Bryant Peak

7/31/2026

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I got an early start from the Denny Creek trailhead and quickly made my way under the I-90 overpass and crossed the creek at the waterslide area. The creek was running low, as expected in late July, but still had some nice pools and would be a nice place to spend a hot summer day.

Morning light looking back down the Denny Creek valley towards I-90

The rest of the hike up to Hemlock Pass was uneventful and I found myself turning off the main trail 1 hour and 20 minutes after leaving the parking lot. There is a climber’s path from the pass that you can follow more or less to the summit of Bryant. It was quite obvious upon leaving the main trail and became less apparent for a stretch near 4800’. One short, steep, bushwack-y section later and I emerged back into more open terrain, and it was easy to pick my way up to the summit block.

Mount Rainier looming behind Granite Mountain

First views of Kaleetan and Chair from near the summit

Near the summit I circled around to the northwest side and did a few fun class 3+ scrambling moves. This could easily be avoided, but it was fun to spice things up a bit for 10 or 15 feet.

The Tooth and Keechelus Lake in the distance

Posing with Kaleetan and Chair and my backpack sweat stains

Expansive views

Views were great from the summit, especially toward Kaleetan and Chair. I also enjoyed looking out toward my recent summits of Avalanche Mountain and Big Snow Mountain. I signed the register and began my way down, toying with the idea of tacking on Hemlock, but decided that one peak was good enough for the day and simply made my way back toward Hemlock Pass. I took a minor slip on some steep, dry pine needles and duff enroute to the pass, so be careful!

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On the hike out I ran into many day hikers heading up to enjoy the beautiful day at Melakwa Lake. My roundtrip time was 4 hours and 16 minutes.

Final Stats: 9.9 miles / 3512 feet of gain

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