From Snoquamie River to Green Mountain

See more trip photos here.

Green Mountain near North Bend has been an off-season favorite. Of the 11 Green Mountains in Washington State, we’ve only climbed three so far. Due to time constraints, today we paid another visit for a better shot at solitude. I parked on the south end of the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River bridge and walked across the bridge.

The Lowdown on Green Mountain

Access: North end of Middle Fork Snoqualmie River Bridge

Round Trip: 8.7 miles

Elevation Range: 840′-4824′

Gear: Microspikes, snowshoes

GPS Track: available

The Hike

From the inconspicuous trail on the north end of the bridge, we immediately dropped down to the forest floor. The muddy trail wound its way through the luscious forest as we passed by several large spruce trees. We quickly reached the CCC road after getting over a minor ridge.

Green creek crossing

See more trip photos here.

The trail continued on the other side of the road, and we soon reached the Green Mountain Road. Spotty views to the east began to appear as we slowly gained elevation. Eventually, we came out onto the Last Chance Promontory after making five switchbacks on the road. We took a break to enjoy the expansive view of the valley.

View from Last Chance Promontory

See more trip photos here.

The Climb

So far for all of our visits to Green Mountain, we had taken the southeast ridge by the promontory. Another option would be to continue hiking on Green Mountain Road through several gullies and head up the east ridge. Once on the saddle between the main and the north summits, travel south to finish the climb.

The third option would be making a left at the junction 1000′ before the promontory and following the road to its end. Judging from one party’s GPS track, they eventually came out onto the saddle between the main and the middle summits to finish the climb.

Ridge walk

See more trip photos here.

Majority of the elevation gain took place on the southeast ridge, gaining 1800′ over one-mile on the forested ridge crest. Snow patches in the lower section of the ridge were avoidable. Most snow accumulation took place in the last 600′ to the summit starting at 4,200′. I continued with just microspikes as the postholing was tolerable.

The Summit

Windy summit! Of all the trips taken to date, this was by far the windiest. It wasn’t terribly cold, just that the wind chill was insane! Pup and I spent most of our time west of the summit ridge on the forested slopes. I’d occasionally come up to take a photo but then got right back into the forest in between shots.

Revolution, Web, Defiance

See more trip photos here.

By walking up and down on the summit ridge and facing east, I could get views from Mount Rainier to Mount Baker. If there were more time in the day, I’d consider heading over to the north peak and get a different perspective.

The Outro

On the way down, I stumbled upon a small opening in the forest and finally got a photo of Mount Teneriffe. We got back down to the promontory at sunset and then proceeded to hike the rest of the way out in the dark.

Panoramic view from Last Chance Promontory

See more trip photos here.