Maple Pass Loop
A sustained North Cascades loop climbs from Rainy Pass forest to open ridges above Lake Ann, with larches, peaks, and long subalpine views.
Artwork inspired by Abby Williams Hill
Maple Pass Loop rises through forest and subalpine vegetation to an exposed ridge above Lake Ann, opening views across the jagged North Cascades. The scenery changes continuously with elevation: creekside shade gives way to heather, talus, distant glaciers, and golden larches in autumn. Heather Pass is a junction, not the final high point of the loop.
Snow often lingers into summer, and the open ridge offers little shelter from lightning, wind, or heat. Begin early, carry water because the trailhead has none, and turn around if navigation across snow becomes uncertain. For a gentler alternative, the separate Rainy Lake path provides a paved route without pretending to be the same hike.
- Setting
- Mazama, Washington
- Trailhead pass
- Northwest Forest Pass or equivalent required
- Allow
- 2–5 hours
Quick guide
- Route character
- Forest climb to open ridge above Lake Ann
- Check first
- Highway access, snow, weather, and trailhead parking
Read the climb
- Forest
- Notice how shade and moisture change before the subalpine zone.
- Ridge
- Use Lake Ann and surrounding peaks to understand the loop’s elevation.
- Season
- Expect lingering snow early and brilliant larches later in the year.
- Alternative
- Choose the paved Rainy Lake path when the steep loop does not fit the group.
Good to know
The route is popular enough that parking can become the first limiting factor. Rainy Lake and Maple Pass share an area but offer very different distance, grade, exposure, and accessibility.
Notice these
- high loop of subalpine forest
- Heather Pass
- 2–5 hours