Short but difficult trail! If you plan to do the rope scramble at the end and have hiking gloves bring them! Theres some community ones before the rope but they were pretty worn down and dirty (still better than nothing)! The rope sections look harder than they actually are but still make sure you have some confidence before attempting. Beautiful view at the top! 

Bottom Line:

This is a challenging trail with an aggressive 1000 ft of vertical per mile, and a rope section to pull yourself up a number of steep and rocky sections with some exposure, all to a beautiful cliff-side perch high above Crescent Lake; beautiful forest from bottom to top, starting in a wetter forest with giant old-growth trees near Marymere Falls, and ascending into a dryer mixed forest including madrona trees; a popular and somewhat crowded trail (even with an early start), but stunning and an adventure nevertheless!

Stats:

• Distance: 4-1/4 miles
• Duration: 2-1/2 hours
• Vertical: 2110 ft
• Weather: Mix of sun and cloud, light wind, 60s
• Parking: The Storm King Ranger Station on Lake Crescent has a large lot, but this is a very popular hike, so the lot was full and eventually parking overflowed on to the adjacent road; there is more parking at the Crescent Lake Lodge, which allows one to return via a beautiful forest walk along Barnes Creek; National Park pass required to park; restrooms at trailhead with ample signage and maps
• Trail: The trail is challenging, with 1000 ft of vertical per mile (more than say, Mt Si) and a rocky and rooty surface for much of its distance; once you reach the "End of Maintained Trail" sign, the ropes to the top begin; the ropes are not that bad (this is not an Angels Landing or Half Dome by any stretch), but the congestion on the trail can make it a little bit nerve wracking (one fall could potentially trigger a cascading set of falls); beyond the rope there are some exposed sections on a narrow fin where many folks did the "crab walk"; poles were useful for much of the trail, but somewhat problematic on the ropes as mine did not telescope down enough to avoid tight clearances with trees overhanging the trail; all and all a lot of fun with a good amount of challenge to keep things interesting; the view is obviously incredible, and would be even more so towards sunset
• Flowers: A good variety of flowers particularly in the sun-exposed slopes as the trees thin near the top (e.g. paintbrush, penstemon); the madrona trees are lovely throughout (was not expecting these)

Just phone pics today given the "huff" quotient of this hike (I was soaking wet when I returned)! The attached video captures most of the trail.

We were the second group at the top this morning! We started at 5:00 am. Trail is steep, but a lot of fun. I am afraid of heights and felt comfortable on the ropes and at the "summit". We were thankful to have went up early so we didn't have to be held up in the lines of people using the ropes. We had the summit to ourselves for about half and hour and watched the sun rise over the mountains. How lucky on a sunny, holiday weekend.

Coming down the rope section was worse than going up. It was easier to walk backwards down while holding the ropes. We saw 15-20 people on our way down who were very patient with us coming down on the ropes. Would highly recommend starting early! 

One of the best hikes, in my opinion! Not a a big parking lot, highly recommend getting an early start. Incredible views at the top make it worth every step. This has been on my list for a long time, but the rope climb seemed very intimidating. I can now say, it was much easier than expected!  Hit the trailhead at 7 am in an attempt to avoid the crowds. Shared the top with just a few other people. However, a lot of people coming up as we were coming down. 10/10-would hike again.

I did not do the rope section just in case that's the main thing you want to know about. I planned from the start to go until the sign that says end of maintained trail. You still get amazing views without it in cased you want to give this hike a try but you're not sure it's worth it. I loved the whole experience today! The first section before you take a sharp left and ascend for 1700+ ft is a meandering path. The longer the path, the more concerned I was about how steep the hike would be. Super steep. It reminded me of sections of the Old Si trail combined with Mt. Elinor, but with the landscape of Mt. Walker. There's my mashup. The steepness hits you right away and burns through your calves, but then you acclimate. I paced myself and never felt like I was dying. The hardest thing about this hike (minus the ropes section) was the loose dirt and rocks. I slipped two times and all I was doing was moving out of the way for uphill traffic. The people were great. I shared quick laughs with several groups. Bring poles if you have them, good traction shoes, and lots of water. I hit Marymere Falls afterward. The water is flowing-very tranquil after Storm King.Happy trekking!