Sulphur Mountain by Green Mountain Lookout and Miners Ridge overlooks the Suiattle River. A tower once occupied the ridge at the end of the official trail. Moreover, the famous Glacier Peak lies a stone’s throw away to the south.
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Sulphur Mountain at a Glance
Access: Sulphur Mountain Trail
Round Trip: 11 miles
Elevation Range: 1560′-6735′
Gear: microspikes
Route Info: HikerJim
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: with guidance
Hiking the Sulphur Mountain Trail
After years of anticipation, Suiattle River Road was now open to the end. Seizing the new opportunity, we visited this mountain, which had long been on my list. HikerJim wrote a detailed report of his hike on WTA last November. However, the snow conditions haven’t changed much.
The trail instantly shot straight up the hill once we left the road. We crossed one stream through the few flat areas; it was the only water around. Soon, the path dipped a short way, leading to a bridge.
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Through the Snowy West Ridge
The snow level was around 5000′, and we soon lost the trail to continuous snow past that point. We later saw boot tracks at the 5200′ flat area, so I put on microspikes there. But I wondered if leaving my snowshoes behind was a mistake.
I was glad we could use the old tracks to keep from sinking much. The landscape slowly formed once we went above the trees at 5800′. Until now, we’ve been in the woods for over 4000′, too dense to see anything through tree branches.
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Sulphur Mountain Old Lookout Site
The boot tracks continued up the ridge before bringing us to the old lookout site slightly below 6200′. Then we traversed southeast for another .1 mile to the higher Point 6204. Even sitting much lower than the summit, it offered unobstructed views.
The summit sat another mile east on the ridge, over 500′ higher than the lookout site. However, being unable to see anything past the ridgeline was rather annoying. Since it was still early, I decided to try going for the top.
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Traversing Southeast from the Lookout
The tracks we’ve been following turned around at the lookout. And what do you know? Immediately, snow deepened as we began moving farther east on the ridge. Meanwhile, I cursed myself for not bringing the snowshoes.
We traversed on and south of the crest before carefully bypassing the two knobs below the top. The terrain there was steep, with a crusty layer of snow. Microspikes did fine, but crampons would’ve provided much better traction indeed.
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Viewing Glacier Peak Wilderness from Sulphur Mountain
The east slope didn’t have as many trees but looked prone to avalanches in today’s conditions. So we hugged the crest for safety as the pups followed closely behind. Before long, we were moseying our way to the top through trees.
Apart from a few exposed boulders, the summit was still under the snow. Meanwhile, we steered clear from the corniced west over the sheer drop into Lookout Lake. The pups and I savored the scenery for over an hour before leaving.
See more trip photos here.