After trying to get over Snoqualmie Pass to enjoy a sunny day, Birb and I turned back because the I-90 was snowy enough after exit 34 that several folks had gotten in wrecks.

Instead, we turned to Taylor Mountain — an area that they’d hiked before, but hadn’t done since they started their goal to “color all the maps!”

We parked at the main entrance, then went up Holder Creek for a bit (the trail was closed at the bridge due to washouts) to Holder Ridge to Holder Knob, then cut over to A Road, went down Boot (when we ran into a washout), turned left and went up Mt Beaver Trail, continued down Donkey Engine, and popped out Carey Creek to color that segment. We then backtracked back out Holder Ridge/Holder Creek via Carey Creek, Mt Beaver, Boot, and A Road.

The trails were in excellent condition, sans a super muddy section down Carey Creek—like, almost ate my trail runners every step for almost half a mile muddy.

A variety of flowers were starting to pop: trillium, salmonberry, dandelions, Siberian spring beauty, etc. A variety of birds were also out, like robins, juncos, etc. Some spring mushrooms were also present, e.g., Morchellaceae. Plus, the weather was nice almost the entire time (there was a single patch of sleet that fell sporadically for 20 or so minutes but it passed by quickly).

We didn’t get much gain, but we had a lot of quality time together outside (which we sorely needed), and was the most important part to our hike today :).

Given that it was such a beautiful day, we knew the lowland trails would be crowded, so we opted for the road less travelled and headed to Taylor Mountain. It was our first time hiking there. We knew it would be similar to the managed sections of Tiger Mountain, but were surprised at how few people were on the trails today. We arrived at the trailhead at around 1:30pm. There were quite a few available parking spots for cars. The horse trailer lot was much fuller. The primary restroom is closed due to Covid, but there is an accessible porta potty just off the horse trailer parking area. The trails were mostly used by equestrians, which we did not mind as there were many beautiful horses on the trail today. You do have to dodge fresh horse manure every so often, which was a small price to pay. Trails were mostly dry and compacted, except for a few muddy patches. We did Holder Ridge, Holder Knob, Whiskey Still, Boot, and Mount Beaver Trails and had lunch near the junction of Mt Beaver and Carey Creek. Headed back using Mt Beaver, Boot Trail, and several of the roads to get to Holder Knob and Holder Ridge. There were lots of interesting "nurse stumps" along the way- young trees growing on the decaying stumps of the trees that were harvested. We encountered very few people on the way back.  In all we pieced together a hike of over 9 miles with around 1300 ft of elevation gain - a decent workout. We encountered a little over 30 people all day, nearly all on horseback. Mask usage was near 10-20%. Arrived back at close to 5pm and both parking lots were nearly empty.

I lost a pair of Black Diamond Alpine Cork Trekking Poles at the picnic table. If you have seen them, please let me know. They are special to me. 

Other than that, I was happy for nice weather and decent trail conditions. Hiking on Taylor is always muddy goodness. Its a pretty chill hike or a nice afternoon trail run. 

It was great to rejoin my old hiking friends after a long time-out due to right foot issues (ankle fusion). We hiked a loop of about six miles, with a nice lunch stop in warm sun, on a combination of wide roads and narrow, sometimes muddy, paths. while the trailhead parking area was almost full, we say relatively few other hikers.  Light rain showers also made an appearance.  A link to my photos is below, in the full report section.

The trails that were open were a little bit muddy, but not bad. 

A few trails were closed either due to washouts or seasonal closures. Holder Creek trail was closed at the bridge and the A-Trail was closed where it connects to the F-Trail, but you can get to the A-Trail at a different location.