Mailbox in May

“Let’s do Mailbox.” My old climbing partner, Rainer sounded enthusiastic.

I accepted, knowing full well what I was getting into. It’s not pretty. If you want pretty, there are better hikes. We hike Mailbox because it’s close, has a reputation, and an iconic mailbox on top. All that and it’s strenuous. So, of course, it’s wildly popular for training and the novelty of it.

We took the old steep, heavily tree rooted trail. Though there were muddy sections, they were negligible and there was no snow. This second time on the old trail we somehow managed not to get lost. That’s easy to do and it chews up time and wears you out. You need to look up often enough to see the white metal diamonds on the trees. The route through the forest consumed the first 75% of the hike’s 4,000-foot elevation gain. It was the least fun.

After joining with the new trail, we hiked up the granite staircase that switchbacks through a talus field. The granite steps, though only a fraction of the hike, is the most enjoyable part. And just when you’re getting used to the pleasure of it, it ends. The final stretch is a rough and eroded mess of dirt and rocks that leads to the summit. This area is completely exposed to the sun. Rainer hiked shirtless. The only snow we encountered was a patch at the summit.

We arrived at the mailbox in 2 hours and 51 minutes, not too bad for a couple of old farts. The summit was ours for about 20 minutes until other hikers arrived.  We spent about an hour enjoying the expansive views, snacking, and visiting with new arrivals. We hiked old school with hiking boots and daypacks, with training weight, extra apparel, food, first aid kit, and lots of water. On the descent, we encountered many runners training for upcoming 50 and 200-mile races. We also saw people wearing flip-flops and carrying nothing. Go figure.

Although we planned to descend the old trail, Rainer wanted to take the new trail, which we did. Surprisingly we encountered a good deal of packed dirty snow and quite a few muddy sections. Rainer slipped and fell on one section, but without incident. After my third descent of the new trail, I’m done with it. It is just way too long, even if it is prettier than the forested section of the old trail. Next time I’m going down the old trail. Either way, good training for the bigger hikes to come. If you haven’t done it. Do it. Check it off your list and move on.

I took two 360 virtual reality panoramas at the summit. Here are the links to view them in a pano viewer at 360cities.net. Be sure to click the full-screen icon as you roll over the upper right of the photo for best viewing.

Mailbox Peak, Mail Call, Snoqualmie Area, WA State: https://www.360cities.net/image/mailbox-peak-mail-call-snoqualmie-area-wa-state

Mailbox Peak, Lunch Break, Snoqualmie Area, WA State: https://www.360cities.net/image/mailbox-peak-lunch-break-snoqualmie-area-wa-state