Glacier Peak, as seen from Green Mountain
We were looking for an easy hike on well-maintained trail and the
hike up Green Mountain sounded like it fit the bill. It was another
Ramsey family outing consisting of the two of us, Steve's cousin Kevin
and his wife Alicia, Steve's cousin Cara, and Steve's uncle Tim. We
decided to take the Jeep this time since the guidebook indicated that
the Green Mountain road was somewhat rough (in it's current condition,
a lower clearance, non-4 wheel drive vehicle would probably be OK). We
arrived at the trailhead just past 11:30 AM and started up the trail
at 11:45 AM. The forecast for Darrington was a high of 97 degrees
Farenheit so we were expecting to roast. It turned out the heat was
not as bad as the biting flies; even with frequent applications of bug
repellant, the flies were incessant for most of the hike. We passed a
WTA party on a very brushy section of the trail - they must be an
especially dedicated crew to be working in such hot and buggy
conditions. We had wanted to stop in the basin near the tarn for
lunch, but this would have been a terrible place to stop due to the
bugs, so we marched on and found a less buggy spot next to a snow
remnant near 5200'. After a quick bite to eat, we continued up,
reaching the summit around 2:15 PM. The views were very nice;
especially the one of Glacier Peak. It was hard to believe that it was
three years ago in July (and also a hot and buggy trip) that we
climbed Frostbite Ridge with Kevin. We
spent some time on the summit, taking pictures, talking to a party of
two hikers, and watching a bold little marmot, and several chipmunks
scamper around. We were suprised there was no lookout on the summit,
as referenced in the sign at the trailhead. The bugs eventually drove
us to start the hike back down. We arrived at the cars at 5:15 PM.
Gear: bug repellant (full body bug suit would be nice) and lots of water
Glacier Peak, as seen from Green Mountain
Dome Peak, viewed from the summit of Green Mountain
A marmot chewing on a hiker's boot
Summit shot. From left: Cara, Steve, Tim, Kevin, and Alicia
Summit shot. From left: Steve, Elain, Alicia, and Kevin