Yellow Aster Butte Trail 686.1

The Yellow Aster Butte Trail is within Mt. Baker Wilderness. Find various wildflowers such as anemone, aster, paintbrush and fireweed along the trail in summer. In late summer and early fall blueberries are ripe for the picking, followed by brilliant red foliage. Interesting rock formations from the Yellow Aster Complex, carved by glaciers and worn by weather, give the trail its name.  Enjoy spectacular views of Mt. Baker, Mt. Tomyhoi, American and Canadian Border Peaks, Mt. Larrabee, and more. You may see marmots, pikas, mountain goats, and a varitey of birds. It is approximately 4 miles and 2500' elevation gain, one-way to trail end on the false summit of Yellow Aster Butte (6178' elevation).

Start on Tomyhoi Lake Trail 686 , switchback through an avalanche path, then enter the forest and continue gaining elevation until the trail breaks out to a flat bench in a meadow. The junction with Yellow Aster Butte Trail 686.1 is about mile and a half from the trailhead. Turn left at the junction and contour around the south side of Yellow Aster Butte.

At 3.6 miles from the trailhead, reach an unsigned junction. The trail to the right continues approximately a half mile and 400 feet elevation to the windy summit of Yellow Aster Butte. The trail to the left descends 200 feet on a series of steep switchbacks and narrow tread to the designated camping area, where glaciers have carved numerous, small tarns (lakes). Sharp-eyed hikers can find evidence of past mining activity. Camp on snow, rock or bare ground; the meadows are extremely fragile. Beyond the tarns are unmarked cross-country routes to High Divide and Tomyhoi Peak.

Washington Trails Association Hiking Guide and Trip Reports