Mission Peak

The top of Mission Peak on a beautiful Autumn day.

This sprawling peak is the highest spot between Wenatchee and Ellensburg. With about 6,000 feet of vertical relief above the Columbia River, it sports awesome views for a peak of its size. For folks from Wenatchee, it’s close enough to leave town in the afternoon and be on the top for the sunset. For a little variety, it is possible make it an overnight hike and enjoy the nighttime lights of Wenatchee in the distance below as well as lights from Quincy, Moses Lake, Cashmere, Ellensburg, and Leavenworth. On a clear day you can see Mount Rainier, Glacier Peak and Mount Adams.

Maps: USGS Mission Peak. View our topo map below. Note: use ‘Print Preview’ before printing to properly scale this map to a full sheet of paper.

Activity: Hiking and Trail Running
Nearest Town: Wenatchee
Skill Level: 2 — 3 minus from Mission Ridge. Level 2 from Rd 9712. There’s no signage, so map reading skills are required.
Fitness Level: 2
Distance: About 4 miles round trip from the access off of the Liberty Beehive Road (Road 9712).
Elevation: From the Mission Ridge Ski Area parking lot, the elevation gain is about 2,100 ft. From the Liberty Beehive Rd access, there is about 840 ft elevation gain.
Recommended Season: Summer, Fall

The Larches were showing off in Autumn 2017.

Thea Lake at elevation 6,320 feet on the way to Mission Peak.

Access:
–Option 1: Follow Squilchuck Rd from Wenatchee toward Mission Ridge Ski Area. If you’re concerned about driving rougher roads or want a longer walk, drive all the way to the Mission Ridge Ski Area and park in the Mission Ridge Ski Area parking lot. (You’ll be walking up the ski area).
–Option 2: For a shorter walk, follow the Squilchuck Rd until you’re 1 mile past the Squilchuck State Park entrance and turn right onto the dirt/gravel Liberty-Beehive Road (Rd 9712). Follow road 9712 4.3 miles to the Devils Gulch Trailhead and then keep going as far as the condition of the road allows. In the fall of 2017, passenger cars could easily drive another 1.5 miles before the road got rough enough that a high-clearance vehicle was recommended. Find a wide spot in the road to park and walk another 1.25 miles up the road to where our trip description for this walk begins or, if you have a high-clearance vehicle, drive the entire distance to a benchmark noted on the map as 5868′. Park on the side of the road. This is not a formal trailhead and no signage marks the beginning of the trail, so pay attention. The trail’s position in reference to switchback in the road make it easy to find. Total distance from leaving the pavement at the turn for Liberty-Beehive Road (Rd 9712) to the start of this trail is about 6.9 miles. Zero out your odometer right after you leave the pavement and use your odometer as your guide.

Trip Instructions:
–If parking in the Mission Ridge parking lot, ascend the ski slopes up toward the top of the ski area (upper area serviced by the Liberator Lift). Then walk cross-country in a northwesterly direction to the peak. This is a harder and fairly adventurous option that will have you relying on navigation and rock-hopping skills to find your way.
–If accessing from the the Liberty-Beehive Road (Rd 9712), follow an unmarked, blocked ‘road’ that ascends to the summit. Use our map for reference. This ‘road’ was decommissioned long ago and now feels much more like a trail than a road. There are intermittent intentional berms along this decommissioned road, which make it fun for young kids to run up and down.
–As of 2020, the trailhead is still well defined. No trailhead sign but a prominent trail off to the left hand side of the road when heading uphill. If you don’t see a distinct trail, you have likely not driven the road quite far enough. Use the odometer information above as your guide.

Issues: Hikers may share the road with some motor vehicles.
Land Designation: Forest Service, and Fish and Wildlife.
Fees/Permits: None required
Trip Reporter: Charlie Hickenbottom, 9/25-26/04. Updated by Jan Dappen, 9/06 and updated by Sarah Shaffer on 9/6/20.

Leave It Better Than You Found It. This should be every outdoor user’s goal. Pick up trash left by others, pull some noxious weeds along your route, throw branches over unwanted spur trails, don’t ride or walk wet trails when you’re leaving ruts/footprints deeper than ¼ inch…

Disclaimer. Treat this information as recommendations, not gospel. Conditions change, and those contributing these reports are volunteers–they may make mistakes or may not know all the issues affecting a route. You are still completely responsible for your decisions, your actions, and your safety. If you can’t live with that, you are prohibited from using our information.