The falls were beautiful and the weather great this weekend! The trail still had lots of snow pack, and it was a bit of a scramble over the downed trees, but the falls were worth it in the end.

We wanted some easy, scenic hiking on this relatively warm and sunny Thursday. My folks are visiting from Arizona and didn’t pack any hiking boots, so I knew we would have to keep it simple. We checked out the maps and guidebooks and made up a “Snoqualmie Rambler”, made a picnic lunch, and headed out. Asahel Curtis Nature Trail: This lollipop loop of less than a mile is a signed interpretive trail, and you should find pamphlets in a box at the trailhead that will tell you what you’re seeing at various points along the trail. (Consider returning yours for the next visitor.) This is a great example of old-growth forest, with skyscraper trees and a trail of duff carpet. There are also several benches to sit and take in the sights and smells. Unfortunately, the sounds come mostly from the interstate traffic. I recall from hiking the Annette Lake trail last year that there is a newer bridge crossing Humpback Creek less than a quarter-mile up -- you may consider adding this short trip before or after the nature trail. Gold Creek Pond: This trail is paved over it’s entire 1-mile length around Gold Creek Pond. We thought we saw signs of beetle infestation on the hillsides, but it must have been larches, at about 75% of their full autumn color. From the parking lot, follow the trail a short distance to a junction, and go left for a nice open area with plenty of picnic tables (some with grills), or right to loop around and get your exercise in first. Interpretive signs inform you that the pond was formerly a borrow pit which provided much of the sand and gravel that originally went into the roadbeds of I-90 near Snoqualmie Pass. Franklin Falls/Wagon Road: We had done this two-mile trip with other family members in July -- what a difference a couple of dry months makes! Spots where our kids had swum up to their shoulders were now ankle-deep, and the falls, while still impressive, had only a fraction of its powerful roar and let in too much interstate noise. Both trails are in fine condition, but there are a couple of muddy spots on the Wagon Road trail. We were pleasantly surprised to see several people out on a weekday to enjoy these “hikes”. An ice cream break in North Bend gave us strength for the drive home, made even longer by an accident near WA 18 and I-5 that had us doubling back and taking I-405. I’m not sure if we saved any time in the end, but it was better than sitting at a dead stop on a 4-lane road!

Franklin Falls Trip Report On Friday I hiked to Franklin Falls, off of I-90. My trip partners were my son Gabriel, 4, and my daughter Annika, 3 months. We went with 5 other moms and 12 other children. This was the biggest turnout I have ever had for one of my hiking club hikes! We sort of split into two groups, since some of the kids were older and faster than those of us with younger children and babies. The day started out cloudy and cool, and we even drove through a little mist on our way up to the pass. I was relieved to see that we were not in the clouds at the trailhead, and hoped that the sun would burn through for the afternoon. We started our hike around 10:40. We parked at the westernmost trailhead, just after the Denny Creek Campground. I was so happy that the trail was beautiful! I was worried about it being so close to I-90 and the Denny Creek Campground. There are some huge old cedars and firs along the path, and scenic views of the creek down below. The noise from the freeway is not too bad; I’ve been on noisier hikes. The trail follows the creek the entire way. There were some portions that had steep drop-offs to the creek, where we had to hold the little ones’ hands. The worst part was the last few hundred feet down to the base of the falls, where the trail is a narrow rock ledge right above the rushing creek. Everyone negotiated it successfully, though, and gratefully rested and had lunch on the rocks below the waterfall. It was cold and breezy at the base of the falls, and we bundled up while we ate. Eventually the sun came out of the clouds and over the trees, and we allowed the kids to wade in the water. They were covered in goose bumps, and one child fell in and got all wet, but they all enjoyed their time throwing rocks and getting their feet wet. After about an hour and a half, we packed our stuff up and made the trip back up the ledge to the forested trail. Up was easier than down, and felt safer. I would not want to try to negotiate that part of the trail when it was wet. The sun was out for real now, and it was quite pleasant for hiking. We made one other stop along the way, when we were almost to the cars, to play by the stream and have another snack and some water. By this time, the younger kids were starting to lose it, getting whiny and tripping over every root or rock. We had to tempt them with our extra special stash of M&Ms and various other treats that are normally forbidden but make good bribes for hiking. Everyone made it back safely, and we made it home by 5. I am so happy to have beautiful places like this that are easily accessible and kid friendly. It is worth it to make the extra effort to get out of town into real forest. I can still get my dose of wilderness while introducing my kids to the joys of hiking and being in nature. Franklin Falls is a lovely trail; take some time to enjoy it some day!

We car camped with family at Denny Creek to take in TrailsFest (another great year, thanks, WTA!), do some hiking, practice fly fishing, play cutthroat Scrabble, and tend the campfire into the wee hours. But for the hot weather, and an overly obnoxious campground host who seemed to threaten everyone with a $50 fine for the smallest infraction, it was a very good weekend. After TrailsFest, we returned to camp, applied more sunscreen, and took the short connector trial from the campground to the Franklin Falls trailhead. Parking is a major issue this time of year, since the Franklin Falls, Wagon Road and Denny Creek/Malakwa Lake trails all start from here. The Franklin Falls trail is in very good condition, but there were some rooty spots. We sampled the huckleberries and salmon berries (the former were better), and enjoyed the forest and wildflower walk. When we arrived at the falls, the temperature seemed to drop twenty degrees, and we took in the spray and soaked our clothes. The kids were more adventurous than the adults, of course, and while we snacked and rehydrated, they crawled over logs to swim in the deep spots of the creek leading from the falls. We took the Wagon Road Trail on the way back. This is a lesser-maintained trail, but still a very nice walk through a mature forest. There are interpretive trail number signs, but we did not have a guide, so we made up our own stories. It’s the same distance and gain as the Franklin Falls trail, but it seems much less steep. There’s an interesting marker at the beginning of the trail in the form of a half-buried rusty wagon wheel.

The Denny Creek trail is still partially snow-covered but I had no problems finding my way to Denny Creek Slippery Slab. The snow begins shortly before it enters the Alpine Lakes Wilderness and is solid from that point on. Lots of other hikers have been up there in recent days so there is an easy track to follow in the snow. The snow was firm and not prone to post-holing, a relief. This is a relatively easy hike, only about 2.5 miles round trip with 500 feet elevation gain. Near the trailhead is a dark, tea-colored pool with a floating island of moss/vegetation where skunk cabbage has taken root. A very pretty scene but hard to photograph. It is near an old boardwalk. While it is not news that rivers are jumping their banks on the east side of the mountains the water wasn't running as swiftly or as deeply here as one might imagine. There's plenty of water in Denny Creek but there's still enough snow in place to keep it from melting too quickly. Beyond the bridge it appears to be mostly solid snow. Yellow violets are out and Devil's Club is starting to leaf out. There are still trillums here and there. The road to the trailhead is snow-free with just a few melting patches of snow at the trailhead. I left the car at the Denny Creek trailhead and walked 1/4 mile down the road to the Franklin Falls trailhead. The Franklin Falls trail is only a mile one-way with slightly over 100 feet elevation gain. It's slow going not because it is difficult but because it is so scenic. There's one short stretch where the river has taken the trail back but it is easy to bypass that -- just step around it on soft duff. No problem. The South Fork of the Snoqualmie had plenty of water in it but again, it didn't seem to be flooding. A lot of trail work has taken place since my last visit including railings to help people stay on the trail and not wander off trail for that dramatic photo of waterfalls that are not that easily seen from the trail. Even without the railings, there are side trails I spotted I would never be tempted to explore, not even for a world-class photo. You lose your footing here, you also lose your life. There are a few snow patches on the trail but those are melting fast. The path down to the base of the waterfall is in much better condition than it used to be -- with the exception of the high water. You can't actually get down to the river here. Be content with the view just before you get to that slippery downsloping rock near the base of the falls. Spray from the waterfall makes it difficult to get photos but who cares? It was just lovely to be there. After that I drove over to the Asasel Curtis Nature Trail and hiked that one, too. The trail will be rededicated on June 3rd -- a lot of work has gone into this project by the Forest Service, WTA and other volunteers. It looks like there is still a bit of work to be done before the Grand Opening but all in all, it looks good. One time I hiked that trail with friends and as there were no interpretive signs to accompany the numbered posts we made up the most likely subjects matter at the numbered sites. ""Nurse log"" for example. I also hiked the half-mile link to the Denny Creek Picnic Area. Near the other end of the trail (the picnic area) is a mossy stone memorial for Asasel Curtis. Nice to find this -- didn't know it was there. Lots of new vegetation leafing out all along these trails -- vanilla leaf, false-lily-of-the-valley, trilliums and violets. Most of the skunk cabbage have passed their prime, at least on this trail. All in all I figure I hiked about 7 miles and gained just under 1,000 feet of elevation gain. This was nice lonesome hiking and covered a variety of pretty scenery. Karen Sykes