Washington trails · Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail

Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail

A 184.7-mile section of the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail in Washington, with 5,087 ft of climbing. The full trail runs about 1,200 miles. Reaches Mount Baker Lodge Lakes and other lake/pass/summit destinations. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service.

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Length

184.7 mi

Elevation gain

5,087 ft

Difficulty

Expert

Max grade

60%

Steepest mile

+1,024 ft

Tread at ≥10% grade

43.0 mi

Shape

point-to-point

Bikes

yes

Horses

yes

Managed by

U.S. Forest Service

Elevation profile

The climbing is spread fairly evenly along the route. It gives back about 27,814 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.

3-D terrain

USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5

Reaches

Mount Baker Lodge Lakes (lake)
Baby Lake (lake)
Baker Pass (pass)
Austin Pass (pass)
Hannegan Pass (pass)
Sunrise Lake (lake)
Mount Josephine (summit)
Highwood Lake (lake)
Bell Pass (pass)
Lizard Lake (lake)

Heads up

Stream ford: expect at least one unbridged crossing.

Terrain graded T2 (SAC scale).

Sections reported faint or hard to follow — carry a map or download this area offline.

Getting there

WILD GOOSE — parking nearby, restroom. 48.85410, -121.68356 · directions

Daylight at the trailhead

On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 5:48 a.m., the sun rises at 6:21 a.m. and sets at 7:51 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 8:24 p.m. (PDT) — 13 h 29 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 184.7-mile route works out to roughly 70 h 57 min of walking — more than a single day of daylight here, so plan it as an overnight or hike it in sections.

Loop options

Rainbow Falls Loop X-Country + Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail — 9.5 mi loop, 1,170 ft gain
(PNT) Jim Futrelle Trail + (PNT) Ken Rosencrantz Trail + Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail — 3.0 mi loop, 1,128 ft gain
Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail + Heather Meadows X-Country Ski + Chain Lakes — 7.6 mi loop, 2,105 ft gain

Nearby trails

Chain Lakes — 0.5 mi