Hiking Guide
WTA's hiking guide is the most comprehensive database of hikes in Washington, and comprises content written by local hiking experts and user submitted information. All data is vetted by WTA staff. This resource is made possible by the donations of WTA members.
We respectfully acknowledge the lands we are visiting are the homelands of Indigenous tribes of the Pacific Northwest, some of whom have reserved rights on these lands. Tribes continue to rely on and share in the management of these lands today. Please tread gently and treat these places with respect.
Results List
4278 HikesHeadlee Pass and Vesper Lake
North Cascades > Mountain Loop Highway
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Length
- 7.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 2,700 feet
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Highest Point
- 4,950 feet
Vesper Lake is squeezed, like a thumbprint in clay, deep in the saddle between the twin summits of Sperry Peak and Vesper Peak. Rarely is a lake situated so close and steeply below two summits like this; its unique setting gives you remarkably up-close (and straight-up) views of mountainous terrain.
Bonaparte Trail
Eastern Washington > Okanogan Highlands/Kettle River Range
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Length
- 6.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 2,100 feet
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Highest Point
- 7,250 feet
This trail welcomes hikers, equestrians, and ORVs alike an a trail that climbs from the Bonaparte trailhead to the still actively staffed Bonaparte Lookout. Two lookouts, the historic and the more modern one, perch and squat respectively atop the summit of Bonaparte.
Rainy Lake
Snoqualmie Region > North Bend Area
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Length
- 8.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 2,900 feet
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Highest Point
- 3,900 feet
This is an abandoned trail that heads south along Rainy Creek off of the downstream section of the Middle Fork Snoqualmie Trail up to Rainy Lake. The lake is popular among fishermen, since it is home to lots of trout, but be warned -- route-finding skills are a must on this trip.
Horseshoe Bend
North Cascades > Mount Baker Area
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Length
- 3.2 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 410 feet
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Highest Point
- 1,200 feet
Here's a Mount Baker Highway gem that's low enough to be passable all year and at the same time easy enough for the whole family. It's also a terrific spot to witness the power of water, and the first 1/3 mile of the trail is wheelchair accessible.
Snoqualmie Ridge Trail – Deep Creek Trail
Snoqualmie Region > North Bend Area
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Length
- 4.62 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 1,000 feet
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Highest Point
- 840 feet
Deep Creek Trail begins at Azalea Park and connects to a variety of local trails in the city of Snoqualmie.
Vesper Peak
North Cascades > Mountain Loop Highway
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Length
- 8.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 4,000 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,214 feet
Vesper Peak is a difficult and demanding hike. Though you get incredible views at the summit, many search and rescue missions get called to Vesper Peak, so assess your skills and be prepared if you choose to hike here.
Lake Valhalla via Smithbrook
Central Cascades > Stevens Pass - East
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Length
- 7.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 1,500 feet
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Highest Point
- 5,050 feet
Lake Valhalla is a gem, tucked under Lichtenberg Mountain and Mount McCausland on the PCT North of Stevens Pass. The lake is a great day hike in summer or fall and accessible by snowshoe in the winter. Wildflowers abound in early summer, berries in late summer and fall colors make vivid surroundings in autumn.
Lake Valhalla via Stevens Pass
Central Cascades > Stevens Pass - East
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Length
- 11.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 1,700 feet
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Highest Point
- 5,050 feet
Visit the beautiful waters of Lake Valhalla via the Pacific Crest Trail from Stevens Pass to the south, an alternative to coming from the Smithbrook trailhead to the north.
Dry Creek
South Cascades > White Pass/Cowlitz River Valley
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Length
- 7.4 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 2,800 feet
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Highest Point
- 3,800 feet
One of many Dry Creek trails in Washington State, this calf-burner located in the Cowlitz River drainage below White Pass zigzags you through young forest to the abandoned Smith Point fire lookout site and views of the surrounding mountains. If you are lucky you may even be able to spot Tahoma (Mount Rainier) on the horizon with a clear day!
Beacon Rock State Park - Hamilton Mountain
Southwest Washington > Columbia River Gorge - WA
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Length
- 7.5 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 2,000 feet
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Highest Point
- 2,400 feet
This hike is full of the best things the Columbia Gorge has to offer: easy access and parking, well-maintained trail, wildflowers galore, two waterfalls, and views to knock off your sweaty socks. It’s a long journey at about 7.5 miles, and steep in places, but nothing a healthy dog, child or senior citizen can’t do. You’ll meet all of these smiling folks on this hike during the peak seasons.
Stiletto Peak
North Cascades > North Cascades Highway - Hwy 20
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Length
- 10.4 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 3,650 feet
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Highest Point
- 7,660 feet
Starting in a forested creek valley, climb through alpine forest, meadows, and rocks to expansive vistas at the Stiletto Lookout site. Your destination is visible from the trailhead, on the end of the ridge to the southeast.
Sunrise Nature
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 1.5 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 300 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,773 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
This hike is short but stunning with Mount Rainier keeping watch over a wildflower-filled sub-alpine meadow. You'll see iconic views of Mount Rainier, butterflies fluttering between colorful blooms, and if the sky is clear, a view of the Cascades all the way to Mount Baker.
Skyscraper Pass
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 6.8 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 1,700 feet
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Highest Point
- 7,079 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
The trail to Skyscraper Pass makes an ideal dayhike to take you a little further from the popular visitor center at Sunrise, and the crowds that head to Dege Peak and the Burroughs. It's a bit longer, so you'll need to be ready for push. Particularly enthusiastic hikers can push onto Skyscraper Mountain via a bootpath.
Silver Forest - Emmons Vista
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 2.5 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 325 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,400 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
The Silver Forest Trail is a lesser-known and therefore less-crowded alternative at Mount Rainier’s Sunrise. Enjoy mountain, glacier and river valley views along a gentle trail that is mostly out of sight of the bustle of Sunrise.
Northern Loop
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 36.5 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 12,000 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,500 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
A beautiful loop trail on the north side of Mount Rainier, this is a shorter, but no less lovely, option to the Wonderland Trail.
Sunrise to Mystic Lake
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 18.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 5,324 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,800 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
This is a trail where the journey is as interesting as the destination. Enjoy a beautiful waterfall and views of icy Winthrop Glacier. Gaze directly at Mount Rainier and witness the fascinating destruction caused by the floods of 2006. All of this is chased by the peaceful basin of Mystic Lake and surrounding meadows.
Grand Park via Sunrise
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 14.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 3,700 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,815 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
Grand Park provides one of the absolute best views of The Mountain from any of the trails in the park. Though longer than the access from Lake Eleanor, this route is more scenic, passing through the stark rocky landscape of Sunrise to flower-filled Berkeley Park and then climbing gradually through cool forest before getting to alpine meadows and majestic Grand Park itself.
Berkeley Park
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 7.7 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 1,700 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,800 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
Here's a hike that takes you through a stark landscape to a stunningly lush one. Berkeley Park is a flower-filled utopia where creeks chatter, pikas squeak, marmots lounge, and you can soak it all in just a few miles from the Sunrise Visitor Center.
Sunrise to Carbon River Traverse
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 13.7 miles, one-way
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Elevation Gain
- 5,200 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,700 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
A section of the scenic Wonderland Trail, enjoy views of Mount Rainier and the Carbon Glacier, numerous creek crossings, and meadows as you connect between Sunrise and the Carbon River.
Sunrise Rim Trail
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 1.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 215 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,386 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
The Sunrise Rim Trail is a short connector trail that links Sunrise with the Wonderland Trail, providing expansive views of Mount Rainier.
Sunrise Lake
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 1.5 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 425 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,150 feet
White River Road and Sunrise Road are closed for the winter season.
This short, one-mile, downhill jaunt from the hairpin turn on the road to Sunrise makes a great detour when hiking the Palisades Lakes trail, or a nice warm up before tackling longer hikes like Burroughs or Dege Peak from Sunrise.
Owyhigh Lakes
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 7.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 1,650 feet
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Highest Point
- 5,275 feet
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
Walk a very pleasant and well-graded trail through old- and new-growth forest. After a moderate elevation gain, the forest opens into meadowlands filled with wildflowers after the snow melts. A pair of shallow but pretty lakes, with a rocky ridge as a backdrop, completes the scene.
Little Tahoma
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
The route to Little Tahoma requires advanced mountaineering skills including glacier travel.
Inter Glacier
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 4.6 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 2,920 feet
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Highest Point
- 7,150 feet
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
The Inter Glacier is part of the standard Mount Rainier climbing route. While it may appear to be just a steep snowfield, it is a glacier with crevasses and other hazards. Glacier travel experience and equipment is required.
Goat Island Mountain
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Highest Point
- 7,288 feet
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
The route to the top of Goat Island Mountain is not on true trail but is more of a scramble.
Glacier Basin Loop
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 11.5 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 3,100 feet
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Highest Point
- 7,400 feet
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
Expansive views of Mount Rainier, up-close views of Emmons Glacier, lakes, and campsites are just a few features of the Glacier Basin Loop's varying landscape.
Glacier Basin
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 6.5 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 1,600 feet
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Highest Point
- 5,900 feet
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
Floods in 2006 severely damaged the Glacier Basin trail, but after four years of work, WTA completed a new trail in Glacier Basin at Mount Rainier National Park in the summer of 2011. Since then, hikers of all stripes have had the pleasure of enjoying a brand-new route to one of the mountain's most iconic glaciers on an easy-to-hike trail.
Eastside Loop
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 36.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 7,430 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,800 feet
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
A multi-night backpacking trip around the eastern edge of Mount Rainier National Park.
White River to Sunrise
Mount Rainier Area > NE - Sunrise/White River
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Length
- 5.8 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 2,100 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,400 feet
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
A short but steep climb on the Wonderland Trail from a campground in Mount Rainier National Park to the Sunrise Visitor Center area.
Tamanos Mountain
Mount Rainier Area > SE - Cayuse Pass/Stevens Canyon
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Length
- 10.0 miles, roundtrip
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Elevation Gain
- 3,080 feet
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Highest Point
- 6,790 feet
White River Road to the campground is closed for the winter season.
Tamanos is a moderately strenuous 10 mile round trip hike that goes through forest, meadows, rock and ridge scrambles ending in glorious up close views of Mount Rainier.