Cleveland Mountain by Lennox Mountain rises above Money Creek and Miller River near Skykomish, Washington. The route mainly involves being in a dense forest with spotty views. At 1300′ below the summit lies the less-visited hidden gem–Cleveland Lake.
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Cleveland Mountain at a Glance
Access: NF-6422
Round Trip: 8 miles
Elevation Range: 1100′-5280′
Gear: helmet, ice ax, snowshoes
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: on the road
The Preface
It was my second visit to Cleveland Mountain. My partner and I made it to the upper basin in terrible weather plus weak visibility during the first trip. Then we decided to call it when daylight was much shorter.
Back then, I barely made it through the worst rutted section in the car before we started walking. Then we hiked the road in its entirety up to the ridge. But this time, the pups and I beelined up the hill at the first road bend.
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Road 6422
The pups and I arrived at the fork of Road 6420 (Money Creek Road) and Road 6422 before 9 AM. This time, I decided to walk the first mile. So I parked on the left side of the roadway before the bridge.
I had driven on Road 6422 almost to the first switchback the first time. But I remembered the road was only decent for the first 500 feet. Then it quickly became rutted with down trees.
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Making a Beeline for Cleveland Mountain
Later we left the roadway by the first switchback. We crossed a tiny stream and continued on an old logging trail for another hundred feet. Then we ditched the path and scrambled straight uphill.
Along the way were lots of brush and down trees. Meanwhile, we crossed Road 6422 a total of ten times. It was slush on the road, which I would’ve needed to wear snowshoes much sooner had we walked it.
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The Upper Basin
The dense forest went from 1750′ to 2050′. Later terrain steepened from 2400′ up to 3500′. Snow patches showed up at 2800′, with more soon following. There was firm snow in the trees, so I waited to put on snowshoes at 3600′.
One report suggested bypassing the 4400′ cliff bands by going sideways on the steep west side. But the ample snow allowed us to cross over the ridgetop and continue. The icy pond we saw before was now under more snow.
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Final Stretch on Cleveland Mountain
Snow in the meadow had softened in direct sunlight, but it was still manageable without much postholing. Later the summit came into view as we moved southeast on gentle slopes.
At 4850′, we went up to the northeast ridge after going through two steep places. Later we found a way to bypass the snowy outcrops from the east. Soon, we were standing atop Cleveland Mountain.
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Cleveland Mountain Summit Views Plus Outro
I checked the snow arête for cornices and dug out a spot above the dry rocks to avoid the wind. But the breeze stopped shortly afterward. What a gorgeous day! The beautiful views were similar to what we had two weeks ago.
This time, there was less Lennox Mountain. But I could see the Skykomish River flowing through Skykomish. We later used our tracks down to the second road bend and stayed on it to avoid the brush. Then we walked the last mile out to the car.
See more trip photos here.