McGregor Mountain

Overview

McGregor Mountain is a mountain nestled at the end of the Stehekin Valley. It is a fairly steep hike up from the road. It is a 6.5 mile hike to Heaton Camp. From there it is .5 miles to the summit. Getting to the summit is a little bit of a challenge. First you have to scramble up a talussy slope to the rock. Then it is fairly technical and very exposed, I suggest using a rope. You can follow tht painted arrows on the rocks. If you lose track of them go back and find the last one because it is a long ways down. Once you reach the top there is a Park Service radio repeater. You can eat a snack on a small platform which used to house a fire lookout which was torn down. The view is amazing, you have great views of the North Cascades, Bonanza, Dome Peak, Glacier Peak, and many more. The down climb is dangerous use caution. On the trail on the way down pace yourself because your feet will hurt.

Getting There

There are two ways you can get there. First you can take the Lady of the Lake up to Stehekin. From there you can get a shuttle ride to the Ranch and then you have to walk to High Bridge which is about 2 miles. From there you can either start right from High Bridge up to Coon Lake which is fairly steep but its only about a half a mile. Or you can walk a little ways up the road to the trailhead for the Old Wagon Road. From there you take a right to go to Coon Lake. From there there is a sign. Or for the special people, you can hike in from Cascade Pass and hike to the Bridge Creek Campground. From there you can hop on the Wagon Road for about 2.5 miles where you will reach the same fork in the road. You follow the trail to Coon Lake and you will find a sign that will lead you up the trail to the Summit. Lady of The Lake Website is where you can view boat times routes drop offs and prices.

Red Tape

There is a permit required to stay th e night at Heaton Camp. It is free and it lets you recover. There are no summit fees. It is very snowy in the winter and you shouldn't climb it in the winter. There is no bear wire so bring some rope if you plan to stay the night and have some food. There are some animals, we saw frogs in some areas of the trail and some in the creek. There weren't anything else except for bugs.

When To Climb

If you plan to climb McGregor plan to climb it in the summer and plan it for a clear day. Out of season you can encounter some harsh conditions, like snow, rain and cold weather. It would be pretty challenging out of season.

Camping

You can camp at Heaton Camp which is about 6.5 miles from the trailhead and rests at about 6500'. There are no camp grounds other than that. There are no huts or fees.

Additions and CorrectionsPost an Addition or Correction

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jyojt - Dec 8, 2009 6:48 pm - Hasn't voted

shuttle and trailhead

the shuttle now goes to high bridge. the road continues past high bridge for 3 more miles to the old wagon trail (tech, the wagon trail starts at high bridge, but i would take the road instead bc the trail is super brushy) but is not in good enough condition for the shuttle. if you are up to it, i would try and hitch hike to the old wagon trail toward the end of the road. much easier to get to coon lake, not as many switchbacks or horses (cascade corrals does daily rides to coon lake from HB). also from the end of the road there is the option to hike 3 miles to bridge creek camp and sahale ridge hike.

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