Fay Peak–Mowich Lake, 5 sights is an 11.2-mile out-and-back near Upper Fairfax, WA. The route passes Mowich Lake and Knapsack Pass before reaching Fay Peak at the turnaround, 5.6 miles in. It climbs 4,651 ft, with sections as steep as 55% grade, and is mostly dirt. It scores 96/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: genuinely wild.
Elevation
0 mi4,702 – 6,490 ft · steepest grade: 55%11.6 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Wonderland Trailhead 46.93295, -121.86349
Nearest town Upper Fairfax, WA
Directions
AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com
Fay Peak–Mowich Lake, 5 sights
11.2 mi · ▲ 4,651 ft · 6 hr 4 min
Elevation 4,701–6,489 ft
Out & Back
Trailhead: Wonderland Trailhead · 46.93295, -121.86349
Weather Aug 3: Mostly clear, high 59°F / low 40° · precip 1% · wind 7 mph · sunrise 5:50 AM · sunset 8:38 PM
Toilets at the trailhead · Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start on Wonderland Trail, heading SE.
- 50 ftPass Mowich Lake.
- 50 ftTurn left, heading SE.
- 0.2 miBear left onto Spray Park Trail, heading S.
- 2.6 miSharp left, heading N.
- 0.4 miTurn right, heading NW.
- 0.4 miSharp left, heading E.
- 0.6 miPass Knapsack Pass.
- 250 ftContinue straight onto Knapsack Pass Trail, heading NW.
- 0.8 miTurn left onto Fay Peak Trail, heading SW.
- 0.7 miReach Fay Peak, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 0.7 miTurn right onto Knapsack Pass Trail, heading NE.
- 1.4 miSharp right, heading SE.
- 0.4 miTurn left, heading SW.
- 0.4 miSharp right onto Spray Park Trail, heading SE.
- 2.6 miBear right onto Wonderland Trail, heading W.
- 0.2 miTurn left, heading N.
- 50 ftArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
61% dirt39% unspecified
Weather
Mostly clearTemperature 59°F40°
Precip1%Wind7 mphUV8Humidity79%
Rained 0.2″ 2 days ago
Hourly temperature
60°40°
Sunrise 5:50 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PM6 PMSunset 8:38 PM
Tue
67°51°
Wed
73°55°
Thu
75°53°
Fri
68°47°
Sat
64°44°
Sun
66°44°
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 3.1 mi in (~114 min). Leave by 6:25 PM for the 8:38 PM sunset. Back at your car by 10:18 PM, after dark — bring a headlamp.
Good to know
- Toilets at the trailhead
- Parking lot at the trailhead
More from Wonderland Trailhead Trailhead
- Eagle Cliff Viewpoint & Mowich Lake via Spray Park Trail 2.8 mi · ▲ 565 ft
- Spray Falls–Spray Falls Viewpoint, 3 viewpoints 3.8 mi · ▲ 679 ft
- Eunice Lake–Mowich Lake, 4 lakes 4.7 mi · ▲ 976 ft
- Tolmie Peak–Eunice Lake, 5 lakes 6.3 mi · ▲ 1,616 ft
- Hessong Rock & Mowich Lake via Spray Park Trail 6.7 mi · ▲ 2,319 ft
- First Mother Mountain–Mowich Lake, 4 summits 9 mi · ▲ 3,239 ft
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Hikes near Upper Fairfax, Washington