Cougar Mountain Wilderness Peak Loop Trail lies in Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park. The path continues through Long View Peak and Clay Pit Peak. Meanwhile, the mixed-use trail is viral among outdoor enthusiasts.
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Cougar Mountain at a Glance
Access: Wilderness Creek Trailhead
Round Trip: 7.7 miles
Elevation Range: 360′-1602′
Gear: none
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: yes
A Day in Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park
Last month, I had planned to go up to Cougar Mountain for the first time. But the morning rain showed no signs of stopping as we waited outside Starbucks. So we resorted to more favorable weather up north instead.
After yesterday’s trip, I gave Cougar Mountain another shot. But the 1.8 miles, one-way distance to the main summit didn’t feel aerobically adequate. So we extended the trip by adding Long View Peak and Clay Pit Peak.
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Wilderness Peak Trail
Despite it being MLK Day, only two cars were in the lot when we arrived. We started walking as soon as the recruit was ready to move. I couldn’t tell whether he enjoyed walking, but I knew he didn’t care much for the leash!
The half-mile hike to the trail fork was slow as we followed the puppy’s speed. But I knew he’d want to sleep inside my backpack at some point. Soon, a hiker came down as we reached the Wilderness Cliffs Trail fork.
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Wilderness Cliffs Trail
We took a snack break and put the tired puppy in my pack after he walked half a mile himself. Meanwhile, Mr. Cody looked happy that we picked up the pace as we crossed Squak Mountain Connector Trail.
The one mile to the next fork wasn’t exciting, but we enjoyed a quiet walk. “Where’s everybody?” I wondered. I’d avoided hiking here because of its popularity, so having seen only one other person so far was odd.
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Cougar Mountain Summit
Below the summit was another fork before the final 500′ walk-up to the woodsy top. The area around the memorial bench was muddy and too wet to sit. So we went into the light brush right behind it.
Not sure how we passed the time, but we managed to hang out for almost an hour. As we were ready to leave, a hiker briefly appeared before moving again. Soon, we continued to our next goal: Long View Peak.
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Long View Peak and Clay Pit Peak
Long View Peak was only under a mile from the main summit. Despite the interweaving trails, nearly all crossings had clear signs. We met two guys and their dogs en route before soon reaching the peak.
After a few seconds, we continued to our final goal, Clay Pit Peak, the farthest of the three. From the main path, we went 1.6 miles southwest before turning onto Clay Pit Road to the end. Then we scrambled a short way to the flat top.
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Leaving Cougar Mountain
We walked around the top and didn’t see much, but it was more open than the other two peaks. The thin windfalls under the brush made walking a bit tricky. After a break, we scrambled down the west onto the main trail.
We saw small groups coming up the mountain during the three miles to the car. Back at the first fork, the puppy climbed out of the pack for fresh air. Then we followed him the rest of the half a mile to the parking lot.
See more trip photos here.