Did you know that just a 30 minute drive away from Seattle, there's a mailbox sitting at the top of a mountain? And yes, you can hike to the top!
Mailbox Peak is a one of the most unique, quirky hikes in the Greater Seattle area beloved by locals. The mailbox sits at a summit 4800ft above sea level. At the summit, you can take in striking 360 degree views of the surrounding area, including Mount Rainier and the Cascade Range.
While there are many similarly iconic hikes in the Seattle area, the hike to Mailbox Peak is generally free of large crowds or tourists. This is because the hike to Mailbox Peak is challenging and not for the faint of heart. The hike to the summit is almost entirely "junk miles", meaning that it follows a series of seemingly never-ending switchbacks through a forest with no views. That being said, the final half mile of the hike to the summit is incredibly rewarding!
For those looking to bag their first peak or summit, Mailbox Peak is a great option because it's a good bridge between advanced hiking and entry-level mountaineering. The final half mile to the summit is a steep, technical scramble that can be accomplished with no specialized mountaineering equipment.
In this blog, I'll be answering all your questions about Mailbox Peak so that you know exactly what to expect!
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What time of year can I hike to Mailbox Peak?
The hike to Mailbox Peak is accessible any time of year.
Not only can you hike the trail in summer, but the hike to Mailbox Peak is great fall, spring, and even winter. In fact, I visited Mailbox Peak in February, and I would argue that the surrounding views of snow-capped mountains are so much more rewarding in winter without much compromise in difficulty.
How do I get to the Mailbox Peak trailhead?
The Mailbox Peak trailhead is located roughly a 40 minute drive away from Seattle, with North Bend as the closest nearby town. North Bend is home to many of the Greater Seattle Area's iconic local trails and is a great town to pickup hot coffee or pastries before or after your hike.
The road to the Mailbox Peak trailhead is fully paved -- a 4 wheel drive vehicle is not required to make it to the trailhead.
There are two spots for you to park near the Mailbox Peak trailhead: an Upper Lot and a Lower Lot and yes, the lot you choose to park in may matter. The Upper Parking Lot has roughly 50 parking spots and is slightly closer to the trailhead but is time-restricted. The gate to the Upper Parking Lot opens an hour after dawn and an hour before dusk. Specific gate closing times will be posted at the trailhead. The Lower Parking Lot has roughly 20 parking spots and is not time-restricted. If you plan on doing an early morning sunrise hike or an evening sunset hike, I recommend you park in the Lower Parking Lot.
While returning from my own sunset hike to Mailbox Peak, I saw a car stuck in the Upper Lot behind a locked gate. Beware that you might not have cell service to call someone to help. If your car happens to get stuck, a Forest Service employee will drive by the lot about once an hour to check if you've returned.
Once you park, you can find a vault toilet at the Upper Lot.
Do I need a permit to hike here?
YES, like many trails in Washington State, you will need to permit.
To park near the Mailbox Peak trailhead, you will need a Discover Pass. A Discover Pass is required to enter any state park and other select recreational lands in Washington. A Discover Pass is $35 for an annual pass and $11.50 for a day pass. You will not be able to purchase a Discover Pass at the trailhead. Instead, you may be able to purchase a Discover Pass online, at an REI, or locally at one of these locations in North Bend:
You will not need to sign a self-issue permit at the trailhead.
How long is the Mailbox Peak hike?
There are actually three ways that you can hike to Mailbox Peak. You can find all 3 downloadable GPS tracks on Caltopo here.
1. Hot & Heavy: The OLD Mailbox Peak Trail
The OLD Mailbox Peak trail is 4.9mi total. Despite being a shorter in distance, the OLD Mailbox Peak trail is a calf-burner that follows a set of extremely steep, short switchbacks up to the summit. This trail takes you 4000ft in elevation in just 2.5miles.
This trail is no longer maintained by the Department of Natural Resources. Be prepared for exposed roots. This hike is entirely in the forest with no views until you are about a half mile away from the summit. You are also unlikely to find any water source on this trail.
2. Slow & Steady: The NEW Mailbox Peak Trail
The Department of Natural Resources developed the NEW Mailbox Peak trail to make this trail more accessible to the average hiker. While still a challenging hike, the NEW Mailbox Peak trail has a much gentler slope, ascending 4000ft in 5.1miles for a total round trip distance of 10.2 miles. Be sure to budget much more time in the day for this hike.
The NEW Mailbox Peak trail was designed with hikers in mind with a few peek-a-boo view points before you reach the summit junction as well as two potential water sources for those who like to filter water on-trail.
3. Best of Both Worlds: The Mailbox Peak LOOP
If you're like me, you love taking the LOOP option any chance you get. The Mailbox Peak LOOP is 7.5 miles round trip and keeps you mentally stimulated with new views the whole hike. I recommend taking the Mailbox Peak loop counter-clockwise with the OLD Mailbox Peak trail on the ascent and the NEW Mailbox Peak trail on the descent so that it's gentler on your knees on the way down.
What gear do I need to hike Mailbox Peak?
Depending on the time of year you decided to pay Mailbox Peak a visit, I'd recommend different gear.
In summer, bring trekking poles and LOTS of water. You'll be in the forest for most of the hike, so sun-protection is lower on the priority list, but still recommended. Bug-spray is recommended if you plan to take the NEW Mailbox peak trail as you may encounter standing water.
In winter, trekking poles and microspikes are a must. The trail gets icy on steep terrain and both the microspikes and trekking poles will give you much more traction and stability on your hike. In winter, you're given the option to slide down from the summit in the snow. If you choose to do so, water-resistant pants and an ice axe for steering and braking are recommended. Be sure to also pack hand warmers in your emergency kit.
What's in the mailbox?
I was pleasantly surprised to find anything in the mailbox at Mailbox Peak. I found out after the fact that Mailbox Peak is actually a geocaching station. This means that other geocachers are taking and leaving items for other geocachers to find inside this mailbox.
When I hiked up to Mailbox Peak, I found a love letter, some post cards, and some trash. This mailbox reminded me of The Lake House movie, where Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullocks exchanged letters through a time-travelling mailbox, so if you'd ever wanted to live out your Lake House fantasy, this is your chance.
Mailbox Peak Trail Report
My partner and I decided to take a sunset hike to mailbox peak in late February. I arrived at the Mailbox Peak trailhead at around 3pm and parked in the lower lot. As I took the short walk up to the trailhead, I passed by signs saying that the upper parking lot would close at 4pm.
Because it was a cold winter day, my partner and I dressed in layers and brought daypacks with water, headlamps, sunglasses, and microspikes. We also brought trekking poles.
We decided to take the Mailbox Peak LOOP trail, counter-clockwise with the OLD Mailbox Peak trail on the ascent and NEW Mailbox Peak trail on the descent, because we wanted to take a gentler route down in the dark.
We passed by the trailhead to the OLD Mailbox Peak trail first, which looked like your run-of-the-mill trail bulletin board. However, we nearly missed the trailhead to the NEW Mailbox Peak trail, which was a nearly non-descript left turn. Keep your GPS out so you don't miss it!
The trail was relatively uncrowded -- we had encountered around a dozen people (and one dog!) on the trail. Around when we crossed the 1000ft elevation mark, we needed to put on microspikes due to all the ice present on the trail. I found that the OLD Mailbox Peak trail took a lot of mental fortitude to get up, because it was 2.5 miles of extremely steep terrain with no relief. It took us 2.5 hours to get us 2.5 miles of terrain (1mph; our average uphill speed is 2mph).
The first 2 miles were not particularly interesting as we were winding through the forest, but we were so excited when we reached the junction between the OLD Mailbox Peak trail, the NEW Mailbox Peak trail, and the trail to the summit. As soon as we got on the trail to the summit, we were swept away by the views of the Cascades that opened up. As we approached the summit, it got windier, and we needed to get hoods and gloves on to keep us warm.
The trail to the summit is quite steep and snowy. Because it was late in the day, we were able to follow other people's tracks up the mountain. In summer the route up to the summit is usually a scramble up a talus field, but at this time of year, the route was completely covered in snow. There were a couple of false summits on our way to the top, but we knew we had made it when, lo and behold, we saw the mailbox!
We were the last hikers at Mailbox Peak that evening and got to enjoy a stunning sunset over the Cascades and Mount Rainier in the distance.
We made sure to begin our descent before the sun fully set. We carefully followed our tracks back down. A hiker that we had spoken to earlier on the trail had said that he had lost footing and slid down the mountain, and heeding his warning, we took it down slowly.
Once we made it back to the summit junction, we put our headlamps on and began our descent down the NEW Mailbox Peak Trail at dusk.
Because we descended in the dark, there wasn't much to see beyond a peek-a-boo view of the city lights towards the top of the trail and a wooden bridge over a creek crossing. The trail crossed through several smaller streams as well, and we were lucky to have water-resistant footwear on. The trail around the streams can be very icy, so don't take your micro-spikes off too soon! We also saw maybe 5 separate instances of shrews scurrying around on the trail that evening.
It took us 2.5 hours to descend the trail for a roundtrip hike time of 5 hours.
When we returned to the trailhead, we encountered two other hikers whose car had gotten locked in the Upper Lot past closing time. We waited with them around 20 minutes before Department of Natural Resources employee came to unlock the gate for them.
Overall, the hike to Mailbox Peak was both challenging and rewarding. I can't wait for my next adventure there!
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