Lightning Peak rises high above Copper Creek outside the Olympic National Park boundary. It’s just two miles west of the well-known Lake Cushman. The trail exists today because of copper and manganese mining back in the early 1900s.
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Lightning Peak at a Glance
Access: Copper Creek Trailhead
Round Trip: 6.7 miles
Elevation Range: 800′-4654′
Gear: helmet, crampons, ice ax, microspikes
Route Info: Tom Girard
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: no
Copper Creek Trail
A friend recently suggested Lightning Peak in the Olympic Mountains. So today, we came here after yesterday’s lowkey outing in north Sound. We started hiking on a sunny morning.
Soon, we walked through the lush old-growth forest. After crossing Cooper Creek to the north side, the trail climbed steeply. Then it was a sustained elevation gain for the next mile.
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Lightning Peak North Ridge
Firm snow showed up at 2800′, where we saw days-old tracks. Then it was continuous snow after gaining another 200′. Later we lost the trail below the 3200′ saddle with the loop trail sign. The boot path later ended on the pass.
From there, we scrambled south on the ridgeline. The crest had fewer trees with expansive views. Mount Ellinor to the northeast was also visible. I put on snowshoes, and then we made our way back into the forest.
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North Gully
There was more powder in the trees, and so we postholed for a bit. But it was crusty in the open area at the bottom of the gully. We walked over the snowy boulders and began the steep climbing.
The higher we climbed, the firmer the snow. But as the forest thinned out, the slope became icier. So we stayed closer to the trees when possible. Meanwhile, we walked through a couple of places with old avalanche debris.
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East Ridge
By the time we made it up on the east ridge, the mist had taken over. And that was the last time we saw anything. The snow had turned into ice all of a sudden. So I put on crampons to go around the outcrops.
Cornices strewed the ridgeline. So we moved to the south of the crest. It was surprising to see lots of bare ground there. After a quick traverse on exposed rocks, we went up short steep snow to reach the east summit.
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East Summit and Beyond
So far, we had put in more work than necessary. “We could’ve waited until the spring and have views!” I thought. But I signed the register, and then we left the top. Though, not before we looked around for a decent spot to go down on the ridgeline.
The north side had continuous cliffs. So we stayed clear and crossed from the south to a notch. We climbed up and went down to the second saddle. Then that put us right below Lightning Peak’s real summit.
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Lightning Peak Main Summit
The snow had complicated things for this climb. Plus, the mist had also weakened the visibility. I first had the dogs try a couple of spots, but none worked out. So it was safer for them to wait for me to come back.
From there, the crux was going up through snow-covered krummholz. The combination of powder and ice made it challenging to gain solid footing. But in the end, ice ax and crampons made mixed climbing possible.
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Outro
Zero views, period. Too bad, because I had planned to see Lake Cushman and the nearby Mount Lincoln and Mount Washington. Alas, maybe some other time! A few moments of nothingness, and then I went back to join the pups.
The black lab had somehow got himself onto a narrow ledge while I was upstairs. But I was able to guide him down as the yellow pup watched intensely from the saddle. I knew he secretly enjoyed the entertainment.
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It grew dark when we were back at the trail. But that part went by fast with two dogs chasing after me.
