The hike to the Hidden Lake Lookout is beautiful, and the drive and trail both add some adventure and thrill.

The crater on the forest road: Most recent trip reports talk about this crater about half a mile after you turn off into the forest road from Cascade River Road. I posted a video of how it went for us on the way down, hopefully you get an idea of how your vehicle would do. The whole road is narrow, keep in mind the last turnout you pass on the way down, you might have to reverse back to yield to on-coming uphill vehicles. With bushes along the narrow road, your clear coat is going to get some scratches too, if it's not already got them from travelling on other forest roads.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owrSCY_hVPs

Here's the dash cam video of the forest road going up: https://youtu.be/7Y2JIRvP2n8

The trail has a mix of tread, some of the parts in the forest have soft tread, and the hike up the side of the mountain to get to the talus field is also soft and dry dirt, but it's exposed and brushy and narrow, and in today's afternoon heat it was not very enjoyable, but the profusion of Indian Paintbrush blooming in the slopes gave us joy, as well as watching butterflies hop from one flower to another. There are still streams flowing here.

Once you get to the talus field, the views open up, you see Mount Baker come into view, and you still need to go up another 1,000 feet. This is the hardest part of the trail IMO.

From the ridge, the lake comes into view, and there is a trail to get to the lookout. Look carefully here, you should not have to scramble, you should see a dirt trail that goes up. Coming down there were a couple parts though where I was nervous and progressed slowly, holding on to stable rocks. There is also some snow as you hike up the ridge, and looking at the snow from the boulder side, there is some risk of post-holing along the edges.

Views from the top were clear today, except for the haze from smoke. The haze was more pronounced in the valleys, and Glacier Peak and Mt. Baker were both slightly hazy too, but other closer peaks seemed quite clear.

I found a boulder south of the lookout to rest on and enjoyed the views to the south. Some beautiful peaks of the Alpine Lake Wilderness also visible from here according to the PeakFinder app.

We camped at Choms overnight, then made our way to the trailhead early Saturday morning. The access road was in decent shape overall—the infamous rut mentioned in other reports is still there, but it’s easily handled if you hug the far left. We rolled into the trailhead around 6:45 a.m., finding just 5–6 other cars (mostly overnighters).

The hike begins in shaded forest on a fairly rocky path, then transitions into an overgrown section for about ¾ of a mile. Thanks to a couple of groups ahead breaking trail, we avoided getting completely soaked from the brush. Emerging from the overgrowth, wildflowers began to dot the trail as we worked our way up switchbacks toward a boulder field. Here, the grade eased briefly before the final climb to the lookout.

The summit views were fantastic. Since we weren’t spending the night, we rested on the rocks for a bit, then decided to drop down toward the lake for a closer look. From the saddle, reaching the two main overlook spots is a bit of a “choose your own adventure”—occasional cairns and boot paths appear, but mostly it’s rock-hopping your way down. At the bottom, we lingered, watching clouds drift over the peaks, before making the climb back to the saddle and starting our descent.

By the time we headed down, the trail was getting busy. The parking lot was packed when we returned, with cars lining the road. We even spotted a VW Golf hatchback at the trailhead, proving most vehicles can make it—though a higher-clearance car is still recommended for a smoother ride.

Stats: 9.68 miles · 3,976 ft elevation gain · 5 hrs 32 min RT (including ~45 min at the lookout and ~45 min by the lake)

It's August, you're on the trails. Support Washington Trails Association. #Hikeathon.

The Road: I've been wanting to do this hike for years. In preparation, I've read many a trip report, and I was nervous about what the forest road would be like. I did not find the road bad at all. The ditch about a 1/2 mile in that is described in some recent reports was easily navigated by staying far left on the way up. That said, I would definitely recommend a high clearance vehicle. I did it in a Mercedes ML350, but we saw a Volkswagen Golf at the trailhead. The road is one lane, very narrow, and parking is limited so also recommend getting there early to avoid having to pass folks on the road.

We camped at Chom's RV Campground and arrived at the trailhead around 6:45am. There were 5-6 spots available in the lot.

From the lot, the trail gradually ascends first through the forest and then through switchbacks of wildflowers and streams. It was a beautiful day and the views did not disappoint. The trail eventually breaks from the wildflower valley to sweeping views of the surrounding mountain ranges. We stopped often for photos. 

After about 2 miles, the lookout comes into view, and the steep ascent you'll need to do to get there! But the views make it worth it. The trail sweeps through some rockier terrain before reaching a saddle. We heard from multiple groups they momentarily lost the trail before the saddle. We had mapped it on Gaia and had no issue. The view from the saddle down os Hidden Lake was amazing.

We didn't stop long and continued up through the switchbacks to the lookout. The views from the lookout were also amazing. We had a quick look around the lookout and a snack before heading down past the saddle to more forested views of the lake. The trail to this area is marked by an occasional cairn and some easy scrambling was required. We didn't stay long before heading back. The trail traffic definitely picked up on the say back and the lot was full by the time we arrived back at the car.

This trail did not disappoint!

Stats: 8.92 miles; 3842 elevation gain; 5 hours 30 minutes; avg. moving speed 2.6 mph

Hidden lookout has been on my bucket list. I'm preparing and would like to check it off this week. It's nice to know the old Toyota RAV4 successfully reach the TH. I hate to get stuck up there. Last week I was in the Sahale... road damaged 1/4 miles to reach the parking. I stopped to assess, I couldn't get traction it is so step. Then, I put on 4WD  and drove off and reach the parking. You have no room to wiggle around where the damage is.  It is a cliff both sides if i recall correctly.   

Mostly just posting about the road, which has received lots of discussion: Confirming that ditch referenced by the Aug 1 post is there as of the 4th, though if you make it past it (we made it past in an old RAV4), it is the worst spot and you should be able to get to the trailhead - there are actually decent long stretches where the road is fine but the nasty potholes do continue to pop up -- I would say the lower 2/3 of a mile is the worst though. 

Hike itself was great as others posted, though bummer was cloudy at the saddle and lookout -- have to come back!