Announcing a new Meetup for Eastside Hikers Meetup Group!
What: Mailbox Peak Morning Hike
When: Sunday, March 14,[masked]:00 AM
Where:
Eastgate Park and Ride
14200 SE Eastgate Way (SE Eastgate Wy & 141st Ave)
Bellevue, WA 98007
Hello Everyone,
Let's attempt Mailbox Peak on Sunday morning. As you all know daylight saving time is this Sunday so it will feel like we are meeting at 6am;) Mailbox is an extremely challenging hike so please read the details and determine if this hike if suitable for you. Let's meet at the Eastgate Park and Ride at 7am on the westside. Please call me if you are running late; I won't wait around for any longer than a couple of minutes.... [masked].
The weather looks good for Sunday so far; lets hope it stays that way. For this hike I would recommend everyone bringing hiking polls and having decent hiking boots.
Stats:
Roundtrip 6.0 miles
Elevation Gain 4100 ft
Highest Point 4926 ft
Overview:
Mailbox Peak, located between the Snoqualmie middle-fork and southfork drainages, is the North-West end of a range that includes Mount Defiance, Bandera Mountain, and Granite Mountain. There is a fire-fighter training center located at the south east foot of Mailbox Peak and trainees often use the rigourous path for physical conditioning. The last time I visited the summit, one of them had carried up a solid iron street corner fire hydrant and left it next to the mailbox. I have heard of another time when they carried a full-length ladder to the summit and back.
Mailbox Peak is not the sort of hike that is chosen for a fun, easy outing. The grade of the trail makes it one of the much more difficult hikes in the I-90 corridor. Often in Spring and early summer you will see mountaineers lugging full heavy weight packs up and down to condition for Mt. Rainier or Mt. Baker trips. Although this hike is a real challenge, mountain folks retain they're sense of humor with an inside joke. Mailbox Peak actually has a mailbox on top with a summit log and a changing assortment of mail in it. What does the mail consist of you wonder? Well, go see for yourself.
Trail length (one way) - 2.5 Miles
Elevation Gain - 4040 feet
Getting There:
From Seattle take I-90 East past downtown North Bend to Exit 34. Turn left at the Stop. In 0.6 mile turn right onto SE Middle Fork Road (#56). After a mile or so, you will come to a fork and the road will split. It doesn't matter whether you go left or right because both ways converge after a quarter mile. 2.5 miles from the beginning of SE Middle Fork Road, there is an unmarked parking space on the left side of the road (right after gravel road starts). Across the street is a white, rusty, metal gate.
Learn more here:
http://www.meetup.com/hiking-343/calendar/12853163/