I went on a little jaunt to Couger mountain to see how the trails and waterfalls were doing after Tuesday's deluge. The weather was strange that day; warm, humid, and misty, reminding me of hiking in Hawaii. Coal Creek Falls was well worth the trip; with the huge volume of water going over it, the falls resembled a mini-Niagra. Mossy Doughty Falls, perhaps the prettiest falls in the park, was flowing quite nicely, too. The spot where the Deciever Trail crosses the creek near Doughty Falls is one of the pleasant places in the park. There's a pool of water next to a hollowed-out cedar log, which the trail cleverly uses as a bridge. Above, autumn-golden maples provide a colorful canopy. Despite all the rain, the Couger Mountain trails are in amazingly good shape, thanks to all the work by the WTA and others. There's spots on the Quarry trail with water running on the tread, and a few blowdowns here and there. You can hike in low top sneakers on most of the trail system and your feet will hardly get damp.

The Cougar Mtn Trail from the Red Town trailhead is a perfect after work stroll. The refurbished meadow on the old early 1900s baseball field on the site of what was once an outlying suburb of the coal mining community of Newcastle offers a touching contemplation of change and regeneration. Every trail intersection is clearly marked and maps are able to be picked up at the trailhead. Excluding the occasional evidence of horses the trail itself could not be in better condition - one could almost hike it in street shoes. We had the thrill of being able to listen hard to a large animal ( bear, deer?) just past the Shy Bear swamp without catching sight of it. After harvesting some angel wing mushrooms from a fallen log ( and vowing to return for a serious mushroom hunt in the fall) we made our to the Coal Creek Falls and took a scramble provided with conveniently placed handholds of tree roots to a perch overlooking it. From there the whisper of water and a glance of an Anna's Hummingbird, quicker than a bee. Absolutely no one else was around. If there were bugs we didn't notice them.

With all the recent snow, I'd figure I'd tromp out to Coal Creek Falls to attempt to get a good picture (the previous 4 tries turned out awful). And with all the recent snow, there was more mud at than you could shake a stick at. Coal Creek is full at the falls now, so while we have clear skies, it's a good destination (though there is...or was still quite a bit of snow around the falls). I originally intented on doing a loop from the Cave Holes trail to the falls and then out via the Red Town trail, but IT WAS GONE!!! There is supposed to be a short connector between the falls and the Quarry Trail, but after walking for 1/4 mile and two switchbacks that I never remembered seeing before, I had to wonder what happened...so I went back the way I came. After I also poked my nose at North Fork Falls just down the S+WW RR trail leading downstream. Nice flow now. Also, had to kill a few frames and some daylight, so I poped over to Weowna Park in between 148th and W LK Sammamish Pkwy. It's a thin park off of NE 166th (I think). I found a small waterfall there on the outlet of Phantom Lake once a while back, so I returned to investigate. And I found a beautifully developed trail system around the canyon, a pair of waterfalls (very small), one even with a viewing deck, connecting trails between W LK Sam Pkwy and 166th. A great park. Check it out if you've got a few hours some day. Good place for kids.

Probably the most challenging of the Cougar Mountain Trailheads, the Wilderness Creek Trailhead offers secluded hiking only 5 minutes out of Issaquah. Take SR 900 south from I-90. The trailhead is on your right, about 5-7 miles from Newport Wy NW. Maps are usually available at the trailhead. The trailhead begins with a large elevation gain that puts you on top of Cougar with many options on where to branch out from. I went to the Coal Creek Falls. Right now the trail suffers from a lack of maintenance, winter blow down, mud, and water are your enemies here. Nothing that couldn't be hopped or walked through though. Trail is normally well kept. The Coal Creek Falls area has a newly constructed foot bridge, and is a great destination for a somewhat secluded lunch on Cougar Mountain. Other trail heads on Cougar offer for days of endless exploring and hiking. See you on the trail. EJS.

Coal Creek Falls Deceiver Far Country Long View Peak Shy Bear Wilderness Cliffs Wilderness Creek Wilderness Peak - Issaquah Alps - There were many windfalls along the route, particularly in areas more than a mile from the trailhead and on lesser used trails. The Wilderness Creek and Wilderness Cliff Trails are in good condition. There used to be a summit register on Wilderness Peak (why, I can't guess), but it's gone now. There is no view here. The Wilderness Peak Trail is in good condition to its terminus at Shy Bear Pass. No bears, they must be shy. The Long View Peak Trail wanders on a level alignment to its end at Long View Peak. Much better views here. The Deceiver Trail has quite a few windfalls as it descends into the Cabbage Creek watershed. There is a spur trail to Doughty Falls just after crossing Cabbage Creek. Don't expect anything spectacular out of these falls. The Shy Bear Trail is a fairly level run from its junction with the Deceiver Trail to its end at Far Country Lookout. Nice views here too. You can see exciting Renton (whoopee!). The really good stuff is over in the Olympics though, which can also be seen. Then a rather quick descent down the Far Country Trail to its end at Indian Trail, which is actually an old road. Indian Trail is muddy in spots. There is a bootpath off trail to a falls on Long Marsh Creek. I've named them Angus McFergus McTavish Dundee Falls after some guy I saw on Captain Kangaroo about 37 years ago. Somehow I don't think the committee for geographic place names is going to buy that one. Quarry Trail is also an old road that climbs fairly steeply. Coal Creek Falls is 0.1 miles down Coal Creek Falls Trail and it is worth seeing. The Quarry Trail should be renamed Quagmire Trail as it is very muddy east of its junction with Coal Creek Falls Trail. The Shy Bear Trail also has some muddy spots between the junction with Quarry/Fred's Railroad Trail and its end at Shy Bear Pass. Still no bears. The Wilderness Creek Trail has the one windfall I would have removed had I remembered to bring a saw (as well as check with King County Parks beforehand if such was okay). People have beaten down a detour path (completely unnecessary as the windfall can be stepped over with some effort). http://www.geocities.com/~rangermike