Desolation Peak is a worthy destination not only because of its unique approach and incredible scenery, but also because of the historical interest of the fire lookout that sits on its summit. The mountain resides directly above Ross Lake on its east side in the shadow of the imposing cliffs of Hozomeen Mountain to its north. It can be approached via a long walk on the East Bank trail from Highway 20, but most people opt to take the Ross Lake Resort water taxi to the trailhead or Lightning Creek. This boat service can be pricey depending on your destination but when the cost is split between partners it is manageable, and it provides a fun and scenic experience on the way to your trailhead of choice. It is something of a rite of passage for North Cascade climbers.
We chose to approach via the Ross Lake boat service directly to the trailhead. I had spent the prior few days on Lopez Island, so it was a fairly long journey for me to get the ferry off the island, drive from Anacortest to Ross Lake and get all my gear in order to take another (much smaller) ferry up the lake. Once everything was settled, my dad and I headed down the 1-mile-long trail to the boat ramp. From here, we were picked up around 3:30 pm and began jetting north. The views were great, especially back towards Pyramid and Colonial Peaks and north towards Jack and Hozomeen. Before long, we were dropped off and left to prepare for our hike. It’s always an isolated feeling to be dropped off on the lakeshore and left on your own. I always hope they remember to come pick us up!
We began up the Desolation Peak trail at about 4:30. This trail is not one you want to do in the heat of the day in the summer. It is western facing, and you should absolutely carry more water than you think you need, especially if you are camping because it is almost devoid of water in midsummer. We were lucky enough to secure permits for Desolation Camp, about a mile below the summit, so we had to carry all our overnight gear and TONS of water. To play it safe I carried 7 liters of water and my dad carried 6. We felt a little ridiculous and our packs were heavy to say the least, but it was way better to have peace of mind than to have to worry about water the whole trip.
Starting up at 4:30 turned out to not be the worst idea, as it started to cool off relatively quickly and we made good time up to camp. We even stumbled upon a stream that had decent flow for this time of year about 2/3 of the way between the lakeshore and Desolation Camp, meaning that sometimes there is water flowing during the summer! We still did not regret carrying all the water we did, and I would be sure to check recent trip reports in future years regarding the presence of this water source.
Before long, we cruised into camp and quickly offloaded our peaks and set up our tent in the nice wide tent site. We stashed some food in our bear canister but brought the rest with us as we set off with daypacks to catch the sunset from the summit. Above camp, views really started to open up. I especially loved the view back towards Jack Mountain and Nohokomeen Glacier with Ross Lake snaking through the valley far below.
We soon reached the gentle summit and were greeted by the sight of the historic fire lookout and the daunting cliffs of Hozomeen. Jack Kerouac spent 63 days in the lookout during the summer of 1956 and wrote about his experience in his books like the Dharma Bums and Desolation Angels. It was cool to picture him up on this summit writing and staring at Hozomeen every day, it’s no wonder he mentions the intimidating view of the mountain often in his works!
There was a crew working on restoring and improving the lookout there when we arrived. We chatted a bit and heard about their work and then proceeded to settle in to cook dinner and enjoy the sunset. It was a magical night, with soft light. I love nights like that where all there is to do is sit back and name peaks, plan future trips, and enjoy the wilderness.
The sunset was spectacular, and we made the short hike back to camp in the dark content with our evening spent on the summit. The next morning, we decided it would be great to head back up to see the view in the daylight, so after a relaxed breakfast we made the jaunt up to the lookout. The views were great, but we were surprised to see that a bit of wildfire smoke had blown into the area, obscuring the top of Hozomeen a bit. Despite this, it was still an awesome sight to see, and we had no regrets about seeing it in the daylight.
The hike out was hot and seemed to take longer than the way up. We were now moving in the heat of the day and did not envy the few parties that we saw making their way up. Once the seemingly endless switchbacks spit us right out on the lakeshore, we wasted no time in going for a celebratory swim. The water of Ross Lake was very warm and refreshing feeling. I suppose there is just less glacial melt water in it than Diablo, making it significantly warmer? Either way, it was a great lake to swim in on a hot day.
Our boat ride home was scheduled for Lightning Creek, which was actually two miles south of where we were dropped off, so we shouldered the packs once again and set off. The East Bank Trail is a pleasant, wooded walk, and it leads to a super cool bridge over the flooded Lightning Creek inlet. Here, we located the dock and went for another swim before our boat picked us up on time after another great adventure on Ross Lake.
Final Stats: 13.93 miles / 5,491 feet of gain
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