Headlee Pass and Lake Elon─An old mining trail is a terrible thing to waste!
Quick Facts:
Location: Mountain Loop Highway
Land Agency: Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest
Roundtrip: 7.0 miles
Elevation Gain: 2,650 feet
Contact: Darrington Ranger District: Mount Baker -Snoqualmie National Forest
Green Trails Map: Mountain Loop Highway 111SX
Recommended Guidebook: Day Hiking North Cascades 2nd edition (Mountaineers Books)
Special Note: Northwest Trail Pass or Interagency Pass required.
Access: From Granite Falls follow the Mountain Loop Highway east for 29 miles turning right onto FR 4065. Follow this rough gravel road (high clearance required) for 2.3 miles to its terminus at the trailhead.
Built by miners over a century ago, nature has done its darnedest trying to reclaim this trail. Rock slides, avalanches, washouts and creeping greenery have kept modern-day trail crews busy assuring that Sunrise Mine trail no. 707 to Headlee Pass doesn’t fade into history like its namesake. For while an old mine might not be a terrible thing to waste—a great trail to its stunning location is!
The trail begins in scrappy forest. At .5 mile, come to a potentially challenging crossing of the South Fork of the Stillaguamish. After heavy rainfall it may have you seeking an alternative hike for the day. Once past, break out of the forest to an open slope flush in thick tread-concealing vegetation. Work your way up the steep hillside marveling at a huge and impressive landslide gully and contemplate the forces of nature that created it.
The trail soon enters a forbidden basin flanked by steep rocky walls. Scan the encompassing sheer slopes for Headlee Pass. Now over rocky terrain and through cloisters of mountain hemlock spared from unforgiving avalanches, toil into the high-country so coveted by those who hastily build this trail. After a series of short switchbacks and a bit of scree hopping the trail makes a sharp bend right; the passage out now revealed. The next quarter mile is extremely steep on tread periodically destroyed by heavy snows and tumbling rocks. Use caution here.
Take in newly emerging views of Mount Dickerman across the valley and of Glacier Peak in the distance. At 2.7 miles and after 2,400 feet of climbing, reach 4,600-foot Headlee Pass, a small notch between Sperry and Morning Star Peaks. There’s not much here to compensate you for your effort, so carry on following good but unmaintained tread. After a slight drop, the way resumes climbing crossing a large scree slope. Carefully traverse the open rock heap coming to Vesper Creek. Now turn upslope following the churning creek a short way until a stark but gorgeous upper valley is revealed.
Here beneath the snowfields and shiny granite slopes of Vesper Peak is sparkling Lake Elon (also known as Vesper Lake). Of course the miners weren’t interested in any of this beauty, only in the valuable ore that might have been hidden beneath it. And while the surrounding hills no longer carry the sounds of grunting prospectors, occasionally low murmurs can be heard emanating from the alpine tundra. Keep your eyes out for white-tailed ptarmigans, a member of the grouse family that makes this beautiful but harsh alpine environment its home.
Headlee Pass is one of 136 featured hikes in my best selling and most trusted Day Hiking North Cascades 2nd edition. Pick up your copy for more details on this hike and plenty others to help plan your next adventure in this spectacular region!
