Hiking Guide
WTA's hiking guide is the most comprehensive database of hikes in Washington, and comprises content written by local hiking experts and user submitted information. All data is vetted by WTA staff. This resource is made possible by the donations of WTA members.
We respectfully acknowledge the lands we are visiting are the homelands of Indigenous tribes of the Pacific Northwest, some of whom have reserved treaty rights on these lands. Tribes continue to rely on and share in the management of these lands today. Please tread gently and treat these places with respect.
Results List
3935 HikesSnoqualmie Region -- Snoqualmie Pass
9.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 3700 ft.
Highest Point: 5162 ft.
Rating:
Along with the numerous other I-90 hikes there is no shortage of ‘workout’ on this hike. Like its counterparts, this trail is largely for those interested in heading up, steeply. Moderated with switchbacks at times, and with a gradual traverse when you need it, the rewards here are not without effort. The actual summit is a rock-scramble, but the views and the flower-packed west facing slope near the top can be enjoyed without making the true top. More than a few remaining old-growth trees and a soft tread make this a well-rounded hike whether it is a training hike or your weekend reward.
Puget Sound and Islands -- Seattle-Tacoma Area
3.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 82 ft.
Highest Point: 92 ft.
Rating:
If you just need some quiet time in nature and are not looking for a big workout, this little walk will be perfect. There is good access to the Snohomish River where you can find a place to throw a line in the water plus some good birding opportunities near the small lakes.
Puget Sound and Islands -- Seattle-Tacoma Area
2.5 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 425 ft.
Highest Point: 425 ft.
Rating:
Hike down a lushly forested ravine with a babbling creek to its estuary as it empties into Puget Sound. Heading to the beach, breathe in the serene panorama of Brown’s Bay, Puget Sound, the islands, and the Olympic Mountains. Watch seabirds and go beachcombing to look for crabshells, anemones, and other treasures.
Puget Sound and Islands -- Seattle-Tacoma Area
6.6 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 0 ft.
Highest Point: 15 ft.
Rating:
Spencer Island is part of a larger area known as the Snohomish River Estuary and is a stop on the Washington State Great Birding Trail. The mix of saltwater from Possession Sound and fresh water from the Snohomish River create a unique ecosystem, making it one of the best birding spots in Puget Sound. On this walk, you don’t want to forget your binoculars!
Puget Sound and Islands -- Bellingham Area
2.6 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 200 ft.
Highest Point: 200 ft.
Rating:
A fine little park with beach access, camping, a boat launch and trails. A popular park in the summer, this is a great place for a quiet off-season hike. On this loop trail, there are views, a forest walk, birding and beachcombing.
Puget Sound and Islands -- Whidbey Island
5.6 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 260 ft.
Highest Point: 260 ft.
Rating:
Perched on a bluff overlooking majestic Puget Sound is the unique acreage of Ebey’s Landing. In addition to the Bluff Trail, visitors can experience the seaport town of Coupeville, observe working farms, and get their fill of wildlife viewing, all in a tiny National Park on Whidbey Island.
Puget Sound and Islands -- Whidbey Island
7.0 miles of trails
Gain: 275 ft.
Highest Point: 300 ft.
Rating:
Greenbank Farm was saved from becoming a housing community by partnerships with local land officials and the Trust for Public Land. Thanks to protection from Island County and the Nature Conservancy, hikers can explore the many trails that web the more than 500 acres of fields that surround the expansive property of Greenbank.
Puget Sound and Islands -- Whidbey Island
3.5 miles of trails
Gain: 200 ft.
Highest Point: 400 ft.
Rating:
With commanding views of the Puget Sound and Olympic Mountains, this 347-acre park also has opportunities for bird watching, clamming and crabbing, and offers 3.5 miles of hiking trails in old-growth forest and along a stretch of unspoiled saltwater shoreline.
Puget Sound and Islands -- Whidbey Island
4.0 miles, roundtrip
Rating:
Looking for a great day at the beach with the dog? Double Bluff is the place to be! Time it just right and at low tide you could walk for miles!
North Cascades -- North Cascades Highway - Hwy 20
3.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 20 ft.
Highest Point: 125 ft.
Rating:
Explore a beautiful state park near the Skagit River with an extensive trail network and beautiful campsites.
Issaquah Alps -- Cougar Mountain
4.75 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 450 ft.
Highest Point: 1380 ft.
Rating:
Hike a loop around Anti-Aircraft Peak in the Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park. Hike past sites associated with coal and clay mining, and a former 1950s-era anti-aircraft missile installation. Enjoy good forest trails, some seasonal wildflowers, and a million-dollar view.
Issaquah Alps -- Squak Mountain
6.6 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 1684 ft.
Highest Point: 2024 ft.
Rating:
This forested park, a wilderness with glimpses of Issaquah below, has miles of winding trails alongside bubbling creeks and narrow ravines. There are several trail loop options on this 2,024-foot-high mountain. With multi-use trails and a natural area, hikers have plenty to explore in this quiet sanctuary outside of Issaquah.
Issaquah Alps -- Cougar Mountain
4.2 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 489 ft.
Highest Point: 1122 ft.
Rating:
A moderate, year round loop trail in the Issaquah Alps that is popular with hikers, dog walkers and trail runners. Entering the large parking area at the Red Town trailhead (one of several in this 3,100-acre regional park) it’s hard to imagine that what is today a lush green forest was once a busy coalmine operation. Now all that remains are nearly forgotten place names, a few carefully preserved artifacts and caution signs warning of the hazards of travel off established trails.
Issaquah Alps -- Cougar Mountain
1.5 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 150 ft.
Highest Point: 800 ft.
Rating:
Hike easy, very green trails in the northwest corner of Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park. View artifacts from the coal mining era. As optional hike extensions, look in on Far Country Falls, or check out the ongoing downstream Coal Creek Trail.
Snoqualmie Region -- North Bend Area
8.4 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 2120 ft.
Highest Point: 3100 ft.
Rating:
This hike on Rattlesnake Mountain near North Bend follows good trails through second-growth forest, with possible wildlife sightings. It leads to some outstanding high viewpoints. In spite of the name, there are no rattlesnakes here.
Snoqualmie Region -- North Bend Area
10.5 miles, one-way
Gain: 2520 ft.
Highest Point: 3500 ft.
Rating:
If you've hiked to Rattlesnake Ledges and beyond from Rattlesnake Lake, this is a delightful alternative. Thanks to the handiwork of various groups in the outdoor community, hikers can now reach Rattlesnake Mountain from the west, starting from a trailhead at Snoqualmie Point.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
10.5 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 3400 ft.
Highest Point: 5250 ft.
Rating:
Perry Creek proves you can have it all in a single hike – old-growth forest, wildflowers, waterfalls, meadows, expansive mountain views, even lakes! Tread lightly, though-due to its unparalleled diversity of native plants, the area between the summits of Stillaguamish Peak, Mount Forgotten, and Mount Dickerman is a research natural area that could (in theory) be closed to all uses but scientific study.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
7.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 250 ft.
Highest Point: 1800 ft.
Rating:
Trail closed: The bridge over the Stillaguamish River has been removed for repairs rendering the Big Four Ice Caves inaccessible
Never go into or climb on top of the Ice Caves
While this is a popular location to snowshoe in wintertime, there is high risk in winter from avalanches off the mountain that feeds these caves. Keep to the main trail, and do not venture onto the snowfields at the end of the route.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
13.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 4300 ft.
Highest Point: 6005 ft.
Rating:
Mount Forgotten is an appealing target for the peculiarly determined hiker-turned-climber. Its sheer wall of a summit is very striking and easily instills visions of alpinism in those headed to Mount Forgotten Meadows, but the route takes a roundabout journey that requires not so much vertiginous daring-do as it does oodles of patience. The views from the top are spectacular, particularly the unobstructed view straight up Glacier Peak.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
8.2 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 3950 ft.
Highest Point: 5760 ft.
Rating:
If the best views come to those who earn them, Mount Dickerman offers the fairest vantage along the Mountain Loop. You’ll huff and puff through 4,000 feet of elevation on your way to the summit; in return, you’ll get a superb panorama of nearly every peak in the Mountain Loop. In late summer, it also rewards the intrepid with a bounty of mountain blueberries.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
2.2 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 220 ft.
Highest Point: 1938 ft.
Rating:
Trail closed: The bridge over the Stillaguamish River has been removed for repairs rendering the Big Four Ice Caves inaccessible
Never go into or climb on top of the Ice Caves
This is an easy walk on a wide gravel and boardwalk path to views of Big Four Mountain and the caves beneath the snow. Hikers of all ages and abilities can enjoy this trail.
Central Washington -- Yakima
6.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 2400 ft.
Highest Point: 3480 ft.
Rating:
Get a workout on this steep hike from Umtanum Creek to the ridge above the canyon. In spring, it is filled with wildflowers and birds, with chances of seeing rattlesnakes and bighorn sheep.
Olympic Peninsula -- Olympia
Rating:
Bordeaux Ghost Town is located on private property. This, in addition to its status as an archaeological site and concerns over graffiti and excessive trash has led to the land manager requesting that people refrain from visiting the site.
Central Washington -- Wenatchee
9.7 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 900 ft.
Rating:
Stairway to Heaven is a single track hiking and mountain biking trail in the foothills of Wenatchee. It climbs gently through fields of flowers and Ponderosa pine up to the summit of Twin Peaks. Enjoy views of the canyons and Wenatchee Valley down below.
Puget Sound and Islands -- San Juan Islands
2.4 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 550 ft.
Highest Point: 688 ft.
Rating:
A collaboration between Skagit Land Trust and Washington Trails Association created this 1.2-mile trail up Guemes Mountain, offering views of the surrounding San Juan Islands. A treat year round, you'll also see unique prairie habitat and forest, in addition to those gorgeous views.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
8.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 700 ft.
Highest Point: 2800 ft.
Rating:
5/25/22 - Trailhead Inaccessible: The Mountain Loop Highway is closed to vehicles between Barlow Pass north to the Bedal gate near the Bedal Campground. This annual winter closure will be lifted in the spring.
Hike to an old mining town by heading up a long-closed road along the South Fork Sauk River. This route largely sticks to the old route taken by miners over a century ago.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
Rating:
5/25/22 - Trailhead Inaccessible: The Mountain Loop Highway is closed to vehicles between Barlow Pass north to the Bedal gate near the Bedal Campground. This annual winter closure will be lifted in the spring.
Historic old wagon road at Barlow Pass. An alternative route to getting to the Monte Cristo townsite.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
9.2 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 2840 ft.
Highest Point: 5200 ft.
Rating:
5/25/22 - Trailhead Inaccessible: The Mountain Loop Highway is closed to vehicles between Barlow Pass north to the Bedal gate near the Bedal Campground. This annual winter closure will be lifted in the spring.
Rough and tumble is the trail, just like the miners that constructed this path. Though not always easy, the ascent to Gothic Basin, has tremendous rewards. Early on, one simply meanders along side the relentless South Fork of the Sauk. Quickly though this trail will turn to a no-nonsense bee-line to the basin with waterfalls, flowers, and views of the surrounding mountains to keep one distracted. The ultimate rewards come to those who have enough strength to explore the basin after the ascent.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
10.4 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 1400 ft.
Highest Point: 3161 ft.
Rating:
5/25/22 - Trailhead Inaccessible: The Mountain Loop Highway is closed to vehicles between Barlow Pass north to the Bedal gate near the Bedal Campground. This annual winter closure will be lifted in the spring.
A nice hike with plenty of variety. Beautiful forest, a rushing creek, waterfalls of all shapes and sizes, history, and of course a large blue-green lake surrounded by snowy peaks. At 10.4 miles, it can be either a day-hike or a quick early season overnight. You won’t be alone, though – this is a popular trail with both hikers and backpackers.
North Cascades -- Mountain Loop Highway
11.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 4200 ft.
Highest Point: 6610 ft.
Rating:
5/25/22 - Trailhead Inaccessible: The Mountain Loop Highway is closed to vehicles between Barlow Pass north to the Bedal gate near the Bedal Campground. This annual winter closure will be lifted in the spring.
A scramble to Del Campo Peak from Gothic Basic. Class 3 or 4. Technical expertise required.