Hiking

From a short one-hour hike to a full day or even overnight excursion, you can experience a wide variety of terrain and breath-taking high mountain scenery. No matter what your level of stamina or desire, remember to be prepared and have current information about trail conditions.

Seattle NorthCountry’s Hiking Guide offers the best 30 hikes from urban to rural and adventure options!

Trail Guides are also published by individual ranger districts within the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest to help you identify regulations and recommendations established for the particular area you are traveling. The Darrington Ranger District is one of the largest districts in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. The trails in this district provide 328 miles of hiking routes with various degrees of difficulty and length, from short lowland hikes on level easy trails to an exhilarating climb to the top of the mountain peaks.

Walk, jog, rollerblade.

Woven into the fabric and landscape are over 10,000 acres of parklands. Ride a bike or a horse on a nationally award-winning trail, camp in a forested campground or a sweeping meadow. Spend the night in a yurt with friends or picnic with with the family at a lakeside park. Watch whales crest the waves at a seaside park or let Fido run off leash. Get outside and enjoy all that Seattle NorthCountry has to offer.

Snohomish County's scenic backcountry has a wealth of natural waterfalls that never fail to dazzle visitors and locals alike.

Many are the rewards for hikers, luring them along forested trails into the Cascade foothills. Other falls can be seen from your automobile at vantage points along rural highways. Every waterfall presents great opportunities for photo-taking and nature appreciation.

There are over 20 waterfalls worth exploring, one at a time—to cruise by or venture in by foot. Try Bridal Veil Falls, visible from US Highway 2 about ¼ mile east of the turnoff to Index; Wallace Falls, a 265-foot majestic waterfall near Gold Bar on US Highway 2, with a 7-mile loop trail serving as your entry; and the North Fork Sauk Falls, on the Mountain Loop south from Darrington, take Forest Service Road 49, turn left and look for Trail #660—the falls are just a 1/4-mile walk. Get two waterfalls for your efforts when you hike the Bald Mountain Trailhead, then continue on to Beaver Plant Lake. Soon after, take the right for on Ashland Lakes Trail. You’ll pass both Upper and Lower Ashland Lakes in 2 miles, and then the Twin Falls Lake and its falls are 1.5 miles beyond Lower Ashland Lake.