Hiking Hidden Lake Lookout & Peaks in North Cascades National Park
Contents
Hidden Lake Lookout & Peaks Hike Information
Difficulty: Difficult
Distance: 14.30Km (8.9 Miles)
Elevation Gain: 1,150m (3,775ft)
Highest Elevation: 2,140m (7,020ft)
Average Gradient: 16.10%
Effort/Reward Ratio: High / High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 7 – 8 Hours
– Moderate: 6 – 7 Hours
– Fast: 5 – 6 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: Summer
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: Simple class 2 scramble to the peak, no scrambling to the lookout
Hidden Lake Lookout & Peaks Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 48°30’51.2″N 121°13’17.3″W
Hidden Lake Lookout & Peaks Overview
Hidden Lake Lookout is a well trafficked hike in North Cascades National Park, and the nearby Hidden Lake is a popular backcountry camping destination, making this a very busy spot for outdoor recreationalists on a sunny summer weekend. Most hikers will simply visit the lookout and head back, but you are also able to summit the nearby Hidden Lakes Peaks via a relatively straightforward scramble along the southwest ridge. This only adds a marginal distance to the lookout hike, though the views are largely comparable so it tends to only be ascended via more dedicated peakbaggers.
The hike begins from a parking area at the end of Forest Road 1540 off of Cascade River Road. The road is potholed but mostly fine for all vehicles, except for a large rutted section around 1km from the trailhead which will stop most lower clearance vehicles. At the time of writing most SUV’s and higher clearance vehicles can still reach the trailhead, though parking is quite limited so many vehicles end up parking along the road. Low clearance vehicles will likely need to stop at the rutted section.
Due to the FSR, access to this hike is limited to when the snowline is high enough to drive up it, which generally means this trail is inaccessible in winter. While feasible as a spring hike with snow on the ground (typically via a different route), most people will wait until the trail is thawed out before completing this hike, generally providing a July to October window as the prime time to hike Hidden Lake Lookout and Peaks.
Dogs are welcome on the hike to the lookout and the peak as the entire trail is outside of the North Cascades National Park, however Hidden Lake lies within the park, where dogs are not allowed. If you are only going to the lookout and peak, you should be fine to bring your dog. Both of these are on the fringes of the National Park and nobody is going to question you.
If you intend to camp at the lake, or anywhere within the National Park boundaries, campers must purchase a wilderness camping permit from the Wilderness Information Centre in Marblemount. See the National Park Service website for more information. Hikers may also sleep in the lookout on a first-come, first-served basis.
Maintaining this website requires a significant investment of both time and money, if you find this website a useful resource, please consider making a donation using this button.
Is Hidden Lake Lookout & Peaks worthwhile?
Both Hidden Lake Lookout and Peaks provide stunning views of Hidden Lake and the surrounding peaks of the North Cascades, notably Eldorado Peak, Forbidden Peak, Boston Peak, Sahale Mountain and even Glacier Peak on a clear day. For a hike that can be completed in just 5 – 7 hours the payoff is well worth the effort and it’s obvious why this is a very popular hike. The peak may only be of interest to more dedicated peakbaggers as the views are largely similar from the lookout.
How difficult is the hike to Hidden Lake Lookout & Peaks?
Physically speaking, Hidden Lake Lookout and Peaks lie somewhere between moderate and difficult. Experienced hikers will likely find this pretty straightforward travel on simple terrain, but lesser experienced parties will perhaps find it quite challenging, especially if you decide to add on Hidden Lake Peaks to the lookout, which has no trail to the top and requires some scrambling and simple route finding. If you are camping it will obviously be more challenging with the weight of a heavy pack.
Technically the hike to the lookout is very straightforward, following a well established trail the whole way up. At no point should you need to scramble to the lookout, though there are some large boulders to navigate towards the end. Traversing over to the peak via the ridge does involve some scrambling over large boulders, though if you stay lower down it should be much simpler and mostly rock hopping. An offline map would be useful to help navigate, however.
Hidden Lake Lookout & Peaks Route Information
As noted the parking lot for Hidden Lake Lookout / Peaks is at the end of Forest Road 1540, which leads off of Cascade River Road (see coordinates). This FSR is somewhat potholed but should be manageable in a 2WD up to a rutted out section around 1km before the official trailhead. SUV’s and higher clearance vehicles can make it past this rutted section (at the time of writing), but lower clearance vehicles will need to park beforehand. Unfortunately the FSR is a single file road for large stretches, with limited overflow parking. An early start is recommended if you intend to go on a sunny summer weekend.
From the trailhead you follow the obvious trail through the forest for the first 1.5km, climbing around 200m in the process. At this point you exit the forest and find yourself at the base of a creek drainage with soaring cliffs up ahead. You’ll now cross over Sibley Creek and work your way through some truly dense vegetation with a trail carved through it. At times you may brush up against some overgrowth, but for the most part travel should be simple.
The trail now zigzags steeply up this drainage, with the unruly overgrowth giving way to stunning meadows that fill with flowers in the early summer, and offer dazzling colors in the fall. After climbing up this drainage for almost 2km you’ll cross back over Sibley Creek.
The next kilometer of the hike changes dramatically. You’ll now be hiking across rocky slopes filled with heather, all the while being treated to your first real views of the day, with Mount Baker and Mount Shuksan coming into view. The trail here will be mostly flat, giving you plenty of time to appreciate what you’ve earned so far.
After a brief climb the trail turns to the south, with the terrain once again changing, now with granite rock being the predominant visual. Snow can linger late in the season here, and shortly ahead you’ll get your first sighting of Hidden Lake Lookout. From this angle it looks practically unattainable, however you’ll soon realize it’s not as challenging as it appears.
Shortly before you reach the base of the lookout the trail takes a turn to the east, climbing up to a saddle situated between the lookout and the peak. Here you will get your first sight of Hidden Lake with the stunning backdrop of the North Cascades, and as you continue to follow the trail up the eastern flanks of the lookout the views only get better and better.
The terrain now gives way to a more sandy footbed, but the route should be obvious and straightforward. As you near the top the sandy footing changes to huge granite boulders that you need to hop across. In short order you will reach the lookout, which you can go inside to soak in the views. From the lookout you’ll have 360 degree views with a number of peaks on display. The best views will be out into the North Cascades to the east, with notable peaks like Eldorado, Johannesburg, Sahale, Boston, Forbidden and Buckner Mountain all dominating the skyline. You’ll also be able to see some of the volcanic giants of Washington, such as Glacier Peak and Mount Baker.
(Some lookout history thanks to WTA.org: Built in 1932, the Hidden Lake Lookout was decommissioned by the Forest Service sometime around 1953. In 1960, the Skagit Alpine Club secured a special use permit to renovate and maintain it for club activities, but by 1980, the club had turned its attention to the Park Butte Lookout instead.
One of SAC’s members, however, wasn’t ready to let Hidden Lake Lookout go. Dr. Fred Darvill formed a group called the Friends of Hidden Lake Lookout under the auspices of the Skagit Environmental Council and took over responsibility for its maintenance.
Many people think of the lookout as a camping shelter, and it is in fact available on a first-come, first-serve basis (though please be prepared to share it with other campers).
After you’re finished at the lookout, if you intend to also go to the peak (which you can easily see from the lookout), you’ll now drop back down to the saddle between the lookout and the peak. Rather than continue to descend down via the trail you climbed up, you’ll now begin climbing up the ridge towards the peak. Initially there will be an obvious dirt footbed to follow, but soon it will give way to boulders.
The trickiest way to scramble to the summit is to remain high on the ridge, which will initially involve scaling some massive boulders, some of which have large gaps between them. The alternative route would be to remain below the ridge on the west side and only gaining the summit after you are directly west of it. Most of the terrain here is an open playground, you can go whichever way you like and you shouldn’t find yourself in anything too challenging. It won’t be long until you’re on the ridge, with much the same views, only now you’ll also get to see the impressive lookout itself.
After finishing up on the summit you can either retrace your steps back across the ridge to the saddle between the lookout and the peak, which involves a lot of backtracking, or alternatively you can self navigate back to the descending trail as the GPX above does. As noted the terrain here is very generous and it’s much easier and quicker to rejoin the descent route than it is to scramble back across to the saddle.
Once you’re back on the official trail you’ll just follow it all the way back to the trailhead.
When should I hike Hidden Lake Lookout & Peaks?
If you want prime conditions the best time to visit Hidden Lake Lookout / Peaks is between July and August. Even in early July you will likely still have some snow to contend with at higher elevations. June will also usually work, though you will certainly have snow to deal with and will need to bring microspikes at the very least.
Top Tip
If you are coming on a sunny summer weekend I would strongly suggest an early start. Parking is limited at the trailhead, the FSR is single file without a lot of options to park on the side of the road. With the popularity of this area with both hikers and campers you can expect there to be crowds of people on a sunny weekend.
If you don’t care for the lookout and only intend to summit the mountain, you can make a direct beeline for the summit by departing from the official trail as soon as you are directly west of the summit. The terrain here is generous and easy to navigate, and this will avoid the majority, if not all of the scramble.
