Hiking Ruth Mountain in the North Cascades National Park
Contents
Ruth Mountain Hike Information
Difficulty: Difficult
Distance: 19.70Km (12.25 Miles)
Elevation Gain: 1,360m (4,462 Ft.)
Highest Elevation: 2,169m (7,116 Ft.)
Average Gradient: 13.81%
Effort/Reward Ratio: High / Very High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 8 – 10 Hours
– Moderate: 7 – 8 Hours
– Fast: 6 – 7 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: Summer
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: None – But it does involve steep snow hiking, side hilling and a glacier crossing
Ruth Mountain Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 48°54’37.2″N 121°35’31.5″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.
Ruth Mountain Overview
Ruth Mountain is a glaciated peak located on the western fringes of the North Cascades National Park in Washington. Despite this location, access to Ruth Mountain typically comes from the Mount Baker Wilderness Area, from Hannegan Pass Road off the Mount Baker Highway. This is a well groomed road suitable for all vehicles, with just a few pot holes to navigate around. While located in Washington, the trailhead is only ~2.5 hour drive from Vancouver, making this closer than many other regions within SWBC.
While Mount Baker Highway is plowed year-round, Hannegan Pass Road is not, so access in the winter will not be possible without skinning or snowshoeing from the Shuksan Picnic Area at the beginning of the road, which will add so much distance that this would become a multi-day outing. As such, spring is typically the ideal time to hike or ski Ruth Mountain, once the road to the trailhead is snow free. Summer works fine for hiking too, however the likelihood of crevasses on the glacier increases as the snow melts at higher elevations, and you may have to deal with some light bush beyond Hannegan Pass.
The hike begins by following the established Hannegan Pass trail before turning onto the Ruth Arm after 6.5km. After navigating around the northeastern slopes of a bump on the northern ridge of Ruth Mountain, the remainder of the hike simply follows this ridge to the summit. The final kilometer or so to the summit passes over a glacier, which some parties choose to rope up for, but some do not depending on conditions. This glacier has often been considered a good place for beginners to practice glacier travel thanks to its more benign characteristics.
Ruth Mountain offers exceptionally nice views from the summit, and indeed for much of the hike along the ridge. Notable peaks on display throughout the hike are Mount Shuksan, Mount Baker, Mount Sefrit, Granite Mountain, Hannegan Peak, Icy Peak, Mount Blum, Tomyhoi Peak, Mount Larrabee, Hozomeen Mountain and, on a clear day, Glacier Peak.
Some parties opt to bivvy at the top of Ruth Mountain, where there are several spots to do so, before continuing south along the ridge to Icy Peak. This is a much more involved scramble covering more challenging glacier travel.
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Is Ruth Mountain worthwhile?
Ruth Mountain is a fantastic hike with rewarding views relative to the effort involved. The trail up to Hannegan Pass is easily dispatched, allowing simple travel all the way to 1,550m. From the pass there is a steep climb up, before some short lived tedious sidehilling around a bump along the northern ridge. Beyond that the remainder of the hike is a stunning, highly enjoyable ridge walk to the summit.
How difficult is the hike to Ruth Mountain?
At almost 20km (12.4 miles) and 1,400m (4,600ft) elevation gain this isn’t an “easy” hike, but nor is it that challenging. The gradient is mostly moderate throughout, especially up to Hannegan Pass on a well groomed trail. There is a steep climb up to a bump along the northern ridge, and one steep section before the summit, otherwise the whole day is pretty straightforward.
From a technical standpoint there are some potential challenges. The steep climb up and sidehilling around the bump on the northern ridge could be tricky in certain conditions, so an ice axe and crampons are warranted just in case. Usually in spring the snow is soft enough to not need either though, and the terrain below is fairly inconsequential even if you did slip. The biggest deterrent for some parties may be the glacier travel towards the summit. Roping up is of course recommended, but many parties opt not to bother, especially in spring when snow typically covers any hazards.
Ruth Mountain Route Information
The trailhead for Ruth Mountain is from the end of Hannegan Pass Road off of the Mount Baker Highway. This road is only accessible from spring to fall when it is snow free. Hannegan Pass Road is mostly gravel and should be driveable in any vehicle, with just a few potholes dotted around that are easily avoided.
From the trailhead you should note an obvious trail leading into the forest. The next 6.5km of this hike follow this trail as it works its way through the valley towards Hannegan Pass, offering some excellent views of Nooksack Ridge and Mount Sefrit along the way. You’ll also get plenty of sightings of your objective off in the distance as you progress further through the valley.
The Hannegan Pass trail essentially traverses the lower southwest slopes of Granite Mountain, running parallel to (but above) Ruth Creek the entire way. Due to the steep slopes above, there are multiple creek crossings along this trail, some of which are quite wide. In the spring these creeks are often covered by an increasingly weakening snow bridge, which may cause some difficulties at times. By the summer crossing these creeks should be uneventful as the snow will be thawed and the creek levels significantly reduced.
It shouldn’t take long for hikers to reach Hannegan Pass, usually around 1.50 hours at a decent pace. From here hikers will connect to the Ruth Arm trail, though in spring you’ll often have hit snow by now. Either way you’ll now climb very steeply up towards a pinnacle situated on the northern ridge of Mount Ruth. This is the steepest part of the day and some people may want to get out an ice axe in case it’s required for self arresting, and crampons would be useful if the snow is firm. You’ll climb around 150m towards this pinnacle, before curving to climbers left around the northeast side. The views will now begin to open up, with Hannegan Peak on full display.
The gradient will now mellow out, but rather than a straight up climb you’ll now begin traversing around this pinnacle to the eastern side. This involves a good amount of side hilling that again might warrant an axe/crampons in certain conditions. Usually the snow will be soft enough that you can get away with just bootpacking though. Once you reach the eastern side of this pinnacle you’ll find yourself on a flat bench with panoramic views and a clear sightline of your route to Ruth Mountain. This is a nice place to stop for a break, take in the views and refuel.
You’ll now continue sidehilling around this bump, only instead you’ll now be descending slightly towards a low point along the ridge. Soon enough you’ll reach the ridge proper, where the sidehilling finally ceases. You’ll get some nice views here of Nooksack Ridge and Mount Baker off in the distance.
The route up is now very obvious, you just continue following the ridge as it progresses higher, and shortly beyond the 1,800m elevation mark you’ll reach the base of the glacier. In spring you probably won’t even notice this as it just looks like snow, which you’ve likely been traveling on for a while already. In summer this will be where you transition from rock to snow though, in which case you may want to don crampons or microspikes. Obviously if you’re roping up, this will be where to do it.
Soon you’ll reach another steep stretch, between ~1,850m and 2,050m, where the grade will reach around 30 degrees. Keeping right of a prominent rocky outcrop, the last 100m or so of elevation gain will reduce in gradient, offering a simple approach to the summit. The moment you crest the summit you will be greeted by a jaw dropping view of Mount Shuksan, and obviously 360 degree views of all the local peaks.
Most parties stop here and return the way they came, however some parties will continue on to Icy Peak, usually as an overnight trip. You’ll note several bivvy sites around the summit, where people have used rocks to block the wind while they try to sleep.
Returning back down is mostly straightforward, however the steep descent from the pinnacle back down to Hannegan Pass can be tricky in snow, and some people may want an ice axe / crampons for this. Going up it is certainly easier than going down it, and it’s so steep a glissade may be challenging to arrest. This will be less of an issue if it’s snow free.
When should I hike Ruth Mountain?
Ruth Mountain is mostly a spring and summer hike only due to the road requiring to be thawed out in order to access the area. Spring is likely preferred if you want the glacier to be covered in a deeper snowpack, and ideally you can time it so the trail to Hannegan Pass is thawed out while the ridgeline is snow covered. Some people might prefer summer, when the hike is snow free and the glacier is fully exposed. Obviously in summer any crevasses will not be covered in snow, so roping up may become more of a necessity as the season goes on.
Top Tip
It would be wise to bring an ice axe and crampons on this hike, even if you doubt you’ll need them. There are a few steep rolls / traverses where you may just wish you had them, so there’s no point in risking being turned back by leaving them at home.
Adventurous / fit parties could fairly easily add on Hannegan Peak for a double summit day. This would add on around 350m elevation gain and perhaps a few kilometers. You could probably add ~1.50 – 2 hours to your expected time if you decided to do this.
