Best challenging winter day hikes with mountain views (Seattle, Pacific: rent, camp)

[Zima1349]

I'm an avid hiker who recently moved to Seattle, and I'd like to get some input from people about hiking around here during the winter.

I'm looking for something that offers a reasonable challenge without being too extreme or dangerous - 10-15 miles, or less if there is enough elevation gain to make up for it. Within 3 hours of Seattle. Views are a must - not just views from Poo Poo Point or over Snow Lake - I have a friend coming at the end of the month, and I want him to see the truly epic mountains of the Pacific Northwest. We're both fairly experienced and have all the essentials, except for snow shoes. Only boot spikes. I would consider picking up a pair if it's a necessity.

I would very much like to do something out in the Olympics - perhaps Hurricane Hill (Hurricane Hill Snowshoe), though that almost certainly would require snow shoes, as the name implies.

I've been looking around wta.org, but a lot of winter recommendations don't involve going up into the mountains, and many are much farther away. So, I was hoping to get some input from the locals.

[Hemlock140]

Hurricane Hill is probably the best we have here, but in winter the weather is very unpredictable. The road up can be closed on short notice, and some years there has been 15' of snow blocking trails even as late as May. Some of the best trails I have been on were in the summit of White Pass (Highway 12), but I would suggest snowshoes and careful planning due to weather there too.

Snowshoeing on the White Pass Scenic Byway - Activities - Washington State Scenic Beauty and Recreation

[CrazyDonkey]

https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/seasonal-hikes

[Kayela]

Artist Point at Mt Baker would be one of my picks. It's just so quintessentially NW. You can drive right up to a parking lot that is very close and has great views itself, but fair warning, that road is a little eeeky-peaky in a couple spots (which is how you get that altitude without umpteen hours of hiking). You can absolutely just get out and hike around the top, but I'd prefer to have snowshoes for more exploration options, which can be rented at REI.

https://www.google.com/search?q=arti...w=1030&bih=566

Enjoy wherever you end up!

[sean98125]

Rent some snowshoes and head to Paradise if the weather is decent.

[PanapolicRiddle]

Originally Posted by Zima1349

I've been looking around wta.org, but a lot of winter recommendations don't involve going up into the mountains, and many are much farther away. So, I was hoping to get some input from the locals.

Keep in mind that WTA seems to focus more on hiking/backpacking than snowshoeing. That's why most of the seasonal hikes this time of year are lower elevation. As others have said, if you really want stellar views Nov-April you'll probably need snowshoes - there's usually significant snow above 3500' throughout winter and often well into spring.

There are abundant opportunities for snowshoeing, but remember it's much more slow-going and arduous than hiking; in general I'd say 1 mile of snowshoeing is equivalent to about 3 miles of hiking.

[mkarch]

You could do camp muir (paradise) definitely challenging this time of year. It's a good day hike during the summer when only half is on the glacier. Great sledding opportunity on the way down.

[Zima1349]

Thank you all for the responses. I'm leaning towards somewhere in Paradise, but Artist Point and Hurricane Ridge both seem like excellent options. Road and weather conditions vary, so it's good to have a few possible options. I'll make a trip to Paradise soon and get a feel for the area as soon as I acquire snow shoes - I haven't been there yet, but have been wanting to go for quite some time now. Camp Muir itself might be a stretch, though - do people actually go there in the Winter?

Now I just hope we'll have some good weather days like today - I did a smaller hike this morning. So beautiful.