Its just over 2 miles from the yellow gate to the do not enter signs which run from the tracks through the woods and on the road/trail north of the tracks. It seems they don't want trespassers. So as far as I can figure the rest of Lester lies beyond these signs, but before the signs you can see a couple old houses and beautiful fall scenery. While we were there a fairly long train came through, my hiking party thought that was a bonus to a already pretty cool hike.

Very basic: Drive 13.5 miles to yellow gate. Walk down flat gravel road to 2 dilapidated homes that are fun to see. There is no "town." You are not allowed to walk farther down the gravel road or you'd be trespassing. Walk back to yellow gate. Along the way see river and railroad tracks. We also climbed an apple tree and watched an ant hill.

The road is rough getting up there but offers beautiful views of Mt Rainier. The trail is actually just the road that has been closed off from vehicle traffic. When you cross the train tracks at the 'intersection' its not much farther and you will hang a left over the tracks to get to the actual buildings. Most of the existing buildings have been vandalized pretty badly. We walked down the railroad grade to the river and ate lunch there which was beautiful. The 'ghost town' leaves much to be desired but the river and the views are worth the trip. This was my first hike since knee surgery and it was great because it was flat. Good for a beginner or someone trying to get out and not have too much of a challenge.

Getting there - the Stampede Pass road is pretty bumpy, a low car would probably have to be pretty careful, but could make it. In comparison, the Middle Fork Snoqualmie road was actually mostly in better shape and could be driven faster (at least to the parking area for Bessemer). All the blowdowns have been cut, but there's a few that are still sticking out into the lane in places, so watch out if you don't want to scrape your car. The road is sometimes narrow so keep your eyes peeled for anyone coming in the opposite direction. The side roads are not marked super well, but keep going straight and you'll get to where you are going. The larger turns do have some signage to keep you on the right path. On a weekday I was the only hiker there. I saw a few trucks come through from the south when I was actually in Lester- I think they were doing some tree cutting on the power line right of way, but had to come in via that direction because there is a washout on the near side of the Lester road. It's walkable and there are the start of some repairs. If walking the narrow bit of the remaining road bothers you, you can drop down to the newly bulldozed area. Not much remains of Lester - two houses, the front one pretty vandalized, a shed and an old collapsed barn. Some information that my husband found is that the area was fought over quite bitterly for some time - the gates were destroyed so many times that it was dubbed the "Lester gate war" Tacoma eventually purchased the town from the railroad as part of their watershed, but residents were granted lifetime leases. As they passed away the buildings were mostly demolished or burned by vandals. I would guess that it will not be too long before nothing remains and the two houses still there may only exist because the lease holder is still alive. Just beyond Lester the watershed is completely closed to access. The walk is easy and flat. There are wildflowers blooming and there lots of different kinds butterflies right now. I didn't find any on me, but I did see, in a photo that I took, a very tiny tick!, so be careful, if you walk anywhere in the grass like I did, to check yourself carefully. To be extra sure you haven't brought any home, give your clothing a good soaking in a bucket as soon as you get back. I didn't see any elk, but there was a lot of elk sign.