I went to try and find the knee trail or any other one listed but I'm not sure where I was some sort of creek trail. maybe it was a little off the beaten path but mostly in good condition despite some rain. a few nice openings here and there.

Took a run on Taylor in hopes of finding some clear trails and it did not disappoint. There were a couple of larger trees on Elk Ridge that were not fully cleared but, overall, it was still clear enough that I could run the whole route

This is a wonderful fall hike - but we were lucky enough to hike it a day before the trails are closed for the season!  We were headed over to the Teanaway but found 60% chance of rain everywhere except west of the mountains - so using WTA's hikefinder app, we zeroed in on a hike that was new to all of us!  

We hiked almost 8 miles as we did a lollypop of a hike.  Mud was an issue and we deduced that this is why the trails are closed.  HIGHLY recommend that this be added to your list for next fall.  (we saw only one other person on our four hour adventure).  

Horses
This is a very popular horse riding area. I feel like I'm sharing their trails. I try to be safe as they pass. Then there's poop. Horses are allowed on all of the trails. There's plenty of poop on the trail. Keep your eye on the trail to avoid it.
Road & TH
We used the SR 18 TH right off 276th Ave. There's a short gravel road to the gravel parking for cars. There's a separate parking area for horse trailers. It's all well maintained. Should be fine for most cars. We arrived at 7:45am on a Thursday morning. 1 car and 2 trucks with trailers were there. We returned at 2:15. The trucks and trailers were still there. We were the only car. The TH outhouse was locked before 8am, open in the afternoon. But there's a sanican in the trailer lot that was open early. Both are well stocked and cleaned.
The trails
Our route was a loop starting on Road A, Whiskey Still, Boot, Mountain Beaver trails. There we found Carey Creek is still closed due to washout. Back up Mountain Beaver, east on Boot to Road A to Road G. On Road G there's a kind of deep drainage ditch with a shallow small creek. Getting down the bank and up the other side is doable with care. Then up Elk Ridge. There's a spring crossing the trail about halfway up. It's easy to cross. Then the Shadow trail to Road A, Road K, Road I, Holder Knob to Road A and back to the TH. The south leg of Holder Knob is a bit overgrown including thistle and stinging nettle. Stinging nettle is generally plentiful on all of the trails. Most of the trails are in good shape with good footing. We covered about 10.3 miles and 1120 gain. Saw 4 hikers, 5 horses and riders and three dogs. Everyone was friendly. Lots of banana slugs. One was 6 inches long! Lots of flowers, sometimes in huge beautiful banks together. Buttercup, Herb Robert and Candy flower/ miner's lettuce. Also saw lush scour rush and pink and white Fox Glove.

A nice cool weather 50s_F - 60s_F window during ~(05:45 - 09:00) this TUE 04jul2023 morning for a ramble at Taylor Mountain Forest; did a "Figure-8 "Loop (P) > Elk Ridge Tr > Hermit > Knee-Knocker > "No-Name" > Road H > Road A > Road G > (P).

Except for the unmaintained and very brushy ~0.2 miles of "No-name" at (B); which was outside of Taylor Mountain Forest boundary, all the other trails were in good condition, and seemed well maintained. Just as well that i had my Hand Pruner with me .. and had ~30 minutes of fun light-pruning (B) 😗 

Some mosquitoes were annoyed with me for Light-pruning and "disturbing" the brush where they were taking shelter. Luckily, they were too sleepy (??) and so i didn't get bitten. 

Enjoyed lots of bird singings, spotted a few wildflowers, a Slug, but no wildlife.

~05:45, i was the 2nd to arrive at the Pullout Parking (P) along SE 208th Street. ~3+ hours later,  when i got Back to the Parking, there were 3x Crew-cab trucks with Horse Trailer, and 2 women with their 2 horses as they were preparing to go in. During my ~3+ hours on-the-trails, i only encountered a MT-Biker when i was going UP on Hermit Tr. Everyone of these 3 people were courteous and friendly.

Happy Trails Everyone 🌈

Stats: (P) -to- (P): ~8.3 miles / Ascent 1343 ft / Moving Time 3:04 / Stopped Time 0:25