Confession Box stands between Three Lakes Hill and Haywire Ridge above Lake Chaplain. The lake is the City of Everett and south Snohomish County’s primary source of drinking water. Meanwhile, Baby Blue is in the near east across the Sultan River.
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Confession Box at a Glance
Access: Lake Chaplain Road @ mile 2.7 (watershed plan)
Round Trip: 6.1 miles
Elevation Range: 600′-1080′
Essential Gear: none
Route Info: Rich P
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: yes
Playlist: Spooky
Hiking by Lake Chaplain in Sultan Basin
The unofficial name likely plays off Lake Chaplain below the steep northeast slope. The main road with pullout parking is within the Everett Water Works perimeter. Lost Lake Mainline then reaches the national forest in 500′. A Discover Pass provides access to the area.
We soon passed the first fork with logs over a berm before the forest boundary. Then, after passing the second one through the forested hillside, we reached the third junction on the ridgetop. But without looking around, we could’ve easily missed the turn.
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Exploring Old Roads Through Logging Area
Immediately, we climbed over the logging debris, not knowing a hidden trail was beside it. We then took the bumpy, gutted path through the new growth into the clearing on the east. The one windfall with spider-like branches was pretty annoying to pass.
The clearcut provided the best views we’d see on this mountain today. We scrambled east briefly through logging litter before finding the upper road and continued north. The roadway dipped slightly at the bend by the summit of Confession Box in just over half a mile.
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Viewing Trees from Confession Box
After diving into the bushes, we went about 500 feet and walked around before calling it. Even with a map, the high point amid the flat, brushy summit was hard to discern. However, it was too open to feel the claustrophobic vibe of a confession booth.
I thought about seeing Lost Lake, but we needed to get home early. Instead, we hung out back at the clearcut before leaving the area. It must have been midweek, but it was eerily quiet. One would need to enjoy nature to be out here; it’s not much of a place to hang out.
See more trip photos here.