Lake Ann Maple Pass Loop Trail

The Lake Ann Maple Pass Loop Trail in the North Cascades provides some of the most stunning scenery anywhere. Steep valleys, a cold mountain lake, soaring serrated peaks, glaciers and scads of wildflowers.

This is one of the trails featured on the North Cascades Photo Tours, here is a link for more details and sign-up page.

The hike is 7 miles, the gradient is easy. The best time to go is late in the day, starting your hike about 5pm (in mid-summer) allows you to catch the sumptuous light on the flowers and meadows.

The trail head is on Highway 20, the North Cascades Highway at Rainy Pass (mile marker 158). From Interstate 5 its about a 2 hour drive east to Rainy Pass .

The trail is in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest and here is the link to the trail description and directions, parking info, etc.

The trail starts at almost 5,000 feet elevation and reaches 7,500 feet at the top of Maple Pass. Generally the trail is melted out enough to hike in mid to late July. The wildflower explosion starts soon after! Shoot for the last 2 weeks of July.

Another stunning time for the trip is the fist 2 weeks of October. The upper reaches of the trail pass through the Larch Zone. These trees have needles and look like regular evergreens during the spring and summer, but in early October they turn a bright orange and look like they have been plugged in.

Don’t count on finding any water along the way, some years there is a trickle as you climb to Heather Pass and none beyond. Make sure to bring your own!

If you go on a weekend in the summer and fall expect a lot of company, this is a very popular trail, and dogs are allowed on the trail. Here are a few images from the last 2 years hikes.