At last! I crossed off Mac Peak from my back burner list. I have put it off for several years because of other plans. The yellow pup and I went up to Gunn Peak two days ago. Then today, we visited this peak in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
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Mac Peak at a Glance
Access: Deception Creek Cut-Off Trailhead
Round Trip: TBD
Elevation Range: 3150′-6859′
Gear: helmet
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: with guidance
Deception Pass Trail
Most reports showed the Deception Creek Cut-Off Trail as the shortest route. It was right before the end of Road 6830 by Tonga Ridge. The pups also took the same trail when we climbed Spark Plug Mountain and Surprise Mountain.
The trail went down 500′ before intersecting Deception Creek Trail at the bottom of the valley. This part was uneventful since the views were scarce. The weather was worse than in the forecast. Once we went past Deception Lakes, the clouds had taken away the little sunshine we had.
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Mac Peak Summit
Visibility had also decreased drastically by the time we went up to the southwest ridge. The terrain was less steep on the west. But the dense shrubs and trees on the ridgeline made it challenging to stay on the crest. The east slopes were steeper. But there was a ton of solid granite rocks and solid holds that provided an enjoyable traverse.
Too bad. When we made it up to the top, the views were spotty. Clouds to the north were less stubborn. So we could sometimes see hourglass-shaped Square Lake. But it looked way more significant than on the map. Steep drop-offs were on the northeast side of the peak. The basin below still had now from the winter.
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Outro
On the way down, we went through the west face. So we could check out the two tiny lakes nestled below. The upper lake at 6100′ had sandy lakeshore. So it seemed like a great camp spot. But the lower pond at 5700′ had dried up significantly. It was also muddy when we walked across.
It drizzled until we went back to Deception Lakes. Then the rain came down harder. But just as we were leaving the lake basin, the kids from a youth group stopped us. They were curious about the pup. Most of all, the fact I took a dog up the mountain with me fascinated them.
See more trip photos here.