Chair Peak, Mountain summit in King County, United States.
Chair Peak is a 6,238-foot summit in the Cascade Range, set within the Alpine Lakes Wilderness and managed by Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. It rises about 2,200 feet above Snow Lake in half a mile, and its nearest higher neighbor is Kaleetan Peak, 0.57 miles to the west-northwest.
Chair Peak lies in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, a landscape shaped by Pleistocene glaciation that ended in the area about 14,000 years ago. The last glacial retreat left U-shaped valleys and rock debris, and the summit rises roughly 2,200 feet above Snow Lake. Its name comes from a fancied resemblance to a chair, though the sources do not record who named it.
Chair Peak appears on the Alpine Lakes Top 100 list and in Fred Beckey's Cascade Alpine Guide, which describes the north face route. Climbers often approach from the Snow Lake trailhead, and the peak's name comes from a chair-like notch on its profile seen from the south.
The peak sits three miles northwest of Snoqualmie Pass in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, with Snow Lake immediately to the north. Approach via the Denny Creek exit off Interstate 90. July through September offers the most favorable weather; winter snow is wet and heavy, raising avalanche danger.
The mountain offers completely different climbing challenges depending on the season, transforming from a rock climbing destination in summer to an ice climbing venue in winter. This seasonal variety makes it appealing to different types of mountaineers.
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