Hiking Ruby Mountain in the North Cascades
Contents
Ruby Mountain Hike Information
Difficulty: Very Difficult
Distance: 16.60Km (10.30 Miles)
Elevation Gain: 1,650m (5,413 Ft.)
Highest Elevation: 2,225m (7,300 Ft.)
Average Gradient: 19.88%
Effort/Reward Ratio: Very High / High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 10 – 12 Hours
– Moderate: 8 – 10 Hours
– Fast: 7 – 8 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: Year-Round
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: None
Ruby Mountain Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 48°43’40.5″N 121°03’46.3″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.
Ruby Mountain Overview
Ruby Mountain is a prominent peak in the North Cascades range, located in the Ross Lake National Recreation Area of northern Washington. In the winter, but more commonly the early spring, Ruby becomes a pretty popular mountain to climb thanks to its aesthetic ski lines off its northern slopes. Due to the massive stats of this one, hikers may want to wait until spring when travel should be easier on a firmer snowpack, though the right conditions could appear at any time during the winter.
Thanks to its location and prominence (P1000m), many people say Ruby offers some of the finest vistas in the North Cascades, due in part to its views of Ross Lake and the imposing double summit of Hozomeen Mountain at the northern edge. The only real drawback of this hike is the significant approach it takes to get to the top, starting at a paltry 650m (2,133 Ft.) and spending hours in the forest before eventually breaking out of the trees and enjoying the scenery. While Ruby Mountain isn’t that technical of a hike, it’s certainly a physical slog.
There are in fact a couple of common routes up Ruby Mountain, with the summer route following the Fourth of July and Thunder Creek trail. This route is even longer, with more gain, and can often suffer from significant deadfall across the trail that makes for slow travel. It also suffered a serious fire in 2024 which closed the trail and no doubt ruined much of that route. As such, the spring route is preferred and is likely more popular anyway. That being said, the window is short for this route, as once the snowline has risen too far, the approach becomes an awful, bush filled affair.
Due to the various routes available, Ruby Mountain can feasibly be tackled for most of the year. The route here is generally a winter/spring only route, and for hiking purposes almost all ascents will be in the spring when travel is a bit easier on the massive stats this involves. March – April is the ideal window typically, but if you find the right conditions then anytime from January to May could work. Usually by mid-late May the snowline lower down has thawed to the point that travel becomes heinous with a thinning snowpack, multiple creek crossings and alders galore.
Access for Ruby Mountain is from the Ross Dam trailhead, which is also the closure point for Highway 20 during the winter. This is therefore accessible for all vehicles. Dogs are also permitted on this hike as Ruby Mountain is not in the North Cascades National Park itself.
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Is Ruby Mountain worthwhile?
Ruby Mountain is a bit of a classic winter/spring peak in Washington, offering some fantastic views from the top, particularly of Ross Lake. If views were the only factor then this would undoubtedly be a 5 star hike, but the drawn out approach has to be considered, with much of the route spent floundering around bushes, deadfall, boulder fields and alder lower down. Skiers that refuse to accept the season is over often have to carry their skis halfway up the mountain before being able to skin. All in all this is still a very worthwhile hike, just be prepared for a long and sometimes tedious approach before it really begins to pay off.
How difficult is the hike to Ruby Mountain?
As always for a winter/spring hike, difficulty is largely dependent on the conditions when you go. Conditions aside, the sheer elevation gain on this one obviously makes for a very challenging hike, but if you’re also having to battle with deep snow then you can be sure to be in for a long day. Ideally you can time this for favorable conditions, with a snowpack lower down covering the bush, and supportive snow throughout to allow for easier travel. Time it well and it won’t be too bad, time it poorly and you probably won’t make it to the summit.
Technically speaking, Ruby can throw a few challenges at you. Due to the low starting elevation, snow will thaw out early in the spring, meaning you’re quite likely going to be self-navigating through the initial forest. Luckily it’s not too bushy and travel shouldn’t be too difficult as long as you have snow from ~1,000m (3,280 Ft.) onwards. This is where the boulder field is, and shortly thereafter the creek crossings and alder. All of this benefits from a snowpack, and without one you’re sure to be suffering. Once in the alpine the route is largely straightforward, but it does have several steep sections that should give you pause if avalanche conditions aren’t favorable. The final ascent to the summit ridge is particularly steep and potentially corniced, so care needs to be taken here. In the right conditions you can get away with just microspikes/snowshoes. Most parties will not need crampons or an ice axe, but there’s no harm in bringing them just in case.
Ruby Mountain Route Information
Parking for Ruby Mountain is usually at the Ross Dam trailhead on Highway 20, as this is where the highway gets closed over the winter. If the highway is open (usually in late April / May), you can park at the Happy Creek trailhead. Since this is all along the highway, any vehicle can make it.
Assuming you park at the Ross Dam trailhead, you’ll begin by hiking along the highway (past the closure gate) for around 500m, where you’ll reach the Happy Creek trailhead. Some parties opt to continue along the highway and bushwhack up to join the trail later, which may be preferred if the snowline is low.
Assuming you opt to join the trail immediately, you’ll now begin working along the Happy Creek trail, which runs parallel to the highway for a short while. In short order the trail will turn away from the highway and begin climbing adjacent to Happy Creek. There will be a maintained trail to follow to 840m (2,750 Ft.), at which point the Happy Creek trail terminates, and you’ll need to self-navigate the climbers trail.
The transition to the climbers trail is initially obvious, a well worn dirt path that climbs up and away from Happy Creek. Obviously if you have snow cover you’ll just need to navigate using your GPX. Over the next 1.2km (0.75 miles) or so, any semblance of a trail ceases, and without a snow pack you’ll be navigating through mostly open forest. People take a variety of routes here as there are no markers (not sure why someone doesn’t just mark a route that everyone then follows), so just navigate using the GPX as the general direction is largely the same.
You’ll eventually reach a boulder field at around 1,100m (3,600 Ft.) elevation. You’ll now want to traverse up and across this boulder field, aiming for the forest on the other side. Do not climb straight up the boulder field as you will then end up having to descend back down through the forest on the other side if you gain too much elevation.
On the other side of the boulder field you’ll soon break out of the dense forest, at which point the route becomes a lot more pleasant as most groups will now be following the same path. Hopefully you will have a solid snowpack by now, as the route continues to climb while zigzagging across a series of small creeks and through some alder. With solid snow, bridges will form over the creeks and the alder will be mostly covered, making for easy travel. If you leave it too late, however, the creeks will be open and the alder will be a constant menace.
Navigation should now be largely straightforward as there is usually a well established boot / skin track from here on, quite possibly the whole way to the summit. After traveling for another kilometer (0.6 miles) or so you’ll get your first glimpse of the impressive Ruby Mountain, and behind you should start to see Ross Lake and the twin summits of Hozomeen.
Different parties might opt for varying routes from here, but the standard (and safest) route is to enter the forest once again at around 1,400m (4,600 Ft.), climbers left of Happy Creek. As has been the theme of the day, there’s plenty more steep forest travel to tackle at this point, but hopefully with a set track to follow it should be largely straightforward. If not, just refer to your GPX as usual.
At around 1,750m (5,740 ft.) the trees begin to thin out and the views of Ross Lake, Hozomeen and Jack Mountain will only improve with each step. After a little more climbing you’ll fully break out of the forest and the general route to the summit will be largely obvious. It’s now mostly a case of picking your preferred approach to the southeast ridge of Ruby, but again, in all likelihood there will be a well established bootpack or skin track to follow. There are a couple of steeper rolls along the way, but these can likely be bypassed for gentler terrain for those wanting to minimize risk.
Gaining the SE ridge is the steepest part of the day, but with a set bootpack it’s a very straightforward climb, with most parties happy to do so without the need for an ice axe or crampons. Feel free to bring them just in case, though. There may be some cornices, but generally they are small and easy to avoid if you pay attention to what’s overhead.
Once on the ridge the views fully open up and the final climb to the summit is a cinch. Unfortunately there’s an ugly radio transmitter on the top that somewhat takes away from the experience, but it is what it is. The views are now staggering, with Ross Lake stealing the show, but countless massive peaks in every direction.
No doubt you’ll want a good long break on the top (assuming you have favorable conditions!), after which your descent route is the same as the climb. This is one of those hikes where the descent is significantly faster than the climb, for us it took half the time to return down vs. the ascent (5 hours up, 2.5 hours down)
When should I hike Ruby Mountain?
The best time for Ruby Mountain will be in the early to mid spring as that is generally when conditions are best (low snowline, deep and supportive snow pack). That being said, winter works fine if conditions allow, but typically the snow will be deep, unsupportive and tiring in winter, especially on snowshoes. Come the summer this route will be a heinous bushwhack for the entire ascent and should largely be avoided, with the Fourth of July and Thunder Creek trail preferred.
Top Tip
Given the length of this hike most parties will want to start very early (before sunrise), particularly if they want firm and supportive snow throughout the hike.
If you can time this one to follow a period of freeze/thaw then there is a good chance you can complete this hike in microspikes alone. It’s a popular route, and once a bootpack is established you often don’t need snowshoes. That being said, if in doubt, carry the snowshoes.
