Every step gets you better and better views!

Road: Minivan approved. Gravel with moderate potholes.

TH: Nicest bathroom and a picnic table. On a fall Wednesday I was literally the only car there and the only people on the whole hike. 

Trail: Snow started on the last 1/4 of trail along once you start going north on the ridge. For the most part the snow was very minimal and just piled up in snowdrifts around Sulphide Point and the NPS boundary. Views begin around that NPS boundary. Mt. Baker is right there! E

The slope up to the notch by Sulphide point had minimal snow but once we got up there the views were incredible! The snow definitely covered the trail here but we knew the route. We stopped after about a half mile and just soaked in the views for lunch. 

Grandpup and I chose a calm, clear day for this hike.  Trail gradually becomes steeper and more hazardous with exposed roots due to erosion.  What a treat to break out onto the ridge with a full and clear view of Mt Baker and the flank of Mt Shuksan.  Headed right along the ridge toward Shuksan until we reached the NP boundary where we ate lunch and gazed at the beauty in all directions.  Saw at least four piles of bear scat loaded with berry seeds on the trail.  Blueberries and salmon berries are ripe and plentiful.  Saw a total of 11 hikers and two dogs all day.  One party exiting from and one party entering, clearly geared up to climb Mt Shuksan.  Left the parking lot at 8:30 am, returned at 2:30 tired and happy.

Moderate hike that earns you some 360 degree views, lots of familiar mountains but a unique angle. Watch out for the stinging nettle near the start. Terrain had a couple sections where poles were helpful and may have been mini scrambles without them. There was one very wet dozen feet, both other than that and a couple trickle stream it was pretty dry up to the ridge where some snow is hanging on. Bugs were pretty bad but nothing compared to the ones we experience backpacking last week. I may post a video of the road. 

Road/Parking: I would not recommend this for a low clearance car, there were a few deep holes and ruts that would be a challenge, but were fine in a small AWD SUV with 6.8" clearance. Parking was nearly full at 10:30 AM on a warm Sat and still mostly full when we returned. There is a pit toilet, trash, and board with blue bags at the TH. The road is narrow and it is hard to pass in some areas. There are a few campsites along the road, including one large area just after the road transitions to gravel and they were all busy. It was opening day for sockeye salmon so Baker Lake had an unreal amount of boats and people. 

Trail: Starts out roady with a few wash out sections where you climd down to a dry creak-bed and back up again. Some of these were lose and had large steps. There was only a tiny bit of water in the fits mile and then none. The trail was mostly shaded with a few peak-a-boo views. A couple sections were overgrown with shoulder high light foliage, salmon berries and such. We saw a couple mountaineering groups heading both ways and a couple hikers coming down, but we ended up being the only ones at the top. The trail felt humid and much hotter than it should so my dog and I were both excited to see the snow at the top. Most is scant, but a couple sections are a few feet deep. It was all slushy and poles were nice but spikes would be useless. 

The ridge had Baker on one side, Shuksan on another, and countless mountains on the third. We didn't find any sign for the park boundary line. There are lots of good views but not many places to sit without disturbing the plants, but maybe under the snow. 

Stats: 7 miles, 2340 ft elevations gain/loss, 3.8 hours moving, 4.5 hours total. We are moderate speed hikers who hike weekly.

My friend and I, both 64+, got up to the ridge to take in the incredible views looking most of the way around 360 toward Baker, Blum, and Hourglass (Shuksan is hidden by Hourglass).  Snow patches started at 4100’ and it got to many feet deep on the ridge at about 4500’.  There are a couple deep creek crossings in the first mile that could use a log and some TLC from a trail crew (sign me up!).  During the hike we ran into two whole people!

we had the trail all to ourselves snow at the top beautiful views