A Cascade Range wilderness wrapped around Washington's second-highest peak.
Mount Adams Wilderness
The Mount Adams Wilderness is a federally designated wilderness area in the southern Cascade Range of Washington State, centered on the volcanic slopes of Mount Adams, the second tallest peak in Washington and one of the largest stratovolcanoes in the Cascades. The wilderness lies within the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and spans roughly 47,700 acres between Yakima and Skamania counties, just east of the small community of Trout Lake.
The protected landscape surrounds the mountain's western flank rather than its summit, and straddles a sharp climatic divide. The dry, continental eastern side contrasts with the wetter, more forested western slopes, producing a striking mix of open alpine parklands, subalpine meadows, lava flows, and old-growth conifer stands. Glaciers and remnant volcanic features, including late-Pleistocene cinder cones, give the wilderness a pronounced geological character.
The area is a popular destination for hiking, backpacking, equestrian use, and technical climbing, and is braided by the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, which runs about 21 miles through the wilderness as part of its long journey from Mexico to Canada. It also forms the backdrop for the Yakama Nation's Mount Adams Recreation Area on the eastern side, where tribal lands and public lands meet at one of the more culturally and recreationally significant volcanic landscapes in the Pacific Northwest.