Dip Top and Lynch Peaks, Jade Lake, Terrace Mountain
6/30/2023 - 7/3/2023
My dad, Katie, and I enjoyed a three-night trip to what is arguably the crown jewel of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. We had excellent weather, some stellar campsites, and I tacked on a couple of worthy summits, which all came together to create an ideal summer backpacking trip.
We didn’t start hiking until nearly 5 pm. I was hoping that hiking in on a Friday would help us get ahead of the weekend crowds, so we took advantage of the long days to put some distance between us and the trailhead. The familiar, flat trail past Hyas Lake flew by, as did the switchbacks up to Deception Pass. We were all still feeling like we could push on to Marmot Lake. We were really able to maximize the long daylight hours and rolled into the lake at around 9 pm, just as it was getting dark. To my dismay, there were already some groups at the most prominent spots, so I did some frantic searching to find a suitable tent site in the fading light. Thankfully, I was able to locate a beautiful, large site that was somehow unoccupied, and we rushed to set up and get to sleep.
The next morning, I decided to get up a bit earlier and see if I could squeeze in a quick ascent of Terrace Mountain. I left the shores of Marmot Lake, crossed over one small hill, and encountered a bit of steep terrain as I gained Terrace’s southeast ridge. This ridge had a faint trail that I followed, enjoying the spectacular views of Daniel, Hinman, and the lake below. Then, I left the ridge and followed one of the mountain’s namesake terraces at about 6100’ as it contoured to the north. This feature was pretty remarkable, wide and flat, with easy slabs for walking, it was almost like a route had been carved into the mountainside.
At the end of the terrace, some class 3 scrambling was necessary to gain the summit area. The moves were fun, and I really enjoyed the varied nature of the upper mountain. Views of the surrounding area were great, and it was a gorgeous, sunny morning, and life was good. I wanted to get back to camp for breakfast with the group, so I dashed down, returning to our tent site just as my dad and Katie were starting to stir. The side trip took me about an hour and 20 minutes and was well worth it.
We then enjoyed the morning in camp and didn’t get moving toward Jade until around 11:30 am. Despite being a popular destination, the trail from Marmot to Jade Lake can be quite rugged in places, and we took our time making our way up to the brilliantly turquoise lake. No matter how many times I visit, I’m always surprised by just how vibrant the color is, it’s a beauty! We took the opportunity to swim in the icy waters before continuing on to our destination for the night Dip Top Gap.
Dip Top Gap is the pass that sits directly south of Jade Lake, nestled between Lynch and Dip Top Peaks. To get there from the lake, we had to traverse around its shores on well-trodden paths, and then climb a narrow, dying glacier over 1200’ up to the gap. Because it was late June/early July this area had a good amount of snow cover still, which made for pleasant, if tedious, climbing. We were a bit nervous about finding one of the limited spots but thankfully found a perfect bivy site that fit our two tents (as long as they were placed literally right next to each other).
We set up camp, and since we still had plenty of daylight, I decided to go check out Lynch Peak. In an effort not to lose too much elevation, I set out on a high traverse on a snowfield. The snowfield was moderately steep, and it was much more effort, both mentally and physically, to kick steps and plunge my axe than it would have been to just simply lose a few more feet and ascend the more moderate slopes below.
Thankfully, I was off the snow before long and had a bunch of loose rock between me and Lynch’s north ridge. I made my way up the steepening slope and eventually crested the ridge. The final few hundred feet involved some fun scrambling, which I really enjoyed. The views at the top were spectacular, Mount Daniel was right in my face, and it was fun to look back down at Jade Lake to get an overview of where we had come from. I could see the terraces of Terrace Mountain as well – hard to believe I was standing on top of that earlier in the day.
Getting down Lynch wasn’t a problem, I was mindful of loose rock and took a lower route on the snow that made it all feel routine. The last thing on the menu for the day was an evening ascent of Dip Top Peak. All three of us were excited about this one, so we all set out around 6:30 pm. Blocky rock-hopping and scrambling brought us up to the summit in quick succession. The views of Daniel and Pea Soup were even better from this summit than they were from Lynch, and we appreciated the cliffy relief down to the East Fork Foss River.
After enjoying the view, we scrambled back down and caught the sunset from the gap with some awesome alpenglow hitting the Lynch Glacier. It was a bit breezy in the evening, but we found a sheltered spot behind the rocks to enjoy the spectacular place we were in.
We had a slow morning, the next day. It was another sunny, warm day, and there’s not many better places to have your morning coffee than with our view from camp. All we had to do for the day was make our way back to Jade, which allowed for a relaxed itinerary. We eventually packed up and were ready to make our descent around 10:45 am. Being able to boot ski and plunge step made the descent a breeze, and we all enjoyed it much more than our ascent the previous day.
As we reached Jade Lake again, we started to keep our eyes out for an ideal campsite. Thankfully, we were in luck, and a beautiful one right at the north end of the lake was open for the taking. The rest of the day was relaxed and so enjoyable. We went swimming multiple times, explored the area around the outlet of the lake, and caught another excellent sunset. It was one of the best days I’ve spent relaxing at a camp in a while!
The next morning, we finally had to bid adieu to this beautiful part of the world and make the long hike out. A few more swims in Jade and Marmot Lake helped to soften the blow, and we made quick work of the trail back to Deception Pass and Hyas Lake.
The only hiccup happened when Katie rolled her ankle mere minutes from the trailhead. She was able to limp to the car, and thanks to icing it on the way home was able to avoid any serious injury.
31 miles / 8,375 feet of gain
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