Granite Mountain Lookout
- Kayleen Durant
- Aug 9, 2018
- 2 min read
If you're looking for a hike to kick your entire peach, look no further! I have to say, I underestimated this hike, and overestimated my hiking ability. I hiked this today as my first ever solo hike, which, hindsight I am so thankful for. I had to stop so many times to catch my breath (more than normal) and talk myself into continuing to the top. I was glad to not hold someone else up. With that said, I'm sure it's not as difficult of a hike as I am making it out to be. I do hike very frequently, and have hundreds of miles of experience hiking; however, I am still overweight and am not consistent in the gym, so I'm sure that plays a factor in my struggle today! Below I will list the other factors that make this hike quite the challenge.
Hike Details
The trailhead is located in between North Bend and Snoqualmie Pass. It starts out shaded for the first mile and a half. However, don't be fooled by the shade- you will still work up a nice sweat. This hike has a total of 8.6 miles (4.3 to the top, and back down), but a whopping 3,859 feet of elevation gain! Do the math, and that's just under 1,000 feet per mile! You. Will. Feel. That. Gain. Mark my words! As I stated above, this hike was extra difficult for me. One major factor that I think played into that is the terrain. Granite Mountain truly is almost entirely granite and boulders. This isn't just a nice smooth path for 8 miles! Adding in the extra work of climbing over miles of boulders AND elevation gain makes for a lot more effort than a basic hike. This really is a full body workout (especially when using trekking poles). The last mile to the top is BRUTAL. Just when you've exerted all of your energy in the previous 3.2 miles, you have to muster up the strength to climb up and over an obnoxious amount of boulders. After what feels like an eternity of granite, you will finally reach the peak. See the pictures below for a better idea of what I mean. Happy hiking!
This just about sums up what the first 2 and a half miles looks like... uphill with rocks and roots to warm you up for the top section!
This is an image of the last mile stretch. You can choose to go straight up the rock section to the left, or you can go around to the right, which is a series of switchbacks in between boulders. (You can barely see the lookout in the far right of this picture.)
WTA Link:
https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/granite-mountain-1
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