Great day for a hike! This one would definitely be better in late Fall or in the Spring - all the rivers and the mill pond were dried out at this time of year. We started at Maple Valley Trailhead and hiked the loop going counter-clockwise like WTA suggests - this way, the hard part of the elevation gain is quick at the beginning and the rest of the trail is fairly easy-going. Good hike for kids (mine are 5 and 10).

We only passed by a few other small groups and the forest was pretty quiet during the whole hike. We would definitely like to do this one again when there's more water running through the trails and under all the bridges!

We drove to Dosewallips SP & this area was a first for us. The weather was overcast but I’m sure this area is even more stunning in the sun.

The TH was easy to find after checking in at the ranger station (great bathroom here!) otherwise we might not have found it. It ended up being the trail directly before the bridge where you can see the ranger station check in point. The TH had a nice map, and the trails were well marked.

We took the SDT, which crossed with the Railroad trail, Tahoma Trail & Izette Grade Trail. The SDT pond has a large hole that is connected with some drainage, - the trail goes around it (FYI). Up to the Izette Grade Trail the foliage was pretty thick. (We later learned the forest service is clearing the trail but hadn’t gotten south of the Izette Grade Trail yet.) We passed two other groups of walkers. The forest was completely silent except for some song birds. Because the foliage was so thick we made efforts to make some noise to avoid accidentally intruding an unsuspecting animal.. There were wildflowers scattered through on the trail.

We had our kids with us (5&7), abd they did great. The trail was fairly even with gradual ups and downs. The Izette Grade Trail was all down hill to the road “trail” we took back (see where Izette Grade Trail meets the green dotted trail & photo). This was the area we saw the owls.

Tip: ranger station has popsicles for $1.50 - great treat for us all after the hike.

The Steam Donkey Loop was a nice way for myself and a couple friends to spend the morning. It was cool outside which made the hike perfect. Easy enough for anyone out of shape or for kids. You'll see some small creeks/rivers (and many creek beds and riverbeds) as you explore. we picked some ripe salmonberries. passed lots of families on the trail. I do suggest starting at the Steam donkey side, going clockwise like WTA directs you to, and ending on the maple valley trail.
we got lost for a short while as there is a fork along the maple valley trail that I interpreted as the Rhody & Maple Valley fork, so we kept to the left. It led us down a very steep piece of trail and out to the river. it was a nice detour but confused us until we returned to the fork and took the other path.. which led us to the campground about 10 minutes later. whoops!
I am attaching a photo of the map we were given by the very kind and helpful park rangers!
there are (waterless, pit style) restrooms at the campground near the maple valley trailhead for before or after hike!

good easy hike

Easy hike with kids. The campground was packed, but the trails weren’t crowded at all.