Green Mountain #782

A few years ago, a friend mentioned to me that Green Mountain is one of her favorite hikes. Now I see why! Getting there takes quite a while, especially given the washboard nature of large sections of Forest Service Road 26 (Suiattle River Road), and the spur road to the Green Mountain trail head, but I am not complaining.

The trail starts out in woods, switch backing up, and up, offering glimpses of Glacier Peak, which improve as the trail ascends. The trees fade away and the trail emerges into a lovely slope of green. Ferns and flowers and berries and views...oh the views! A pair of small ponds is reached in about 2.5 miles, with sweet camp sites. A good place to rest up and refill water bottles if needed, for the trail is hot and steep beyond this point. Fortunately, the views provide a lot of excuses for stopping for appreciation and pictures. The higher the trail ascends toward the summit, the more peaks come into view, until an outrageous 360 degree panorama of too many peaks to count or name, comes into view. The deer flies were pretty wicked at the very top, but dropping down just a little bit provided some relief, while maintaining great scenery.

By the way, Forest Service Road 26 is blocked just a few miles beyond the Green Mountain spur road, so Downey Creek Campground is inaccessible for those wanting to car-camp there. There is a camp ground just prior to the spur road, where I stayed, but found it crowded and noisy. I highly recommend Green Mountain to all who can ascend 3100 feet in 4 miles (honestly, the beauty of the hike made any work seem negligible!)