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Mailbox Peak - Old Trail

Difficult Difficult
 4.7 (29)
  1. Areas
  2. WA
  3. …Seattle and Puget Sound
  4. North Bend
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“The ultimate convenient training hike. ”

Jackie Clark
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2.1

Miles

3.4

KM

Point to Point

4,679' 1,426 m

High

1,031' 314 m

Low

3,656' 1,114 m

Up

9' 3 m

Down

33%

Avg Grade (18°)

148%

Max Grade (56°)

Dogs Leashed

Features Birding · Fall Colors · Views · Wildlife

A Discover Pass is required to park in Washington State Parks, Dept of Natural Resources and Dept of Fish and Wildlife

Description

The Old Trail of Mailbox Peak is the steepest training hike easily accessible from Seattle. The new Mailbox Peak Trail was created by WTA volunteers to account for the increased number of rescues of people getting lost, injured, and increased erosion on what's now know as the Old Trail. But the Old Trail remains open and available for those who need some serious hill training.

From the parking lot, pass the white gate and the new trailhead on your left. The old trailhead will be on your left shortly thereafter.

This trail starts steep, has a few seemingly flat areas, but continues up at a pretty steady grade. Follow the white diamonds through a forested section where roots are seemingly the staircase up. The last 1,000ft to the summit is shared with the new Mailbox Peak Trail and you are greeted with a Mailbox full of goodies, and two newly installed plaques. The beautiful views from the top are nice, too...

Contacts

Local Club: Washington Trails Association (WTA)

May 1, 2026: Falls Creek Falls (Joseph, OR)

May 1, 2026: Iwetemlaykin State Heritage Site (Oregon)

Apr 30, 2026: Hiker Headlines: Highway 20 partial reopening, Trailhead Direct, DNR budget cuts, hot weekend

Land Manager: WA DNR

Shared By:

Jackie Clark with improvements by Jason Santos and 2 others
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  4.7 from 29 votes

#1

in North Bend

#119

Overall
  4.7 from 29 votes
5 Star
75%
4 Star
21%
3 Star
4%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
0%
Trail Rankings

#1

in North Bend

#10

in Washington

#119

Overall
11 Views Last Month
3,614 Since Jun 22, 2015
Difficult Difficult
0%
0%
0%
7%
72%
21%
Add a Photo

Photos

Goodies! At Mailbox Peak.
Jun 22, 2015 near Riverbend, WA
Almost at the top
Jul 14, 2020 near Riverbend, WA
Mailbox Peak summit photo
May 29, 2015 near Riverbend, WA
There "she" is!
Jun 22, 2015 near Riverbend, WA
Infamous Mailbox on a snowy November day.
May 29, 2015 near Riverbend, WA
Cloudy day on Mailbox Peak.
Nov 2, 2016 near Riverbend, WA

0 Comments

Weather

Current Trail Conditions

All Clear 21 days ago
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Check-Ins

Jan 6, 2024
Matt Nakoneczny
8.2mi — 4h 06m
Jul 4, 2023
Emma M
LOVE! Haha did this with BA Summer Patrick on July 4th. I was surprised at how uphill it was but absolutely loved the challenge — 2h 20m
Jun 15, 2023
Michael Young
Aug 21, 2022
Sungyeal Kim
old-> new 9.6mi
Aug 13, 2022
Daniel Shapiro
Mar 26, 2022
Adam Axmear
Old up and new down. Packed snow patches near the top and a large snow field down through the main switch backs on new trail. Microspikes were helpful 9mi — 5h 00m
Aug 26, 2021
Madelene Travis
Hiked Mailbox peak going up with the old route and down with the new route. Steep steep steep, but so worth it! 7.8mi
Jul 10, 2020
Max Mu
1h45m one-way up from parking lot to the merging point with new trail. Took another 45 minutes to the summit. 1.6mi — 1h 45m

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Stewarded by Washington Trails Association (WTA)
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