Columbia Peak, Mountain summit in Snohomish County, Washington, United States.
Columbia Peak is a 7,172-foot (2,186 m) mountain in the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness of Washington. Together with Monte Cristo Peak and Kyes Peak, it encloses a basin holding Columbia Glacier and Blanca Lake.
The peak sits near Monte Cristo, a former mining town that saw heavy mineral extraction during the late 1800s. This mining heritage still shapes the character of the surrounding area and its story.
The peak's name comes from the Columbia Glacier and Blanca Lake basin it shares with Monte Cristo Peak and Kyes Peak. The surrounding area lies within the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness, where climbers and hikers pass through terrain shaped by Pleistocene glaciation.
Columbia Peak lies in the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness, reached from the Barlow Pass area via the trail to Poodle Dog Pass. July through September offers the most favorable weather for viewing or climbing the peak. Snow on the west side of the North Cascades tends to be wet and heavy, so avalanche danger is high in winter.
Columbia Peak forms a basin with Monte Cristo Peak and Kyes Peak that holds Columbia Glacier and Blanca Lake, so the three summits are linked by the ice and water below them rather than by a shared ridge. The glacier and lake sit in the same cirque the peaks enclose.
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