Mount Pugh: An Overnight Summit Bivy via Stujack Pass

A storm system is about to shut down climbing across the state for the weekend. Pugh sits right on the edge of it, so the plan was simple: go light, go fast, and ride the line for what I hoped would be an epic sunset on top.

June 24 to 25, 2026

Beta

• Route: The Northwest Ridge via the Mount Pugh Trail #644. From the Mountain Loop Highway, climb past Lake Metan to Stujack Pass, then follow the catwalk and scramble the Northwest Ridge to the old lookout site on the summit. About 12 miles round trip with 5,250 ft of gain.
• Class: Mostly class 2 on trail and scramble, with maybe a single class 3 move over a smooth slab near the top.
• Conditions: Late June. A few minor patches of lingering snow on the upper catwalk and scramble, all easily navigable. Plenty of loose rock up high.
• Time: Roughly 16 hours car to car as an overnight, though we ran the climb itself in under 3 hours moving fast. Very doable as a long day if you skip the bivy.
• Safety: The catwalk above Stujack Pass is exposed, and the summit rock is loose. Test your holds and mind what you knock down on anyone below.
• Gear: No technical gear needed in these conditions. Add an overnight bivy kit if you want to sleep up top (full loadout below).

Locals Only

We made a last minute call to send it before the storm, and we had 5 miles and 5,200 ft of gain between us and the summit. We sent it full speed and didn’t take any major breaks. Under three hours later we were on top. I may have driven past the trailhead briefly and cost us a few minutes. Either way, we were going to make it.

The lower trail was a cruiser, fast single track before the climbing gets real

The route climbs steadily past Lake Metan and up the switchbacks to Stujack Pass, then the character changes. The catwalk and the scramble to the summit had a few minor patches of lingering snow, all easily navigable. The scramble is mostly class 2, with maybe a single class 3 move over a smooth slab. There is plenty of loose rock up high. Test your holds and watch what you knock down. Expect to be greeted by the locals of this mountain close to Stujack Pass and even above it. The marmots are hard at work digging tunnels and finding an angle to steal your food when you turn your back.

Stujack Pass, current conditions on the way up

The catwalk to the summit. A few minor snow patches, all easy to cross

Pugh’s summit block from the end of the catwalk

Locals only. One of the resident marmots holding down Stujack Pass

The Summit Sunset

The payoff showed up right on schedule. We could feel the warm alpenglow on us as we neared the summit, the light going deep red and reflecting off the rock. Mountain layers stacked in every direction with the storm sitting just off the edge of it all.

Warm alpenglow on the final scramble, the storm holding off just long enough

Sloan Peak lit up in the same alpenglow across the valley

Mount Shuksan sitting right on the edge of the incoming storm

Baker and White Chuck with the ridgelines stacking up in layers

The last light bleeding out along the edge of the horizon

The Bivy

We bivied on top. We’d hoped to double down in the morning with an inversion, but no luck on that front. It’s chill. It was another rad summit bivy, and I was even able to catch up on some sleep. There was a gentle, cool breeze grazing over the summit. I had put up a decent rock wall to help out, but the chill felt good. The stars started to pop out right on cue. After a schedule chock-full of peaks the last two weeks, I had no problem falling right asleep. I cinched my sleeping bag around my face, and rested easy. Life in the rooftop tent has been draining me of sleep lately, but the mountains are filling the gap. We threaded the needle just before a storm that is canceling trips all over Washington this upcoming weekend. Sometimes the move is to read the window and send it. No hesitation. I’ll get that inversion I’ve been hunting this summer soon. In the meantime, the Pacific Northwest summer and the mountains have been treating me well. Onward.

The moon over the bivy once the last light was gone

The summit bivy, and me out cold per usual. Photo by @haleygoeshiking

A rainbow and stormy skies over the North Cascades

Elite danish, premium sunrise fuel

Sunrise over Glacier Peak, which I snoozed right through. Photo by @haleygoeshiking

My climbing partner @haleygoeshiking and her pup, both faster than me on the loose rock scrambles

Follow me @journeywithjoshua_ on Instagram for all my adventures.

Oh yeah, and happy birthday Mom!