Mailbox Peak is a mountain located in

King County King County is located in the U.S. state of Washington. The population was 2,269,675 in the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Washington, and the 13th-most populous in the United States. The county seat is Seattle, also the st ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

state. It is set west of the crest of the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

, on land managed by Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Mailbox Peak is situated seven miles east of North Bend, and one mile northeast above the Washington State Fire Training Academy. Precipitation

runoff Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to: * RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program * Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed * Runoff or run-off, a stock market ...

from the south side of the mountain drains into the South Fork Snoqualmie River, whereas the north side drains to the Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie. Topographic relief is significant as the northwest aspect rises nearly above the Middle Fork in 1.25 mile. The popular Mailbox Peak Trail gains 4,100 feet of elevation over 5.5 miles.Don J. Scarmuzzi (2021), ''Day Hikes in Washington State: 90 Favorite Trails, Loops, and Summit Scrambles'', West Margin Press, , p. 126 Prior to 2014 when the new trail was completed, climbing Mailbox Peak involved 4,000 feet gain in only 2.6 miles along an unmaintained route that was used for conditioning for major climbs, and recruits from the Fire Training Academy would celebrate graduation by carrying a fire hydrant to the summit.Craig Hill, Matt Wastradowski (2020), ''Pacific Northwest Hiking'', Avalon Publishing, The peak is named for a mailbox at the top which functions as the summit register, but this toponym has not been officially adopted by the

U.S. Board on Geographic Names The United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN) is a federal body operating under the United States Secretary of the Interior. The purpose of the board is to establish and maintain uniform usage of geographic names throughout the federal governm ...

Climate

Mailbox Peak is located in the marine west coast climate zone of western

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

.Beckey, Fred W. Cascade Alpine Guide, Climbing and High Routes. Seattle, WA: Mountaineers Books, 2008. Most weather fronts originate in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

, and travel northeast toward the Cascade Mountains. As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks of the Cascade Range, causing them to drop their moisture in the form of

rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...

snowfall Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

onto the Cascades ( Orographic lift). As a result, the west side of the Cascades experiences high precipitation, especially during the winter months in the form of snowfall. Because of maritime influence, snow tends to be wet and heavy, resulting in high

avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be set off spontaneously, by such factors as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, animals, and earth ...

danger. During winter months, weather is usually cloudy, but due to high pressure systems over the Pacific Ocean that intensify during summer months, there is often little or no cloud cover during the summer. The months May through October offer the most favorable weather for viewing or climbing this peak.

Gallery

File:Mailbox Peak, sw.jpg, Southwest aspect, from Mt. Washington File:Mailbox Peak, snowy.jpg, Southwest aspect, from Cedar Butte File:Mailbox Peak seen from Middle Fork Snoqualmie River Road. Washington state.jpg, North aspect, from Middle Fork Snoqualmie River Road File:Mailbox Peak mailbox.jpg, Mailbox Peak's summit mailbox File:Mailbox Peak, from Salal Point.jpg, Mailbox Peak, seen from Salal Point. Washington State Fire Training Academy at the foot of the mountain. Interstate 90 in lower right. Moolock Mountain in the distance to left.

References

External links

* Mailbox Peak weather forecast
MountainForecast.com
* Mailbox Peak
Washington Trails Association
{{Geographic Location 2 , Center = Mailbox Peak , North = Middle Fork Snoqualmie River , Northeast =

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Mountains of Washington (state) Mountains of King County, Washington Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest Cascade Range North American 1000 m summits