Sauk Mountain WA
5/29/30
Sauk Mountain is a fairly prominent peak in the Triumph-Blum Area, east of Baker Lake and visible from Concrete, WA. While a fairly intimidating peak from highway 20, the majority of the mountain is done through the forest road, which takes you to 4,400’, making only 1,200’ of elevation gain needed to reach the summit. This, in turn, makes for one of the best bang-for-buck hikes within the Cascades, as the stunning views start the second you leave the car.
I left Bellingham with my buddy Rory around 4:30 and reached the trailhead just before 6 PM. The forest road is long, and the washout section is a bit tricky; a sedan would have a hard time making it up here, but it's definitely possible. The second we got on the trail, we found ourselves walking through a stunning alpine meadow, with vast views of the valley and the Skagit River far below. Wildflowers are starting to bloom, as the slopes are covered in patches of white, blue, purple, and yellow. The ridgeline lies directly above, and we took a series of steep switchbacks to gain the ridge.
Up we go
Ridgeline Above
Valley Below
Once at the ridgeline, 5,250’, the trail flattens out as we turn left and head northwest towards the summit. Sauk’s backside is covered in snow, a stark difference from the snow-free frontside. We saw a few marmots on the meadows far below; even farther below lies Sauk Lake, a seldom-visited lake between Sauk and Bald Mountain. Rory, who was wearing Nikes, put on a pair of spikes, while I continued in just my trail runners. The boot path is well beaten through the snow; that said, a fall here without an axe would be scary. The trail traverses some steep slopes, and the late May snow is slick and icy, so be careful and be sure-footed. The Central Cascades and Glacier Peak dominated the skyline to the South as we made our way towards the Sauk Mountains summit. Once off the snow, we picked our way through a rocky scree section before finding ourselves at the end of the trail.
The route through the snow towards Sauk
Sauk Lake far down below
True summit of Sauk
(False) Summit time!
The true summit of Sauk is a low-class 3 scramble; as a result, most people simply stop at the non-technical false summit. Rory stayed back, but I made my way to the true summit. I descended off the false summit before ascending a steep slabby rock with a few handholds. Following this, I simply followed the rocky ridgeline to the true summit. Definitely not a place to fall, but if you have any scrambling experience, you'll have no problem with this.
Once back at the false summit, the clouds parted a bit, and we got direct views of Baker. My car was also visible far down below. We took a few pictures and quickly made our way back down to the car. This was an easy yet exciting hike with 360° views of the Central and North Cascades, definitely one I'll be repeating. As always, Stay Safe and Happy Hiking!
Wildflowers
Just gorgeous
3.5 Miles - 1,200’ Gain - 1:50 C2C
