Profanity

This short feeder trail located on the west side of the Kettle River Range provides easy access to the portion of the Kettle Crest National Recreation Trail around Profanity Peak at the northern end of the 44-mile trail. With sweeping views to the west and excellent wildflower displays in the spring and early summer, this is an excellent trail to consider for shorter excursions on a section hike of the Kettle Crest Trail.

Allow the car to do the majority of the climbing when visiting this trail, accessible via approximately 10 miles of decently maintained Forest Service road (high clearance recommended). With nearby dispersed camping options on the Forest Service road as well as good campsites farther along the Kettle Crest trail, a visit here can be either a car camping or backpacking trip.

The trail begins at the dead-end of Forest Road 2160 near Tonasket Mountain. Parking is limited at this location and the trailhead is not recommended for oversized vehicles or those pulling trailers. Additional parking and improved turn-around space are located approximately 0.5 miles before the actual trailhead, so those in larger vehicles may wish to study the maps and consider parking early at the unmarked wide spots before the trailhead and adding a short road walk for better access.

The first few hundred feet of trail from the trailhead kiosk are located on a closed roadbed. Pay close attention to the trail as it turns off to the left and begins to climb at the location of a trailside seep. This initial section may be boggy in the early season, but quickly dries out with no additional access to water along the 1.5-mile trail. The trail climbs at a steady rate but is nicely graded, making this a fantastic easy to moderate access point to the Kettle Crest. The trail was burned over in the 2015 Stickpin Fire but is already recovering nicely with lush trailside growth of shrubs and trees, and lots of evidence of returning wildlife, especially moose! Due to the impacts of the fire, it is possible that some downfall may linger in the trail corridor following melt-out each spring until the time the trail crews are able to reach this location.

The upper portions of the trail may have some route-finding issues due to fire impacts and lush willow growth, but at approximately the 1.5-mile mark the Profanity Peak trail intersects the Kettle Crest Trail just northwest of Profanity Peak. While there is no maintained trail to the summit of this 32nd-tallest peak in eastern Washington, it is a relatively easy off-trail scramble to reach the top for those with good route-finding skills. Other good exploration options from this location include continuing southbound on the Kettle Crest Trail and incorporating the nearby Leona Loop Trail.