Loop Trips

Only a few loop trails are suitable for overnight trips; most Mt. Baker [1] trails are walk-in, walk-out propositions. Still, the scenery here is good enough to see twice. One loop trip, perhaps too short for the more robust, starts across from Nooksack Falls, seven miles east of Glacier, for a 4.5-mile hike to Excelsior Pass, gaining a tortuous 3,800 feet en route.

It then follows the High Divide Trail for four miles, with spectacular views of Baker and Shuksan, and returns to Road 3060 via Welcome Pass for 1.8 miles. The descent is via 67 demented switchbacks. Sections of this loop make popular, albeit difficult, day hikes.

To stretch it out, travel north for three miles past the Excelsior Pass/High Divide junction to Damfino Lakes and Forest Road 31.

The Copper Ridge-Chilliwack Loop Trail is an extremely popular 35-mile trek into Mount Baker Wilderness and North Cascades National Park [2] that begins from the Hannegan Campground at the east end of Forest Road 32. The first four miles are gentle, but after that the trail climbs abruptly to Hannegan Pass, then back down to a fork at the entrance to North Cascades National Park.

The right fork continues east over Whatcom Pass and eventually to Ross Lake [3]. Take the left fork instead, and climb along the spine of Copper Ridge, with vistas across the top of the Cascades. From here, the trail drops into Indian Creek, where you join the Chilliwack Trail for the return trip along Chilliwack River. A cable car provides a crossing over the river.

This trail is best hiked from late July through September. Wilderness permits are required for this hike; get them at the Glacier Public Service Center.