Snowking Mountain, Cyclone Lake — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025

It seems the word is out on this hike, there were already 10 cars in the lot when we arrived on a Saturday morning. Rightfully so, we had the holy grail of Washington trails - perfect weather, amazing views, limited wildfire smoke, plentiful huckleberries, and, I can't believe I'm saying this, only one mosquito. Still reading? Now let me try to scare you away...

The trail is among the most elevation we have ever done in one weekend. Don't be fooled, even though Snowking is only 7433', you park at 1300', and there are almost no flat sections of the trail after you depart the abandoned forest road. We logged a little over 8,000’ of gain across 18 miles. This elevation number is hard to pinpoint, Gaia says we recorded 7960' and Alltrails says 8320'. For perspective, that’s more than we did on Mount Baker (7,300’). A third of the 18 miles are on the overgrown road, and the rest of the trail was knee to chest, "why do we do this" kind of vibes.

Water can be a problem. The only reliable source this time of year is Cyclone Lake and the tarns above it at mile 7. We had used up almost all of our 3.5 liters each before reaching it. If you're on the fence about the extra bottle, just bring it. Snow was not an issue this time of year, we didn't cross any all the way to the summit - no need for spikes or ice axe.

We found a fantastic spot to camp nearest Cyclone lake, about 300' up from the water. To reach this spot, pass both tarns and continue down and left toward the beautiful blue lake. The campsite is tucked up against the Talus field, with a great view of the water and sunset. If this one is taken, there are also 4-5 between the two tarns, or at the lower mouth of the smaller tarn.

In the morning, we scrambled up out of the lakes basin until we reconnected with the boot path. From there it was a short climb, an annoying descent, and then another steep climb until you reach the ridgeline. This was the best part of the hike, with a huge glacier on one side and beautiful blue water on the other.

The summit block did not have any more technicality than we had already done. I was operating in 3WD because of my broken wrist from a slip on trail six weeks prior, and there were no sections where I absolutely needed both hands. To reach the summit, we found a few cairns on the backside of the peak, which is hidden from view on the route up. 

Standing on the summit, you can see a handful of glacier fed lakes and tarns on every side. I am always astounded that no two mountain lakes are the exact same color, ranging from bright teal to gray and clear blue.

Here's a short video that shows our route taken and the views along the way: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sp3apQcS7TQ