we started at hyak. headed 1/3 of the way up the ski slope and took a right following one of the cross country ski trails up to the sign at union station. followed one of the trails a little more and near frog lake headed cross country to nordic pass (there is nordic pass trail) staying just on the north side of mill creek. there are a ton of blue diamond markers marking the trail. once we reached nordic pass we headed south and up the west shoulder of catherine, avoiding the cliffs. we followed this shoulder to the top. snow covered 99% of the trail. we used snowshoes from near frog lake till we reached the top. the snow was soft and there were not any icy spots. ice axes were needed on some steep parts up near the top of catherine. with careful routefinding you can avoid steep exposed spots until just below the summit. all creek crossing were made on servicable snow bridges -nothing tough at all.

Decided to go back up to Mt. Catherine to check out the views. We had been up here two weeks ago when it was cloudy and rainy! Arrived at the trailhead around 10am. There was another party on their way up(with baby and dog in tow) and another couple that arrived at the same time as us! Bundled Lili into her snowsuit and pack and started up a little after 10am. Made our way up through the clearcut and then the ridge. There is an 800ft gain in 3/4mile(total 1300gain). No wind, a few patches of icy snow and views galore! Made it to the summit(sits at 5052 ft) around 10:45ish. Soon after the party with the baby came up and then another single guy and then the couple. Mt. Catherine was not lonesome on this day. We saw Mt. Stuart, Rainier, Snoqualmie area peaks....the views were superb! Never put on gloves, hat, jacket...and here it is the 1st of December. You could feel the heat off the rocks. One person remarked that it was kind of scary! Hopefully, we'll get snow soon! Started down around 11:45am and got to the truck at 12:20ish. Several other parties with babies and dogs were on their way up(I think the word is getting out!) Total mileage a whopping 3miles and elevation 1300ft gain. A beautiful day and a great little peak! Halley/Joey and Liliana

I'm surprised that I could not find any mention of this trail in several books. I found it looking at a map while surveying the nearby Twin Lakes trail just east of Hyak. This trail (about a mile past the Twin Lakes trail) is short and mildly steep covering about 1300 ft elevation in just over a mile. The payoff is grand. From the summit (5100 ft) of Mt. Catherine, you can see in every direction from Rainier to the Olympics to Mt. Stuart to E. WA. You also look down into the Ollalie Meadows which are not that great without snow. On this day, we encountered no bugs and a few slick patches of hard snow at the top. Note that some scrambling (using an existing wire) is required in the last few feet to the summit.

A friend read about this place in the paper as a site to see before it snows. It was a little hard to find even with directions as there aren't any signs on the roads marking it, and the trail has a small sign which we would have missed had there not been cars parked by the start. The trail is off a well-maintained dirt road. The drive itself was breathtaking. The forest in the shadow of the mountains was covered in ice crystals. It looked like a winter wonderland even though it hadn't snowed yet. The trail is steep (3miles, 1300ft gain), but there are plenty places and plenty of reasons to stop and rest and take in the view on the way up. It was only cold at the start, but once you start moving up the hill, you warm up quickly, so wear layers that you can peal off as you go. The birds are very friendly, and we broke the rules and fed a couple (which I do not advocate). They ate right from our hands. Unfortunately, we couldn't shake the two after that, and they followed us all the way to the top. There is icy snow on the trail at the top, and I did slip on some on our way down, so take your time. The steep hike is well worth it once you get to the top. It was a mostly clear day, and you could see forever into the distance. Absolutely stunning and breathtaking! It's hard to find information on this trail anywhere(it took me a half hour of online searches), and I'm caught between wanting to tell more people about it and wanting to keep it to myself!

Well ya can't call us fair weather hikers. We woke up and thought maybe just maybe we'd have a chance at some decent weather. From our house in northeast Tacoma the sky was clearing so we chose short and sweet Mt. Catherine for today's hike. The closer we got to Snoqualmie Pass the more the precip fell, but we drove on making it to the now very wet 3700ft trailhead at around 9:15am. The wind was blowing and a steady drizzle was falling. We loaded our 2 and 1/2 yr old Liliana into her pack and started up the snowy trail. It begins on an abandoned logging road up through a clearcut. We came to an arrow shaped cairn pointing us to the trail. Followed several long switchbacks and entered very pretty forest. The higher we went up the less the drizzle fell. We continued up a dozen or so switchbacks gaining 800ft or so to what seems like the top but is actually the ridge. Followed the ridge line up and down for a bit and then came an open flat spot. We looked for an abandoned cabin site mentioned in the 55 Snoqualmie hikes book but didn't see. The wind was really stirring things up and no views to speak of... We continued up to the summit and decided to come down immediately. Lili had fallen asleep by now. We made our ways down into the trees when I noticed that one of Lili's boots had fallen off. I dropped my pack and ran back up the trail while Joey and Lili made their way down. I found it easily as it was purple and stuck out like a sore thumb in the white snow. Caught up with toddler and Joey in the clearcut. Back in the drizzle again. Made it to the truck around 11:30am. Ate our lunch and headed for home! This is right around 3 miles round trip and 1300gain. We hear the views are quite nice! Oh well we'll just have to imagine them! Halley/Joey and Liliana