Whitehorse Trail - Swede Heaven to Darrington — Saturday, Mar. 16, 2013

North Cascades > Mountain Loop Highway

My hiking partner lives out in this area and this ended up being our back up plan for the day. We wanted to head to Old Sauk Trail out by Darrington but the persistent rain and us leaving our rain gear at home left us not wanting to brave the rain this day. Back in Oso on Hwy 530 it was dry so we headed back to her place and hit this old rail bed trail at Whitman Road and walked toward the closed Oso General Store. We walked about 2.5 miles on the trail one way and crossed one bridge over the North Fork Stillaguamish which was cloudy, full and moving fast with all the rain and runoff from it. The bridge was slick from the showers that morning and may not be the best place to bring small children as there are gaps between the rail ties that a foot could slip through. Along the way we came across lots of puddles and spots of mud but all were easy to navigate around. This isn't the most secluded walk but on sunny days you will have mountain views as you pass small farms and of course views of the river. In warmer months you can even swim under the bridge you cross! Once in Oso the trail became overgrown right before the General Store. Back where we started at Whitman Road the trail goes at least 2+ miles to the east and passed under the big slide on Hwy 530 with a lot more river views. Not really a hike and more of a long walk this was still a great way to spend some time on a Saturday. It started to shower off and on on us on the way back but we returned before getting too wet.