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Two hikers died in falls on the Sauk Mountain Trail east of Concrete within three days of each other last week, prompting a temporary trail closure, two separate search-and-rescue operations, and renewed attention to the safety of one of Skagit County’s most heavily used day hikes.
A missing 78-year-old, then a second fall
The Skagit County Sheriff’s Office began searching for Peter Kalapaca, 78, after he was reported missing on Thursday, Sept. 17. He had last been seen around 12:30 p.m. near the top of the Sauk Mountain Trail, according to the sheriff’s office account reported by KOMO News and KIRO 7. Ground crews and a helicopter crew searched the steep terrain east of Concrete, and the trail was closed to the public during the search, MyBellinghamNow reported.
A helicopter crew located Kalapaca in terrain that ground teams could not reach. He was declared dead at the scene, according to KIRO 7 and Fox 13 Seattle. The Sauk Mountain Trail reopened once recovery operations concluded.
Two days later, on Saturday, Sept. 19, a second hiker fell from the trail’s switchbacks. Gary Idleburg, 66, of Olympia, fell an estimated 800 to 1,000 feet around 3:30 p.m., according to witnesses cited by KIRO 7 and KATU. Nearby hikers found him and guided emergency crews to the location, but lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
A trail known for its switchbacks — and its falls
Sauk Mountain Trail climbs roughly 1,200 feet over about 4.2 miles round trip, reaching a summit ridge above 5,300 feet with sweeping views back across the Skagit Valley and north into the Cascades. The trailhead sits off Forest Road 1030, about seven miles from Concrete on State Route 20 — Skagit County’s main corridor connecting the valley floor to the North Cascades Highway.
The U.S. Forest Service, which manages the trail within the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, marks it “hiker only” and specifically warns against cutting switchbacks — guidance the Washington Trails Association echoes, noting the route has been eroded by hikers shortcutting its turns and that it has seen “multiple fatalities due to falls.” Two more names were added to that history within the same week.
Neither man’s fall has been attributed publicly to a specific cause — trail erosion, a missed step, or medical distress — and the sheriff’s office has not released additional findings beyond the initial search-and-recovery statements carried by local television stations. The county medical examiner’s office had not published a further update as of this writing.
What it means for the county
Sauk Mountain draws crowds disproportionate to its size: AllTrails and TripAdvisor both describe it as one of the busiest short hikes accessible from State Route 20, popular with families and out-of-town visitors precisely because the elevation gain is modest compared with the view at the top. That popularity is also what strains the county’s volunteer search-and-rescue teams, who were called out twice in three days to the same stretch of steep, loose terrain above Concrete.
Skagit County Search and Rescue operates under the sheriff’s office and relies substantially on volunteers to cover terrain from tidal flats to alpine ridgelines. Back-to-back callouts to the same trail put a visible strain on those resources during what is typically the trail’s most active season — the Forest Service lists July through October as its recommended hiking window, meaning Sauk Mountain traffic was near its yearly peak when both falls occurred.
For a county whose economy leans on outdoor recreation and tourism alongside its farmland and refineries, fatal falls on a marquee day hike are the kind of story that reaches beyond the trailhead. Concrete’s small business district, seven miles down SR-20 from the trailhead, depends in part on hikers stopping through on their way to and from the mountain. No local closures beyond the temporary trail shutdown during the first search have been reported, and the Forest Service page for Sauk Mountain Trail #613 currently lists it as open, subject to the standard caution that Forest Road 1030 can see intermittent closures.
The Skagit County Sheriff’s Office has not announced any change in trail signage, permitting, or access as a result of the two deaths. Whether the county or the Forest Service revisits warning signage, switchback fencing, or seasonal capacity at the trailhead — as has happened on other popular North Cascades trails after fatal falls — remains an open question heading into the trail’s final weeks of reliable fall weather.
Sources: KIRO 7, KOMO News, KATU, MyBellinghamNow, Fox 13 Seattle.
