Summiting Mailbox Peak

Mailbox Peak is one of the most iconic hikes near Seattle, named for the mailbox at its summit. It is also infamous for its “old” trail which follows a ridgeline straight up the mountain, gaining 4,000 feet in elevation over 2.5 miles. Apparently, search and rescue was repeatedly called to assist hikers who underestimated the trail, so a few years ago, the “new” trail was built. This trail is full of switchbacks and is over twice as long (5.5 miles one way by my count), but this makes the elevation gain more manageable. 

Even though the old trail is steep, overgrown, poorly marked, and unmaintained, plenty of people still chose to take it. Most people take the old trail up, but return on the new trail to save their knees on the descent. This was my original plan too, but when I arrived at the trailhead on the morning of the hike, I got confused about the location of the old trail trailhead. Had I just looked at my map, I would have seen it was just a short walk down the gravel road from where the new trail starts, but I was anxious to start my hike, so I decided just to go up the new trail.

Bridge over a small creek on the new trail

The trail was similar to many others in the PNW. Switchbacks guided me through the forest, over small streams, under trees with mossy green coats, and through vibrant ferns. I am always amazed by the amount of greenery and life present even in the middle of winter. Less than a mile into the hike, I discovered something that I’d only read about, but had never encountered in real life before: hair ice! Hair ice is ice that forms on dead trees when temperatures are near freezing and the hair is humid. I took a bunch of pictures and marveled at the fine structure of the ice before continuing on my hike.

Hair ice I found on trail

Even though the grade of the trail was constant, it was definitely manageable. It was a workout but I wasn’t dying. The trail was well maintained and I was really enjoying it. Because I was hiking solo and doing the opposite of what most people do on this hike, I had the trail to myself for most of the time. Normally, being alone in the woods freaks me out (I have an overactive imagination), but I am working on it. I actually really enjoyed the time alone in nature to focus on my own thoughts without being interrupted by anyone.

Snowy trees near talus field

I hit snow at about 3.5 miles, but it wasn’t icy, so I didn’t put on my microspikes until the forest opened up and I reached the talus field (about 4.5 miles in on the new trail). The old and new trails had intersected at about 4.25 miles, so I was around a lot more people at this point. As I followed the trail through the talus field, I took in the view emerging around me. To the south, Mt. Rainier stood tall and magnificent. Behind me, to the west, I could just make out the skyscrapers of Seattle, dwarfed by the snow-capped Olympic mountains behind them. To the west, I could see Mt. Si and Mt. Teneriffe and all the other peaks of the Middle Fork Snoqualmie Region. It was amazing and I couldn’t wait to see the view from the top.

Looking west over the Snoqualmie Valley, Seattle and the Olympics in the distance

Without the shelter of the forest, the wind began to pick up and I soon put on my rain jacket to protect from the icy blasts. Finally, I reached the top of the talus field and found myself staring up at the final push to the summit. I have heard that there are switchbacks on this part to make the elevation gain a little more manageable, but everything was covered in snow. Instead, people formed a path going straight up the side of the mountain. I didn’t want to risk post-holing in snow that wasn’t packed down, so I went straight up, just like everyone else.

Final steep push to summit

And boy was it steep. I read after the hike that the final push is 960 feet of elevation gain in half a mile. It certainly explains why I was sore for several days after the hike. In the steep slope in the snow, there were times that it was difficult to get good footing, even with microspikes on. I was so glad I had my trekking poles to provide extra points of contact with the ground. It was definitely a mental battle as well, but I told myself just to put one foot in front of the other and take it one step at a time.

The famed mailbox!

Finally, I reached the top and there was the famed mailbox. Set against the amazing backdrop of white and green mountain peaks, the mailbox was covered in stickers and filled with snow. The views were even better then they had been from the talus field a thousand feet below. Now, I would see Mt. Baker to the north and Glacier Peak to the northeast. And of course, Mt. Rainier was even more spectacular in the south. I tried to take it in and enjoy the view, but the wind was vicious and I was incredibly cold.

Mt. Rainier dominates the view to the south

Even though I knew I needed to take a break and eat since I had already hiked 5.5 hard miles to the summit, I needed to get out of the wind. Less than 10 minutes after I summited, I was heading down. After descending about 50 feet, I realized that the wind had died down, so I decided to sit down and eat. I had wanted to get down to the bottom of the talus field before stopping, but I could feel myself getting shaky, so I made myself stop to get some food.

Snow capped peaks of the Middle Fork region – Mt. Baker and Glacier Peak can be seen in distance

I tried to enjoy the view as I choked down my turkey sandwich, but even though I was more sheltered from the wind, I was still cold. I ate quickly so I could get moving to warm up. Going down the steep, snowy section about the talus field was a bit nerve-wracking. I went slowly to make sure I didn’t slip. I was still able to move faster than I had going up, so finally reached the bottom of the talus field and headed back into the forest.

Originally, I had planned to take the new trail down, but I did want to see the old trail and thought it would be faster to take the old trail since it’s half the distance of the new trail.

Diamond blazes mark the old trail

The new trail and the old are worlds apart. Where the new trail is wide and mostly free of rocks and roots, the old trail is narrow and so badly eroded that tree roots are trying to trip you with every step. There were times that I couldn’t even tell where the trail was supposed to be. There are white diamond blazes on trees that mark the trail, but it was hard to look for them and not trip over roots at the same time. I ended up having my map out for most of my descent just to make sure I didn’t wander of course. It would have been so easy to do. It was also a very steep descent. Gaining over 4,000 feet in 2.5 miles is hard and losing it in the same distance isn’t much easier.

Erosion and roots on the old trail

Honestly, it didn’t take long for me to regret my decision to take the old trail down. My knees quickly became very unhappy and started screaming at me. I had hoped that this trail would be quicker, but since I was picking my way over roots and rocks and trying to protect my knees as best I could, I was not making quick progress. My average time going up the new trail was 28 minutes per mile, while going down the old trail I was only going about 36 minutes per mile. Even though taking the new trail down would have added 2 miles to my hike, I probably would have finished at about the same time anyway. And it would have been a more pleasant experience.

New trail

                                                                                                   Old trail

All in all, I really did enjoy this hike. I enjoy challenges and this hike was definitely a good one! The new trail was a beautiful experience in the forest and the views from the summit were amazing. That said, if I were going to do this hike again, I would take the new trail on the way up and on the way down. I honestly wouldn’t recommend the old trail to anyone, unless you are using the insane elevation gain to train to climb Mt. Rainier or Mt. Baker. I would rather have a longer climb that I enjoy than a short one that leaves me breathless and miserable.

The wind was crazy at the summit