What a difference a week makes! A week ago the trail was maybe 40% snow-covered; this time I'm guessing less than 1%! Snow was essentially gone from the more hazardous steeper slopes, and where it was present, it generally was in short patches of soft, slushy stuff on top of not-very-deep snowfields that were rapidly melting. Which of course meant lots more flowers coming out!

For those who struggle getting traction on the slushy stuff, or just want a bit more confidence, I note that several of us used trekking poles (especially on the hills; several of my hikers were trying them out for the first time); one hiker found YakTrax provided excellent traction (I had thought they might get gunked up with slush, but didn't seem to be an issue).

Led an enthusiastic group of Mountaineers hikers the traditional clockwise route around Naches Peak based on info from a park ranger that the melt-out was almost complete. Lots of "oohs" and "aahs" from folks who hadn't seen the flower show before, hadn't seen Rainier before, or even hadn't been on a "hike" before. This hike is a pretty good deal for a first time at any of these.

Didn't take as many photos as last week, partly because of being busy leading the troops, but did want to show that the Indian paintbrush is now out, and there were much more Western pasqueflower (anemone) flower heads gone to seed (the "mouse-on-a-stick" incarnation), and fields full of avalanche lilies and/or phlox, among others. Only a few lupines in bloom, and lots of corn lily almost - but not quite - in bloom; those will be coming out shortly, almost certainly by next weekend.

Just a few spots where there's water running across the trail, but nothing that rose to the occasion of needing gaiters.

If you're planning on doing this hike for the flowers, I'd recommend going soon for the peak of the blooms, and before the bugs come out in full force.

I also did this hike on Saturday, July 11, 2009, but wanted to expand a bit on KM Seattle's notes.

Most of the snow is on the north half of the loop. I started a bit late in the day (hit the trail around 1:00 p.m.), so there was about 0.5-1.0 inches of slush on top of hard-packed snow, which, in my humble opinion, made it a bit slippery and treacherous for those without proper footwear. I wore hiking boots and had a pair of trekking poles, which helped quite a bit; also had an ice axe with me, but didn't need it.

I was more than a bit concerned for some folks who seemed totally unaware of the potential to slip and fall, and to have an uncontrolled slide into a tree or rock. I did, in fact, see several people slip and fall; they were just lucky to have not fallen into one of several steep chutes near the log bridge (Chinook Pass) on the north side of the loop (i.e., the side you'd start from if doing the loop clockwise, from the north).

I'm going to attempt to include a photo of one of the slopes so you can see what I'm talking about; however, this is not even close to the steepest slope I noticed - I wasn't even comfortable stopping at some of those long enough to snap photos. (Imagine a similar slope, but with 10 or 20 degrees more steepness, and a few hundred feet of chute.)

For the record, I was specifically scouting the trail conditions in preparation for leading this hike for a group of beginners the following weekend, so I was particularly looking for any potential hazards, or even anything that might simply look intimidating to new hikers. Another issue to consider: there is snowmelt water running under the snowfields, and the potential to post-hole through the snow into the running water will increase for awhile. (I lead hikes, teach hiking courses, teach mountaineering first aid, and have been involved in a few backcountry rescues, so admittedly, my perspective may be somewhat different from yours.)

That being said, here's my advice:
a. If you have any hesitation at all about hiking on snow near steep slopes, it might be best to wait a few more weeks until the snow melts out;
b. If you want to go now, consider starting from the Tipsoo Lake side and hike counter-clockwise. There'll be a bit of snow at the beginning of the trail, but you'll quickly get past that and have clear trail all the way to the viewpoint toward Dewey Lake; then, you can return the way you came, making it an out-and-back instead of a full loop; OR
c. If the snow melts out significantly, consider continuing counter-clockwise, and perhaps you'll be just fine doing the full loop by next weekend or so; again, you can always backtrack if you get beyond your comfort zone.

Regarding the wildflowers (the main reason to go now), I saw avalanche and glacier lilies, western pasqueflower (both blooms and some "mouse-on-a-stick" seed heads), lupine, beargrass, phlox and heather in bloom, and corn-lily (white false-hellebore) and lots of other green stuff I didn't recognize coming up but not yet in bloom. (I've included some photos so you can see where they're at in the bloom cycle.) Looks to be a good year for blueberries and huckleberries, too!

Bugs weren't too bad that Saturday afternoon, but it won't be long before they're out, so I second KM Seattle's suggestion to come prepared with both sunscreen and bug repellent.

Anyway, this is one of my favorite hikes anywhere, so definitely do it - if not now, then in a few weeks after the snow is gone but before the flowers have gone, too. And if you miss the flowers, there's always the berries and fall color later!

Ethan Schrank & I snowshoed around Naches Peak this sunny, warm Saturday. WOW! - clean white snow etched by telemarkers, rugged summits, cliffs, & cornices, Rainier, spectacular in its mantle of white, & a sky full of interesting clouds. We went clockwise and took a fairly high route to begin with. The first pond was just beginning to melt out & there were beautiful views of Yakima Peak & the other peaks above the highway as well the north side of Naches Peak. We had lunch overlooking the pond on the south side with the view of Rainier and, though there had been a number of skiers on the north side, we had the entire basin to ourselves. In fact, we saw surprisingly few people for such a spectacular place on such a beautiful day. It must have been a great day for riding though. I bet we saw twice as many motorcycles on the highway than cars.

Currently 100% snow coverage. Great loop hike on snowshoes or skis.