I was in the neighborhood for a WTA training event today so I decided to take advantage and hike to the Garfield Ledges when my event was over. Leaving the Middle Fork parking area around 1:30 PM, I followed the Middle Fork Connector Trail to the bridge over the river and followed the road to the parking area and trailhead for Garfield Ledges. I recommend parking in the Middle Fork parking area if possible because after that point, the road and parking area for Garfield Ledges both have large potholes to navigate. 

The trail to the Garfield Ledges is short (1.7 miles round trip) but is pretty much all uphill. Fortunately, the steepest sections just before the first ledge viewpoint have steps that I very much appreciated today. Overall, the trail is in good shape but there is one large spot with water over the trail and the section leading up to the second ledge viewpoint has many protruding rocks so good boots are a must. Strava measured my round trip hike from the parking lot and back to be about 3.8 miles, which was just about right after a busy weekend of training. 

Short hike about a mile long and a handful of switchbacks. There’s plenty of spots on the trail to stop and take in all the views. Parking lot was about 1/3rd full and saw a decent amount of people on the trail, but not busy or crowded at all. Came up at 1PM on a Saturday.

Went for a Sunday morning hike with two adults, two 9yr olds, and two small dogs. We've done this hike a bunch of times over the years, as it's easy, with decent elevation, and a very nice view at the top.

The unpaved portion of the road, just past the Middle Fork Campground, has steadily gotten worse, with larger and deeper pot holes! Low clearance vehicles will need to drive slowly and strategically through that section.

We arrived around 09:40. On the way up, we only encountered a few other people on their descents and arrived at the top in ~45mins. Trilliums were in bloom, scattered throughout the hike.

We enjoyed some snacks and the view for about 25mins and had that time all to ourselves. The weather held out, with partial clouds and a very short duration of light misting.

Overall, the hike, including our time at the top, took ~1.5hrs.

Quick jaunt up Garfield Ledges, a short but sweet trail with a good payoff. We started at the big Middle Fork lot and hiked the connector trail to Garfield Ledges to add a little distance. Mainly writing this to show the setting from below, taken by the river along that connector trail - the red square is the Garfield Ledge overlook. Our total distance around 3.8 miles RT. 

Quick hike, introducing a new coworker to the Middle Fork. This is a great intro hike but shorter than I remembered. I do wish I'd planned something a little longer, but hey, next time. The forecast was also a bit iffy, but as so often happens, forecast showers turned into cloudy and filtered sun, so it was actually the quintessential PNW hike. The trilliums and especially the wood violets were out in force, and down low, the salmonberries were in full bloom. My hiking partner also noticed a ton of shelf mushrooms. Short, but pretty, hike, and barely anyone there when we started at 9:45, although the crowds were starting to show up just when we finished. It'd be a good one to pair with Pratt Balcony, for complementary views of the Middle Fork valley.