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Church Mountain West Peak, visible from the viewing site, is perched above the Nooksack River. It is just under a mile from the impressive main peak. Meanwhile, West Church Ridge lies less than half a mile above Church Saddle.
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Church Mountain’s west peak at a glance
Access: NF-3120 via Canyon Creek Road (NF-31)
Round trip: 6 miles
Altitude range: 3039′-5610′
Essential Gear: microspikes, rackets
Route information: Eric Willite
GPS tracking: available
Suitable for dogs: Yes
Playlist: Alex Kehm
Explore more of Church Mountain
After yesterday’s outing, we stuck around to make the long drive worth it. Having nothing planned, we drove to Warnick, WA for cell coverage and did some research. It turned out that Church Mountain had a west summit above Glacier, WA, accessible from the highway.
The direct route departs from Church Saddle via Canyon Creek Road, six miles from the highway. But a long, winding road often signals potential debris and deep ruts along the way. Looking at Eric’s journey, it started near the end of the road, below the west ridge. But we’ll see!
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Canyon Creek Road to Church Saddle
It was a smooth 2.5 mile ride on Canyon Creek Road before turning onto NF-3120. The service road was surprisingly good for almost three miles to the fork with NF-3124. Shortly after, I broke several branches from a large tree that was falling over the roadway and continued.
Soon after, many dips appeared, but I was happy that they were all passable. The narrowing path had a slightly rocky section. During this time, it took several times to remove debris and break branches. Otherwise it would have been a real paint scraper up to the neck.
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Route to Church Mountain West Peak
The road did not improve, so we parked on the pass despite the 4 km walk. Without a saw, 800 meters further there was a fallen tree, which would have stopped us anyway. Then, under the last switchback, there was snow and deep ruts from truck tires. Eric must have driven a monster Jeep!
Shortly after Jim Creek, in the open area, the rush began. Somehow there was a pink flag further down, which we missed until we got back. The steady slope persisted with typical tree litter but not too much brush. It averaged 2,200 feet per mile to the top of the ridge.
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West Road over the Nooksack River
The direct climb to the west summit was through an open, snow-covered slope, dense trees and a few krummholtz. En route, the North Fork Nooksack River offered broad views westward to Puget Sound. From above, our neighboring destination seemed just as tall and sharp.
Soon we crossed over to Church Mountain West Peak, at 1000 feet. To the south, the snow had melted as a grassy path led us to the summit. The views were similar to yesterday, but with Church Mountain to the east. The old gazebo was also visible, jutting out from behind.
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From the west peak of Church Mountain to the west ridge of Church
On the descent we saw West Church Ridge from the open slope. As it was time, we visited it after returning to the saddle. Before long, we had lost our hard-earned altitude to get back on the road. Then we cut to the lower path via Jim Creek and hiked 1.2 miles!
From the fire pit by the car, it was a straight half-mile run over tree litter to the forest summit. The view would have been magnificent if not for the drizzles and low clouds in the valleys. Meanwhile, loud music continued to play below us from Glacier. It’s a party!
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