD vehicle will not make it without risking damage. Dogs are welcome on this hike.

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Is Hurricane Peak worthwhile?

 5/5

While not the highest peak by any means, Hurricane Peak and Boulder Lake below makes for a wonderfully scenic spot no matter the time of year. If you enjoy steep snow climbs then the winter or spring will be ideal, especially if the lake is frozen, allowing a much easier approach. In the summer the glistening turquoise lake might just be the highlight of the day, and you may prefer the route over Boulder Benchmark since reaching the gully will be more involved if the lake isn’t frozen.

How difficult is the hike to Hurricane Peak?

Physically speaking this hike is right in that sweet spot where it’s difficult, but not too difficult. If you go in the winter the conditions will largely dictate just how demanding of a day this is, and in the summer it’ll no doubt be much easier with a lighter pack and little or no snow to contend with.

Technically speaking the gully goes at a Class 2 scramble, or a steep but not very exposed snow climb. You’ll want an ice axe and crampons in case the snow is hard packed/icy, but if it’s soft powder you’ll likely manage fine without. Just before reaching the peak (past the gully) is actually the steepest part of the day, with a brief Class 3 scramble with mild exposure. The approach to Boulder Lake could actually be the crux of the day as the route is unmaintained and very rugged, typically with plenty of blowdown to navigate. An offline map is strongly recommended.

Hurricane Peak Route Information

As noted the trailhead for Hurricane Peak is the same as Boulder Lake, at the end of Tenas Creek Road. You’ll want at least an SUV with some ground clearance for this road. When we went the road had been washed out around 1.5km from the official trailhead, but if this has been cleared you can reduce the hike stats by around 3km and 100m gain. You might note that the linked GPX backtracks at the beginning, which was simply due to me forgetting my camera and having to return to the car to get it, adding around 3.5km and 150m to the GPX that you obviously won’t need to tackle.

If the landslide has been cleared and you’re able to park at the official trailhead, the Boulder Lake trail into the forest will be obvious. If not and you have to park before the official trailhead, you’ll have to hike along the road until you reach the official trailhead, which is a very obvious parking area.

Once on the Boulder Lake trail it will initially be a fairly simple trail to follow, albeit a little worse for wear. The trail starts off quite mellow, however after a couple of kilometers the gradient picks up, the trail becomes a lot more indistinguishable and you’ll likely start to encounter more blowdowns.

The middle section of the Boulder Lake trail is probably the worst, with negligible trail to follow, a thoroughly burned down forest and more challenging navigation. Here you will likely need to refer to your GPX to know where you’re going, especially if the route hasn’t been that well marked. Patience is the aim of the gain on the approach to the lake, it could be a lot worse so just soldier on.

At around 1,370m elevation, or around 3km from the official Boulder Lake trailhead, you’ll break out of the dense forest and start to get some views. The route turns to the east, continuing to follow Tenas Creek towards the lake. After following the creek for a few hundred meters the official trail crosses the creek before heading towards the lake shores, however in the winter our route took a more direct approach without crossing the creek.

Once you reach Boulder Lake the views will be stunning, with Hurricane Peak standing ominously behind it. The conditions will determine how you get around it, but we had the fortune of a fully frozen lake and hiked directly across it to the base of the gully. In the summer you will need to circumnavigate the lakes shore, which apparently works either clockwise or counterclockwise.

As you approach the other side of the lake you should note a couple of gully’s climbers right of the peak. You want to take the gully on the right, and while it might look intimidatingly steep from afar, once you get up close it actually isn’t anywhere near as steep as you thought. In the winter you will want to put your crampons on and get your axe out at the base of the gully, as well as your helmet. The initial climb up is just hiking, but as you proceed the gradient does get steeper. At no point should it ever really feel exposed to a significant fall, in the summer it is mostly a Class 2 scramble. The very top of the gully is the steepest section but it’s only brief.

Once you top out on the gully you’ll turn left (north) as you traverse below a subsummit, sidehilling across some steep avalanche terrain, before a brief but very steep climb up to the summit, which isn’t far away. This short section is Class 3 in the summer.

From the summit you have incredible 360 degree views, with Glacier Peak, Mount Baker, Sloan Peak, Mount Pugh, White Chuck Mountain, Mount Chaval, Mount Formidable, Three Fingers and countless more. You’ll also see Boulder Lake down below.

After recovering on the summit you can simply return back the same way, taking care in the gully with any loose rock. In snow we were able to face out for the entire descent, and actually were able to glissade pretty much the entire way back down to the lake.

When should I hike Hurricane Peak?

If you prefer to climb steep gullies in snow then I would obviously suggest going in the winter or spring. Unfortunately the road to the trailhead will usually be snow covered in winter, but once it’s thawed out you can go at any time. This also benefits from the lake being frozen, making the lake crossing seamless.

In the summer you will have to circumnavigate the lake, which could be tedious as the slopes are quite steep on every side. Alternatively you could avoid the gully route and instead climb up Boulder Benchmark first, then follow the ridge over to Hurricane Peak.