One of the many enjoyable, easily accessible day hikes off the I-90 Corridor.

I arrived around 11:30AM and there were about 5 other cars in the parking lot. I only passed eight other hikers the entire day.

The trail was in excellent condition. I’m not really sure why it’s rated ‘Expert,’ as there is no route finding, scree fields, scrambling or anything technical involved in this hike. It should probably just be rated ‘Intermediate’ or ‘Hard’ at the most. The first couple of miles up to the balcony reminds me of the Rattlesnake Ledge or Big / Little Si Trails. It’s basically a well-worn highway through the woods. It even has multiple signs now, marking the trail every few hundred yards or so. Once you pass the Dirty Harry Balcony / Ira Spring Connector Junction, 95% of the remaining trail to Dirty Harry Peak and Dirty Harry Museum follows an old Logging Road. Anyone in reasonably decent shape should be able to do this hike. You won’t get lost or need to climb anything. There is even cell phone reception for most of the hike. If you are stopping by the museum, watch for a rock cairn and arrow built with sticks just before the creek crossing. The museum is probably only 1/4 mile from the main trail. Once on it, it’s well-marked the entire way to the truck with cairns and surveyor tape, even though it’s pretty good trail anyway.

I spoke with another hiker near the summit who said that she was also looking for the Defiance Ridge Connector Trail, as I was. If you’re reading this, I think that I found it. It was actually much further down than where we spoke, not anywhere close to the summit. It’s where you pass that one large boulder field on the way up the switchback for Dirty Harrys Peak. The peak trail turns left there. Then there is another trail that turns right and starts along the base of the Boulder Field. While it does not appear to be extremely well used, it’s definitely more used than a game trail. I followed it for a little way before turning back. As for making a complete loop, there is a well-used trail that branches off to Ira Spring Trailhead at the Junction for Dirty Harrys Balcony. I want to make the whole loop sometime.

The only thing I would caution newer hikers is to be aware of the many cliffs along the way and at the top, often hidden in the trees just a few feet from the trail. You don’t want to walk up too fast or get too close and fall, as people do on the other nearby hikes in this area every year. Especially if you have kids or are generally too absorbed with taking selfies to watch where you step…

Overall, it was a nice hike. Not my favorite, but another fun peak to summit, nonetheless.

Nice loop today going up to Putrid Pete’s Peak, traversing over to Web Mtn, going down to Dirty Harry’s Bathtub, and then hiking back to exit 42 via Dirty Harry’s Peak, Balcony, and Ira Spring Connector trails.

First time for me starting from exit 42. There is a nice spot to park at the end of the road, just off the on/off  ramp to I-90. It was nice to not drive the long pot holed road to Ira Spring trailhead.. Trail starts at the end of the road. Right away, after the bend, there is a trail that heads to the right. Don't take this one, as it ends up at a fire pit and some old used shotgun shells. Just after a creek crossing(there is two logs lashed together with a handrail) there is a fork in the trail. Take the right fork if you want to head up to the Ira Spring trailhead. Take the left fork if you want to connect with the Ira Spring Connector trail just short of the Putrid Pete's Peak(PP3) trail.  I took the right fork and headed up. Trail follows the creek( Mason Creek maybe) up to the road and then you walk about a tenth of a mile to the trailhead. Starting down on exit 42 adds about 3/4 mile and 550 ft of elevation gain to the hike

At the first switchback I took the faint trail(Ira Spring Connector trail) and after about a mile from the trailhead I took the PP3 trail up to the summit of PP3. The first part has a few switchbacks and is not that steep. There is one section that had about 4 large trees that have fell across the trail, which involves climbing over them. Once out in the open around 3800 ft the trail just goes straight up 1400 ft up to the summit. There are some loose rocks that can easily be kicked down on other hikers, so beware of this heading up on a crowded day. Once near the summit it is a easy scramble up to the top. The summit register is missing a cap, so the paper is wet, even though it is double bagged.

Was only at PP3 summit for a short time before heading over to Web Mountain. The traverse is pretty easy with minor scrambling and some side hilling. It is best to stay below the ridge, as the north side of the ridge is pretty much straight down. Once at the summit block, head around to the left and come up from the west. It is easier as coming from the SE will involve a lot more scrambling with some possible exposure,

After Web summit visit, I headed down the spine of the ridge until I hit a rock outcrop. I descended down into the bowl to my right staying in the trees as much as possible to avoid all the talus. I did have to go down some talus to get to more trees, and then once in the trees, I found a faint trail. I lost it a few times, but for the most part it closely followed a drainage down to Dirty Harry's Bathtub. The Bathtub are was cool. There was still water and the area was a bog, even late in the season in this very dry year.

After this I followed some cairns that led to the trail down to DIrty Harry's Peak(DHP) trail. Also my GPS (ONYX software) showed the trail. This made it easier to navigate. Trail was in great shape until getting down close to the DHP trail, where it became pretty overgrown for the last 0.25 mile.

Once back to the  DHP trail it was smooth sailing back to the Ira Spring connector trail. This trail has LOTS of ups and downs. Not too fun at the end of a long hike!!. Just past the PP3 trail, I took the trail to the left that took me back to the car. Not sure if it was any quicker, but it was a nice trail, and I had never been on it before.

Fun adventure. Started at 8:16 am and finished at 1:51 pm

10 miles with 4400 ft elevation gain

Bugs weren’t too bad.
Surprisingly few people for a Friday morning.
Lucked out with weather. 🤩

Trailhead

Arrived at 9:30AM on Sunday to a full parking lot but spaces available on the road shoulder to park. There is a single vault toilet at the trailhead.

Balcony

First 2mi up to the Balcony are fairly gentle and straightforward. Most hikers will turn around here, so the trail past this is fairly empty (at least it was today).

Museum

The spur to the "Museum" is unmarked and easy to miss so would recommend keeping a GPS with you (or watching out really carefully for a rock cairn marking the turn, about a 1/4 mile before the Webb Mountain connector). It's a nice little off-trail but just the old truck to look at.

Peak

The trail to the peak gets steeper and steeper as you approach (up to the Balcony is only a third of the elevation so the remaining two thirds are left to climb). A set of hiking poles is highly recommended, you will appreciate them on the way down (and in my case, on the way up as well). There is nothing particularly sketchy about the trail, but it is steep, dusty, and with loose rocks so a bit of care and support (from poles) is warranted.

There are ~three different viewpoints you can scout around for on the summit so you can stitch together a 360-degree view between all three. A nice reward for the climb (though nearby Mount Washington and Mailbox Peak probably are a little nicer in this regard).

Hiked Dirty Harry's Balcony and Peak on Saturday. The trail up to the balcony is very nice and moderate, and it was pretty busy with a lot of large groups. The trail is nicely forested and mostly in the shade. Past the balcony, though, it changes completely. The forest soon gives way to an open, narrow, rocky trail that immediately starts going up. The slope somehow keeps getting steeper through to the very end, and the last couple switchbacks (< 0.5 mile) are a real challenge to push through. Luckily, there's a lot of shade, with only a few short sunny stretches. Once at the top, though, we were able to take a long break, eat lunch, and enjoy the views - we had the peak all to ourselves as a reward for the difficult climb. There are some biting flies up there, but they're not that bad in the shaded areas. Along the way to the peak there are wildflowers starting to bloom, so we had something nice to look at during our numerous breaks.

On the way down from the peak, we had to go pretty slowly to avoid slipping on all the loose rocks. Once the trail mellows out around the balcony area though, we were able to start running down, and it was smooth from there.

We started hiking at 10:30 am, and got to the peak at about 1:30 pm. We stayed up there for around two hours, and started the descent at 3:30 pm. It took us another hour to get down, and we were back at the trailhead at 4:30 pm, 6 hours after we started.

Excluding long breaks, our active hiking time was 4 hours 24 minutes. The distance logged on my GPS watch was 8.6 miles, with 3200 feet of elevation gain.

I'd recommend Dirty Harry's Balcony to everyone interested in hiking, as it's a moderate trail with nice views. Dirty Harry's Peak was a difficult climb, but it was extremely rewarding, so if you're able to take on the challenge I think it's well worth it!