Fourth of July Pass Trail
in Washington · centroid 94 mi from Seattle
Thunder Creek is a beautiful old-growth forest hike alongside a glacial creek. The trail crosses Thunder Creek on a suspension bridge at approximately 2 miles (3.2 km), then continues for another 38 miles (61 km). For mountain and glacier views, turn off onto the 4th of July Pass Trail 0.1 miles (0.16 km) beyond the bridge.
Difficulty: Moderately strenuous. Distance and elevation: 10 miles (16.1 km) roundtrip / 2,300 ft (700 m) elevation gain. Access: The trailhead is located at the south end of Colonial Creek Campground.
Leashed dogs allowed along the first 7 miles (11.2 km) of Thunder Creek Trail and to 4th of July Pass. Detailed trail decription.
- States
- Washington
- Trail type
- National Park trail
- Centroid nearest city
- Seattle, WA · 94 mi · ~2.7 hr drive
- Centroid coords
- 48.6850°, -121.0927°
About North Cascades National Park
This trail is inside North Cascades National Park, a national park managed by the U.S. National Park Service. Conditions, road status, trail closures, and reservation requirements are published on the park's NPS page — check it before driving in, especially in winter or during major weather events.
Official NPS trail page: https://www.nps.gov/places/fourth-of-july-pass-trail.htm
Park homepage: https://www.nps.gov/noca/index.htm
Plan your hike
Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.
Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.
When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.
If you've hiked Fourth of July Pass Trail and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.
Stay nearby
Other trails within 50 miles
Diablo Lake Trail
3 miles from this trail's centroid
Happy Panther Trail
6 miles from this trail's centroid
River Loop Trail
8 miles from this trail's centroid
The Great North Cascades Traverse
8 miles from this trail's centroid
Devils Dome Loop
9 miles from this trail's centroid
Thornton Lake Trail
11 miles from this trail's centroid
Sources
Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.