Green Mountain by Mount Teneriffe perches above Middle Fork Snoqualmie River. Its ridgeline extends north to Moolock Mountain. Meanwhile, the southeast crest via Last Chance Promontory offers a quick way to the main summit.
See more trip photos here.
Green Mountain at a Glance
Access: Sitka Spruce Trail
Round Trip: 8.7 miles
Elevation Range: 840′-4824′
Gear: Microspikes, snowshoes
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: with guidance
The Preface
So far, we’ve visited three of the 11 Green Mountains in Washington State. This one is now an off-season go-to for many in recent years. It avoids the mass visiting nearby hot spots like Mailbox Peak while nearing the road.
After walking across the bridge, we immediately dropped to the forest floor from the hidden trail. The muddy path wound through the leafy forest by several large spruce trees. After going over a small bump, we soon reached the CCC Road.
See more trip photos here.
Southeast Ridge Route
So far, we’ve taken the southeast ridge for all our visits. Another option would be to continue on Green Mountain Road through several gullies and up the east crest. Then from the saddle, go south to finish the climb.
Continuing on the trail on the other side, we soon reached Green Mountain Road. East views emerged as we gained some altitude. After making five switchbacks, we were up by Last Chance Promontory and took a break.
See more trip photos here.
The Final Stretch
I also read that another route option takes the left fork 1000′ before the overlook. One group’s GPS showed walking to the road’s end. Then they went up between the main and the middle summits to finish.
We gained most of the altitude on the southeast ridge, 1800′ over one mile on the forested crest. We bypassed most snow lower down before it was continuous in the final 600′. I only used microspikes since postholing was manageable.
See more trip photos here.
Green Mountain Summit Views Plus Exit
It was a windy summit, the worst it’d ever been, with insane wind chill! We spent most time west of the crest in the trees. But I’d sometimes come up to take photos but right back down in between shots. Walking up and down the summit crest, I saw Mount Rainier and Mount Baker.
If we had more time today, I’d consider checking out the north peak for a different view. On the way out, I stumbled upon a small clearing in the trees and photographed Mount Teneriffe. Then we reached the viewpoint at sunset and hiked the rest of the way in the dark.
See more trip photos here.
Hey, I tried hiking this last weekend and failed to find a route up. I was following a path on AllTrails but we got to a rock field that just seemed insurmountable. Would you happen to have a GPX recording of your route? I’d like to try it again next week.
Hi Krishna,
Thanks for reaching out! If we’re talking about the same place, the rock field you came to had some flagging and cairns throughout. It’s a little steep to get up but definitely doable.
That said. The link to my GPS track is at the top of this post. Good luck next weekend and stay safe!
Ha! I can’t believe I missed that. Thanks a lot for sharing. I think you’re right in it being doable, but not being able to tell the depth of the snow made the risk more than I was willing to attempt. We crossed one snowfield and then gave up before the rocky area. I’m going to try again and follow your route up the ridgeline.
Btw, when we were starting the trail, we ran into a guy who was taking photos of the Sitka Spruce trailhead and he said he was being paid by the state to block off the trail entrance. They turned down a $1.8 million dollar proposal to build a boardwalk through the Spruce area and instead are going to block it all off and try to redirect traffic from somewhere else.
Here’s my GPX if you want something to chuckle at:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jh6NzrBgmCeKEM6K0zpMDNuSOo4sazCj/view?usp=sharing