North Fork Skykomish

Trail Overview

This road begins in dense forest as a mostly two vehicle wide gravel road with lots of potholes and washboarding. Shortly before the Blanca Lake trailhead, there is a rocky section where a rock slide has completely covered a bridge, but it is well traveled and very compacted. Once you pass the Blanca Lake trailhead, the road narrows to 1-1.5 vehicles with frequent wide spots and turnouts. This road is very heavily traveled on weekends, expect to encounter people who have little to no experience off of pavement, and thus don't understand the rules/etiquette of forest roads, as well as vehicles parked on the road. During the winter, this road may or may not be completely snowed in, but it will always have snow at least partway up the road. There is little to no dispersed camping before Blanca Lake, but plenty of camping near the end of the road, especially if you can take the side roads. Near the end, there is one wide spot that overlooks the North Fork of the Skykomish River in some very rugged terrain. It's worth stopping to take a look and a picture. The road ends at the North Fork trailhead. No cell service along this road.

Photos of North Fork Skykomish

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Difficulty

Pretty much any vehicle can make it up this road. The potholes are only a few inches deep. It might not be a pleasant drive, but cars such as Honda Civics regularly make it to the end.

Technical Rating

North Fork Skykomish can be accessed by the following ride types:

• High-Clearance 4x4
• SUV