Parking
Start at East Bank Trailhead off State Route 20 at milepost 138. The route follows East Bank over Ruby Creek before the Little Jack spur.
Overview
About Little Jack Mountain Trail
Why go
- A broad North Cascades panorama from the ridge
- Gold-rush history at Ruby Creek on the approach
Heads up
- Long round trip with nearly 4,000 feet of climbing
- Upper tread can be hard to follow through brush and windfalls
Little Jack Mountain Trail is a hard out-and-back from East Bank Trailhead to the ridge below Little Jack Mountain. The mapped corridor is about 7.16 miles each way, or roughly 14.3 miles round trip; published figures are a little shorter at 13.6 miles. Allow a full day, around 9–11 hours with breaks. This is a long, steep climb, and the trail ends at the ridge: continuing higher toward Jack Mountain's summit is a separate off-trail scramble.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs this the day for you?Map & elevation
The route
Loading the North Cascades map
Full mapElevation1,814–5,915 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
7 active North Cascades alerts
- ClosureWildfire closures and Stehekin fire advisoryWildfire-related closures remain in effect; stay out of all closed trails, camps, and areas.Official details
- CautionCampfires banned across the park complexCampfires and other ash-producing fires are banned throughout the North Cascades National Park Service Complex.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
North Cascades Tour Guide
Your drive to Little Jack Mountain Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for North Cascades National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the North Cascades audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
East Bank Trailhead: Ruby Creek and Longer Trips0:00 / 0:27
“Up ahead is East Bank Trailhead, a starting point for long forest walks and backpacking trips above Ross Lake. The full East Bank route runs thirty-one miles one way to Hozomeen, usually taking two or three days.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf North Cascades Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- How a Glacier Retreats
- The Highway's Long Wait
- The Log Beneath the Trees
- Listen for the Whistle Pigs
- 83 audio storiesacross North Cascades’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Mountain Goat, Black Bear, Mule Deer, and 10 more
- Works offlinemaps, 88 trails, 76 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Little Jack Mountain Trail
Reach the spurFrom East Bank Trailhead on State Route 20 at milepost 138, descend to the Ruby Creek bridge.
From East Bank Trailhead on State Route 20 at milepost 138, descend to the Ruby Creek bridge. Cross and bear left at the Canyon Creek junction to stay on East Bank. Near mile 3, turn northeast onto the Little Jack spur. The forested approach is much gentler than the climb ahead, and you return over the same corridor.
Climb to the ridgeThe spur climbs for about four miles in sustained switchbacks.
The spur climbs for about four miles in sustained switchbacks. Views begin to open above the forest and broaden into a North Cascades panorama at the ridge. Brush and fallen trees can make the upper tread hard to follow. Carry an offline map and enough water for the whole hike; water is not dependable along the spur.
Ruby Creek's gold-rush storyThe bridge area preserves traces of the 1880s gold rush, with interpretive plaques near the…
The bridge area preserves traces of the 1880s gold rush, with interpretive plaques near the creek. The park's account tells how Jack Rowley found gold on Ruby Creek in 1879; Jack Mountain was named for him. That history is an easy detail to miss on the climb, so take a moment at the bridge before pressing on.
Access and limitsUse East Bank Trailhead off State Route 20, milepost 138.
Use East Bank Trailhead off State Route 20, milepost 138. Pets are not allowed on park trails except service animals. Overnight camping requires a backcountry permit. Turn around at the ridge unless you have the equipment and experience for an unmarked mountain scramble; that higher route is outside this trail's mapped distance.
Wildlife
Wildlife in North Cascades
101 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
70 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
20 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
77 sightingsSooty GrouseMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
23 sightingsWhite-tailed PtarmiganMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
75 sightingsWestern ToadMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across North Cascades. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
