Hiking Eastpoint Peak near Manning Park
Contents
Eastpoint Peak Hike Information
Difficulty: Difficult
Distance: 22.90Km
Elevation Gain: 1,390m
Highest Elevation: 2,029m
Average Gradient: 12.14%
Effort/Reward Ratio: High / High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 8 – 10 Hours
– Moderate: 7 – 8 Hours
– Fast: 6 – 7 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: Year-Round
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: None
Eastpoint Peak Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 49°12’21.8″N 120°59’55.2″W
Eastpoint Peak Overview
Eastpoint Peak is one of a number of summits officially located in the Skagit “donut hole”, a 5,800 hectare “hole” between Manning Provincial Park and Skagit Valley Provincial Park. The history of this donut hole began when the Skagit Valley was upgraded to a provincial park in 1996, a portion of the Skagit watershed was covered under a mineral tenure and as such could not be included in the newly formed provincial park. As a result, the donut hole formed when this area of land was left surrounded by Manning and Skagit Valley Provincial Parks.
Over the years a variety of companies held logging and mining permits within this hole, as can be seen when you hike in the area, however a number of coalitions have since fought to prevent this. In 2019 logging was banned in the donut hole, and in 2022 one of the mining permit holders relinquished their mining rights for the region. The donut hole is an important wildlife sanctuary and home to hundreds of animals including birds, salmon and bears.
Due to the history of logging in the area hikers are able to hike up a logging road to almost 1,800m from a small parking lot off of the highway, Cayuse Flats. Eastpoint Peak is one of the lesser frequented in the area, with the nearby Silverdaisy Mountain and even Claimstake Mountain seeing more traffic.
Due to the long, gradual FSR to the alpine, all of the peaks in the Skagit donut hole are possible to ascend year-round. In the winter this region is fairly popular with ski tourers, so it’s likely there will be a skin track all of the way to the Claimstake/Eastpoint col. That being said, this is a long hike on snowshoes, so the preferred time to go would be when the route is snow free, typically meaning a June to October season. The route described here is more of a summer route, though it likely will work in winter as well. The standard winter route approaches along the northern ridge rather than the west ridge.
This hike is dog friendly, though there is a section of dense bushwhacking that might not be very pleasant for any pupsters (it isn’t great for humans either). This is also a good option for mountain bikers as 80% of the hike is up a well groomed logging road which would be light work on a bike, especially on the descent.
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Is Eastpoint Peak worthwhile?
Eastpoint Peak is a niche summit in a niche region, so you’re almost certainly going to be alone on this hike. The whole Skagit donut hole tends to get overlooked due to Manning Park and even Skagit Valley attracting the crowds. The views from Eastpoint are quite nice but you do have to suffer a little to get them. The hike itself is mostly a long logging road plod followed by a steep, dense bushwhack up to the ridge. From then on though, it’s a very pleasant ridge walk with panoramic views.
How difficult is the hike to Eastpoint Peak?
Despite the fairly sizable stats, physically speaking this is an approachable hike for most abilities. The average gradient isn’t very high and it’s mostly a consistent climb up a logging road. The biggest challenge is the steep climb up from Claimstake/Eastpoint col.
Technically this hike is a bit more involved than the likes of Silverdaisy as the road only brings you to the Claimstake/Eastpoint col. From there you will have to dive into the bush and push through, while ascending very steeply up to the west ridge for around 200m of gain. Unfortunately the bush can often be soaked in morning dew here as well, so you may get drenched, especially if it has rained recently. You’ll note I took a different descending route, mostly to avoid having to go back down this bushwhack. Once out of the bush the remainder of the ridge walk to the summit is simple and scenic.
Eastpoint Peak Route Information
This route to Eastpoint Peak begins from a small parking lot off of highway 3 through Manning Park called Cayuse Flats. There is space for several cars in the parking lot, and likely overflow parking on the side of the highway if necessary. Any vehicle can access the parking. Unfortunately there is a history of break-ins here, so make sure to leave your vehicle totally empty. Some parties opt to park their car on the side of the highway instead of parking in this lot, which is a good idea.
From the parking lot you will immediately cross a bridge over the Skagit river, which is almost always gated to prevent motor vehicle access (but you’re free to bring your mountain bike – and may want to). Over the next 3 kilometers the logging road will run adjacent to highway 3 as you gradually climb through the dense forest. This section is actually still within the boundaries of Manning Park.
After around 3 kilometers of hiking the logging road will turn away from the highway as you approach Smitheram Creek Valley, where the Skagit donut hole begins and Manning Park ends. The trail will continue to be very straightforward and travel should be relatively quick and seamless. Fit hikers will be able to maintain a quick pace without needing to stop for any breaks thanks to the almost perfect gradient and very simple footing. You might see a lot of bear scat along this road as bears are very common here, so don’t be surprised if you see one.
The trail now follows high above Smitheram Creek and continues to climb higher. The views will improve as you ascend through the valley, partly thanks to the magnitude of logging on the slopes, and soon enough you’ll be able to see a few peaks, initially Claimstake Mountain and soon after Eastpoint Peak.
At around the 5.5km mark you’ll follow a few switchbacks up the logging road as the terrain steepens, passing some steep rocky cliffs in the process. Continuing on the logging road, the views will now be pretty open with Eastpoint Peak dominating the skyline and the vast Smitheram Creek Valley down below.
Ultimately you’ll keep following the logging road to around 1,650m where it splits. Heading right will take you up Silverdaisy, keeping left will take you towards the Claimstake/Eastpoint col. Following the latter, you’ll continue for around 800m, at which point you should pay attention to your GPX. Once you’ve reached the col between the peaks it’s time to get your hands dirty.
From the col there’s not much to it other than diving into the bush and working your way up the west ridge. If the bush is damp from morning dew, you’re about to be absolutely drenched. You may see some flagging tape in this thick bush, but in all likelihood it is there for skiers in the winter, and following it in the summer will only extend your time in the bush. All in all it’s about 200m of gain of fairly dense bushwhacking before you start to break out. There will be some respite along the way from rocky openings, but for the most part it’s not particularly pretty.
Eventually you’ll break out, and the views will start to open up of Claimstake and Silverdaisy. The remainder of the route to the summit is far more pleasant, with a lovely rambling grassy ridge with panoramic views. Mount Brice, Silvertip and Shawatum will dominate most of the skyline as you continue to gain elevation. A forest fire burned through some of this ridge, so many of the trees are burnt stumps. While this isn’t the most scenic thing, it does make travel easier as you won’t be battling branches along the way.
The final climb up to the summit looks a little steep from afar, but once you get there it’s quite straightforward and barely registers on the scrambling radar. The summit views are 360 degrees, with Snass, Outram and Dewdney/Ford to the north. Once finished on the summit you can simply head back the way you came.
Alternative Descent
As you can see, I took a different descent off the ridge than the ascent. When I was working along the ridge I noticed you could drop into the valley early via a boulder field and work your way towards the logging roads. This cut off over 2km of hiking, and also bypassed the horrible bushwhack up the west ridge. That being said, this was very steep heather, so much so that I needed to use microspikes to stop myself from sliding down. It’s then a steep boulder descent towards Smitheram Creem, and finally a truly heinous alder bushwhack to cross the creek and connect with the logging road. All in all it worked out okay and likely saved a bit of time, but it obviously came with challenges as well. I would not take this route up as the steep heather would be awfully difficult to ascend.
When should I hike Eastpoint Peak?
Eastpoint Peak is a year-round objective. Winter travel on snowshoes would make for a long and tiring day, but in the right conditions it’s certainly feasible. I can’t say I would choose this option given how fast you can do this hike in the summer without any snow. If you want to avoid snow the best months will usually be June – October.
Top Tip
This area is prone to bear sightings, and having hiked this road twice, both times the entire logging road was covered in bear scat throughout, and I bumped into a black bear near one of the cutblocks. Bear spray is strongly advised for any hikes in the Skagit donut hole.
This is the perfect hike for anyone that likes to mountain bike up and down the majority of the trail as the logging road is well groomed and would make for easy travel. It is also a great option for trail runners who could likely run the entire hike (excluding the bushwhack)
You could feasibly combine Eastpoint Peak with the nearby Claimstake Mountain if you want a challenge. An even bigger challenge would be continuing along the ridge to Porcupine Peak to the south. Realistically this is the “standard” route to Porcupine in the summer.
