A Haunting History - Iron Goat Trail

I was trying to find where I wrote about this hike before, and somehow I didn't! This was my third time on this trail, purported by some to be the most haunted in Washington. Buckle up, because we got a lot of history to cover with this trail!

Iron Goat Trail
Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest
Parking permit: None at the Interpretive Site trailhead, NW Forest Pass for all other trailheads ($5 per day/$30 per year)
Distance: 12 miles round-trip
Elevation gain: 700'

The trailhead is off of Highway 2, about 32 miles west of Leavenworth. It's just west of Steven's Pass. If you park at the Interpretive Site, no parking permit is needed. There are also trailheads at Martin Creek and Wellington, but a Northwest Forest Pass is required at these.

As you set out from the interpretive site trailhead, you can sign the guest register and pick up a map similar to the one above; the printed ones I found also showed the newer Martin Creek Connector and Kelly Creek Trails that are west of the Martin Creek trailhead (I will have to revisit and explore these someday). The maps mark out the historic mile-markers of the railroad, which are also physically marked on the trail, making it very easy to figure out where you are.

My suggested route is to start at the interpretive site and follow the trail all the way to Wellington, then cut back using the Windy Point crossover trail. This leads to a round-trip hike of around 12 miles.

The caboose adorns the interpretive site trailhead.

The trail follows old railroad grade of the Great Northern Railway. Originally built as a series of switchbacks over the mountain, the First Cascade Tunnel bypassed the hill when it opened in 1900. Winter weather conditions were still harsh. Trains often faced multi-day delays due to snow-covered tracks.

Old trail tunnels, most of them caved-in, dot the trail.

A modern replacement for an old truss bridge

Early on the trail, you'll discover an "adit", a short tunnel used to bore into the tunnel construction area and excavate from the center. This allowed tunnel excavation to happen on three fronts (front, rear, and center), and shortened excavation time. It's a rather impressive feat of engineering, especially considering how difficult it must be to survey the rugged terrain even in modern times in order to line up three excavation sites to all meet up together to make one tunnel.

The adit opening

 Avalanches were always a concern on the railway. In the winter of 1910, a mail train and a passenger train became stuck by a snowstorm at Wellington. They were parked outside of the First Cascade Tunnel due to fears of asphyxiation if the trains were pulled into the tunnel. On March 1st, early in the morning, an avalanche came down just past the hotel in Wellington, wiping both trains off their tracks and down into Tye Creek. 96 souls lost their lives, mostly rail workers. Some believe their spirits linger, leading to the belief that this trail is haunted.

The wall of an old snow shelter. A wood roof and beams would have stretched out from this to protect the tracks from snow.

A scenic privy by Windy Point

The Wellington disaster spurred the creation of several snow shelters along the track to protect future trains. Most of these consisted of a long concrete wall, with a wooden structure extending out over the tracks to protect them. Most of the wood is gone, but the walls remain.

Near Wellington itself, a solid all-concrete snow shelter was built to further reinforce that section of track. The trail leads straight through the quarter-mile snowshed, and there is a memorial to the avalanche disaster about halfway through.

Parts of the trail are almost overgrown. Here you really have to hug the old snowshed wall.

Portion of an old bridge

Inside the Wellington all-concrete snow shelter

In 1929, a new tunnel was built. The Second Cascade Tunnel is six miles long and still in use today by Burlington Northern Santa Fe. It completely bypassed the old grade, making it obsolete. While most of the wood from the snowsheds was harvested and recycled and the buildings are gone from Wellington, the concrete structures remain, a haunting reminder of the people who worked and traveled here and the disaster that happened over a century ago.

Checking my mail - Mailbox Peak

Part of the reason I hiked Goat Peak was to prepare myself for an even more difficult hike. That's right. I went out with a friend and tackled the famous (or infamous?) Mailbox Peak in North Bend! This one was a doozy! It's not a beginner's hike, that's for sure.

Mailbox Peak
WA State Dept. of Natural Resources
Parking permit: Discover Pass ($10 per day/$30 per year)
Distance: 9.4 miles round-trip
Elevation gain: 4000'

Note that the parking lot closes at 8pm. It took my friend and I about 11.5 hours to hike this. We're exceptionally slow, but if you think you might not make it back in time, there's shoulder parking available outside the gate.

There are two trails up Mailbox Peak. The old trail is 2.5 miles. It's unmaintained, rough, and steep. Lots of people still take on the legendary challenge of the old trail.

We chose to go up the new trail. For the first four miles, the trail switchbacks up the mountain with fairly gentle grade. There are a couple creek crossings within the first mile and a half; these represent the only water on the trail, so fill up if you need to. The trail is mostly in the woods, with a few sections of open talus to cross. I heard the distinctive meeps of pika here, though I couldn't see the elusive little furballs.

Half a mile from the summit, the new trail rejoins the old trail for the final push, and what a push it is! You're going to climb 970 feet in that half mile, and it's gonna hurt.

First you come to a large boulder field. The photos look more intimidating than the actual hike. It looks like a stairway to Mordor, but we passed it relatively easily. Brace yourself, because the trail gets a whole lot worse.

After the boulder field, you're gonna climb straight up. The trail gets rocky and dusty and steep. Even four-legged buddies were having trouble on this section of the hike (my own four-legged friend stayed home). A few people we met on the trail didn't make it up this section and didn't summit. For me, when I'm this close, it's too close to quit, so I very slowly pressed on to the top. This section of trail was absolutely brutal. It's the most brutal hike I've ever done!

I saw a flag waving at the top and silently prayed it was finally the summit. Sure enough, as I approached I finally saw the iconic mailbox!

My hiking buddy striking a pose, plus some kid who had unlimited energy and was the only one not tired at the end.

Make sure you sign the summit register in the mailbox, plus check out what other trinkets are in there. I left some of my business cards in there.

I'll probably do this hike again another year, but for this year, that was exhausting enough!

It's still Hike-a-Thon, and you can help by clicking here to sponsor my dog's hike! We're two weeks into August and already at 24.5 miles! You can donate through the end of the month, but why wait?

When you're so fatigued you nap trailside - Goat Peak

For the Fourth of July, I did my first "level 5" or "expert" difficulty hike: Goat Peak. There are multiple Goat Peaks in Washington; this is the one just east of Chinook Pass. It climbs steeply; approximately 3200' in 3.25 miles. Your thighs will burn. It's a wilderness hike, so no more than 12 "heartbeats" (people and pets combined; stock are prohibited on this hike for reasons you will see on the trail).

Goat Peak
William O Douglas Wilderness
Parking permit: Sno-park permit required Nov 1st - Apr 15th (though I don't suggest it during winter season)
Other permits: Wilderness permit (free), self-issued at trailhead
Distance: 6.5 miles roundtrip
Elevation gain: 3200'

From Yakima, head West on Highway 12. Past Naches, stay straight at the highway junction to continue on Highway 410. After about 32 miles, the trailhead is on the left, directly across the street from Hell's Crossing campground.

At the trailhead, two trails branch off. The lower one is for Pleasant Valley. The one that immediately begins climbing is for Goat Peak. It doesn't get any less steep, so get to it!

For the first half mile or so, the trail hugs a creek. This is the only water on the hike, so make sure you're topped off. As the trail branches away from the creek and wraps around the hillside, you'll come to steep open slopes. The dirt is loose over rock and erodes easily; don't step too close to the edge of the trail or you may take a tumble! Here you can also catch some decent views of Fife's Peak.

Narrow, rocky, and steep

Not much room for error

Fife's Peak looms in the distance

About a mile in is a nice landing spot off to the side of the trail to take a rest break, with views of the wilderness. Once you pass this point, the trail gets even steeper and rockier. In some parts, the dirt has completely eroded away, leaving you to pick your footholds across the rocky terrain.

Eventually you make it up to the ridge. It's a steep climb, though slightly less so, as the trail dances back and forth over the ridge, unable to make up its mind.

About two and a half miles in, I was so exhausted. My mind had been wanting to quit for a while, and my body was starting to agree. Stopping and taking five wasn't cutting it anymore. I found a rocky overlook to the side of the trail. Here I pulled over, ate some cookies and Gatorade, then found a nice shaded spot, made sure my pup was tied securely, and set my phone alarm to take a 15 minute nap. I was so exhausted, but I really did not want to give up the climb because I knew I had an even harder hike planned (stay tuned for that one!). Once I rested, I was able to get within sight of the summit, and that was enough to motivate me to the top!

Once you reach the junction with American Ridge Trail the trail will get a hell of a lot steeper, but have faith! You're only about 1/3 mile from the top! Feel free to mutter some four-letter words as you climb what seems like an endless series of rocky switchbacks.

Almost there!

Near the top, you'll see some poles sticking out of rock; it's the foundation of an old fire lookout. American Ridge trail will start to slope downhill to the left; for the summit, look for a narrow, rocky scramble heading up on the right. There's a rather nice flat area to plop out and enjoy amazing 360 views at the summit. What a reward for all the hard work!

Even the dog was tired

Mount Rainier in all her glory

Be sure to look for the summit log that the Cascadians have left. Sign your name and be proud of your accomplishment. This trail is not for the faint of heart!

Hike-a-Thon PSA!

My dog, Ozzy, is raising money for Washington Trail Association's annual Hike-a-Thon. He'd really really love any support you can get, whether it's a flat donation or a pledge-per-mile. To support Washington Trails, click here to learn more!