Mailbox Peak
Date: January 7, 2012
Difficulty: 9 out of 10
Distance: 5 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 4,000 feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Near North Bend, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass (new for this hike)
Trail Conditions: Damp to Packed Snow (only on top)
Hiking With: Rick Massie and my dog Macho

I was due for a brutal hike and Mailbox Peak was the fix. I asked Rick Massie to join me on this steep but short hike. We met up at Starbucks in North Bend, Washington and got started at 10:00 a.m. at the trailhead. There was only 6 cars in the parking lot, which meant there wasn’t a lot of people on the hike today….as it should be! The trail was good up to the opening, where it became packed snow. I was happy to see an inch or two on top of the ice, if not…it would have been difficult. Right before the opening, we put on our gators and mini-spikes. We made good time to the peak where it was cloudy, but no wind. We spent 15 minutes changing out our wet clothes and munching down some food.

The descent was the usual beating of the legs and knees and we both agreed, it’s almost easier to hike up than coming down. Rick Massie had a date later that day, so we had to make the stop at North Bend Bar & Grill short.