Trip Reports

Well, being lazy somewhat paid off. I did not want to set an alarm, forgot about Daylight Savings or Standard or whatever time kicked in today and did not want to drive far in the gray weather.

So when I got up at about 6:30am and the weather radio said it was 5:30am, I remembered what I forgot. Nodded off a bit longer and decided on Mt Si.

Got to the parking lot and there were already folks returning - now that is an early start. Headed up and being Mt Si, headed up some more. The sun lit up the trail in places and felt nice as it highlighted various shrubs and trees. Then above Snag Flats, the clouds blocked the sun and it got a bit chilly. Near the top, the sun emerged again and it felt nice on the very wet shirt.

My pace, if you can call crawling a pace, slowed a bit. But I emerged into the open area where the sun came out once again. Up the two flights of stone steps and the rime flocked the trees and flattened vegetation looking very sparkly. There were some small patches of snow but the flocking appeared due to the fog/clouds freezing as it wafted around the trees and shrubs.

The upper bench was wet from thawing so found a rock to sit on and take in the warming sun. Headed down to the view over Snoqualmie Valley and North Bend. Rainier was hidden by the clouds.

Down was its slow tromp against the hikers coming up. Not as many as the last time but still enough adventurous folks doing Mt Si before it becomes an icy, vertical rink.

There were some muddy patches and the fallen leaves can obscured rocks and other small obstacles on the trail.

Again, a much nicer day than originally anticipated.

Till the next time.........

Excellent day for a hike up Mt Si. Fall is definitely in the air and in some of the shrubs.

An early start allows me to hike my pace without having to change rhythm as I pass or get passed. There were quite a few parties coming down so they really got an early start.

Stopped just shy of the Haystack and enjoyed the view. It was breezy and I put on a wind shell. Spent a bit of time just relaxing and eating half of my sandwich.

Headed on down and ran into the usual hordes heading up. And they were still starting out as I reached the parking lot. Trail is in excellent shape.

It was a great evening to do the Mt. Si hike. We started at 4pm and it was still a little on the warm side, but after climbing up, it began to cool down. The bridge at the beginning of the hike has been raised and redone, what a wonderful job the workers did. There were a few pesky bugs around at the top, but not too bad. We were able to see some Fall colors already and also able to get some great pictures. NO crowds on a weeknight! Happy Hiking :0)

1st trip up Mt Si. Beautiful weather on this day. It was quite warm, perhaps high 80's? Parking lot looked smaller than the 175 spaces advertised or maybe there were more spaces around a corner? Arrived at 11:30am, there were couple spaces for me and my compact car. Trailhead was easy enough to find, I just followed the others.

The elevation gain starts immediately and doesn't relent. I kind of like this because the John Muir trail in Yosemite goes flat in some places, steeper in others. It's actually easier to develop a rhythm when the hike is consistent because you know what's coming. The trail is maintained pretty much the same way throughout, which is, rocky, not paved. I was half expecting some areas near the beginning of the hike to have easier access since I read somewhere about making the bottom part wheelchair accessible.

The little area called "Snag Flat" is a lovely little area with boardwalk with a bench at the end of it. A great place for a couple or small family to rest and have a snack. This is near the half way point, although there aren't any views to be had here.

The first really nice view occurs right in front of the 3.5 mile marker. It's a beautiful view of southern WA, which if you move a little higher, can see Mt Rainier in the background.

Other reviews I read were a bit deceiving as for the time. I read many reviews saying it took them 4 hours round trip. I suppose if you avoided the Haystack this would be doable, but you are missing out on the best part so I don't really consider this a complete trip.

The Haystack is a tall intimidating, daunting wall of rock that must be climbed in order to reach the highest part. It's entirely doable by inexperienced climbers. I saw a father with 2 kids aged 7 and 11 go up to the top so it's far from impossible. I can see how many people would turn around at this point because I almost did, but once you are on the rock face and realize that it's not too bad, you can proceed.

I must say, you should be a little bit crazy to climb the Haystack. It really is quite steep and people have died doing it, although the last person to do so, was not very smart, having done it during icy conditions. Your shoes should have fairly good tread. Mine were kind of worn, which made my adventure a little more tricky. I would compare this part with doing the cables at Half Dome. It is not for those with fear of heights.

Once you get to the top, which took me about an hour, you are treated to the most spectacular views. There is perhaps another 30 feet of climbing after the Haystack, but it's not bad at all. Most people are not willing to climb the extra 30 feet and are content. However, if you do climb to the upmost peak, at the top you'll find a small plastic container which includes a pen and paper to write your name to add to the pile of names already inside the container. A beautiful view of Mount Rainier was accessible as there were only some clouds.

Once you reach the top there is a little trail that leads to a smaller peak. I didn't go there. The views from the very top were enough for me and I was getting a little tired. Going back down was easy. I went on my bottom, which won't earn you any style points, but it's safer and more comforting going down this way. It took me 2 1/2 hours to get down from the very top.

If you are planning to climb the Haystack, plan on at least 5 hours round trip. It could take longer, depending on how many people are there. The Haystack is a potential bottleneck because there isn't much space, so if someone is coming up, you have to wait, unless you want to try to go around them, which I don't. Fortunately, I went at a time when more people were going up than going down, so I didn't have to wait much.

Next time I have to scope out the restaurants before hiking so I can have a place to goto for a nice hot meal after the long hike. North Bend is a small town with a quaint atmosphere and they are celebrating 100 years of existence or something like that (banners everywhere).

We started our hike up Mt. Si at around 8:30am, reaching the top rest point at just after 10am. The trail was dusty, and we were glad to have started early because by the time we turned back down, the day had gotten hot. Roots and rocks make any views along the trail hard to spot since you're constantly looking at your footing. But, at the top you're rewarded with a spectacular view of the Snoqualmie Valley and Mt. Rainier.

Without much training, some would call it none, it wasn't an easy hike and at times I felt like I wouldn't make it. But, as long as you remember it's not a race, it's not too long of a hike and you will make it up the trail. Folks along the route were very encouraging and friendly. A number of dogs too.

A note on parking: Get there early! When we got to the parking lot, there were approximately twenty other cars there, and by the time we got down, there were over 100 with people getting creative in their parking spots.

Given the day off work before the 4th of July and the beautiful weather, I thought it was time to finally hike Mount Si. I think all Seattle area folks should hike this trail at least once. It may be a bit crowded, but for the most part everyone is out there to enjoy themselves and people are pretty friendly.

The trail was clear, easy to follow and well maintained, but steep pretty much the whole way and some sections with roots/rocks to be careful of when you're tired. About halfway up is the first place to get a decent view. Enjoy it for a bit, but keep going b/c it only gets better at the top. The lower summit area has incredible views and is pretty much all rock. Even with large crowds, there's room to go find your own little niche to relax and take some pictures.

If you have the ability to do it safely, you must make the scramble up to the top of the haystack. The views are amazing and you get to pass through a mellow little alpine meadow on the way. On a clear day like this, you could see Rainier, downtown Seattle, and more. I recommend staying up there for a bit to rest and make the most of the effort it took to get there.

After living in Seattle 10 years finally decided to climb Mt. Si. The forecast was for clearing, but it was 65 and 1,000 ft overcast when I started at 9am. I thought the trail would be lonely on a gray Monday, but within 40 minutes of starting I met my first fellow climbers (runners) heading down. The trail is easy to follow, more like a boulevard, and the cool temprature and mist was pleasant for hiking. Was hoping to break out of the clear at the top, but was still socked in when I reached the summit at 11:15. Not too cold, so I decided to hang around and hope for some views. While it never cleared, windows in the clouds opened and I was rewarded with some dramatic glimpses of North Bend. Perhaps because of the weather, there were no bugs at all.

I climbed the summit pyramid and enjoyed the challenge - the blowing mist added to the excitement. Although it says so in every guide book, I will repeat here -- the summit scramble is not for kids, or the faint of heart -- a fall would be very, very bad.

By the time I descended there were many more hikers heading up and lots of runners passing me going down. Just below Snag Flats, I took the trail marked "Creek" - in fact this is not just a 50 yard walk to the water, but an alternative, and I would say superior way down. Ten minutes from the creek I reached the Talus traverse with a nicely formed bench from which to appreciate the views down. The trail continued pleasantly down and is much quieter, narrower, moister, and more trail-like than the main road down. This side track rejoins the mail trail about 0.6 from the trail head at 1,400 ft elevation. All in all a great hike. I would hate to see the crowds on a sunny Saturday.

Today I hiked Si for the first time. I was a little intimidated by the elevation and stories I've heard about how hard it was. But Nancy talked me into doing it at least once. We started out around 9:30 and saw 2 buses in the parking lot, thought they were jail buses at first, but they turned out to be military. Trail started out not to bad, we took a side trip through creek and rejoined regular trail. It was a lovely day, nice breeze. Her dog Cedar got at least 50 "cutest dog ever" comments. Which was true, he is such a good hiking dog. Made it to the top after many stopping points. Beargrass is in bloom and bugs are at the top, views were limited today and thunder clouds were rolling in. I'm writing this report the next day and I'm definatly sore from the hike, it's a workout for sure. Good hike with a great new friend and cute Sheppard around.

The trail is in great shape and was especially enjoyable early on a weekday (no crowds). But, the black flies are horrendous at the top--behind my glasses, in my ears, added protein to my sandwich...

Better to eat at the first rocks as you near the top. Or, hope for a strong breeze.

It was a cloudy day with no rain predicted so I figured it might be a good day to try Mount Si for the first time.

When i was driving there i noticed the little si trail but drove past the mount si trail by accident. The sign for the trail head is a little bit obscured by foliage (and is kind of far back, hard to see from the road)

I got to the parking lot and it was mostly full but there were a few parking spots empty so I found one easily.

There were many other people that I met on the trail of all ages and gear levels, like i had heard, it seems to be a very well traveled trail!

The hike is about 4 miles of steep switchbacks the whole way, so it was very tiring for me but in the end I made it!

At the top there was some rocks to climb / scramble where lots of people were relaxing and having some snacks. I'm not sure if the trail continued from there but that was far enough for me so headed back down.

It took me 4 hours total to go up and come back down, and definitely going up took longer than going down.

Very pretty views, the clouds opened up for a few minutes so you could see way deep down into the valleys below, it was breathtaking.

Oh - also there were lots of berries growing just off the trail, they look like they are going to be ripe pretty soon!