The views are worth the elevation gain. After parking on the road we walked up to the trail head and began the climb. This hike is steep the entire way to the top. There is a light sheet of snow on the trail and coming down would of been easier with poles but my dog and I managed. Theres one tree down on the trail but its extremely easy to get over. The entire time I only saw four people and they were all wearing masks. I got a round trip milage of 5.72 so Im not sure where I picked up the extra lol

Hearty hike with a steep incline the whole way but the payoff is two viewpoints once you get to the top.

Arrived around 11AM and parked along the road with about 15 other cars since the road to the trailhead is closed in the winter. Walked up the gravel road about 1/4 mile to the trailhead and it was a workout of inclines and switchbacks from there to the top. Although my tween and teen seem to skip and jog up.

Views from the top were about half visible with it being an overcast/foggy day but still beautiful. On a clear day they would be incredible.

Trail takes you to the north viewpoint and from there you can walk about 10 mins along the road to the southern one. After that you can either take the road back down which is longer but less steep or head back down the way you came.

Note: There were a few trees across the trail but easy to climb over.

There is room for 10-15 cars or so around the pull-off where the road is closed. The road and trail are snow-free. Look for the turnoff for the trail just a few min past the gate (1/2 mi or less). The trail is in great shape - only a few slightly muddy spots and 2 blowdowns that are easy to get over. Despite arriving ~11 am on a Sunday, we only passed 4-5 groups and the trail felt very uncrowded. My GPS showed distance hiked was 6.3 mi RT including walking the bit of road to get to the trailhead, and some wandering around at the top. Heads up there are a lot of excited "camp robbers" at the top. :)

This is a great winter hike with excellent views from both viewpoints. Highly recommend stopping for lunch at Butcher & Baker Provisions near Port Gamble after hiking!

Today 07Jan2021 is another beautiful day - weather ~40s_F and rain-free .. and so off i went to Quilcene_WA to hike the National Forest Mt Walker Trail #894 (more information at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/olympic/recarea/?recid=47893

The Gate was closed (for the season). When i arrived ~11:45, there were 5 vehicles parked “before” the Gate. And when i departed ~15:00, there were 6 other vehicles. During my ~3+ hours on Mt Walker Trail, i only encountered a total of:

12x people, 3x dogs, 1x squirrel, and 2x birds - and all were very friendly :)

The Trail is well-maintained and well-constructed - thank U’all National Forest! Except for a few small muddy spots, the Trail was generally somewhat “dry” - which is quite surprising (for me) .. it seems as if the recent almost daily snow or rain had “missed” the Mt Walker area :P

Though the Grade (incline) can occasionally range to a “steep” ~25_degrees (as described by National Forest), it was do-able for me - cos i slow-hiked and took lots of breaks (to catch my breadths). Also, the Switchbacks did help moderate the incline. A consolation for the tedious steep ascend is the near effortless descend (though do be cautious cos there are some exposed roots, small rocks and stones to watch out for .. to not trip-over or slip-and-fall). Btw, at ~1.5 Mile from the Trailhead, there’s a blow-down - a single tree across the Trail - passable though. 

Lots of peace, quiet and solitude walking through the lovely green forest - i sometimes felt as if i was hearing the sound of its silence. The views at the North Viewpoint and South Viewpoint are incredibly beautiful (despite the somewhat cloudy weather). There’s the view of (a few of) the Olympic Mountains, Puget Sound and islands, in the distanced - Mt Baker and Mt Rainier too.

Happy Trails Everyone! :)

Arrived at 9 AM on Thursday, Christmas Eve. Gate was closed (as expected for this time of year) but there were a few parking spaces remaining. The vast majority of hikers followed social distancing protocols. 

After the hike, stopped in Quilecene at our FAVORITE lunch spot, The Gear Head Deli.  Located on the east side of Highway 101, they have two old fashioned gas pumps out front and are next to Habitat for Humanity. Delicious smoked meats, Boar's Head cheeses and and meats plus a veggie sandwich. Owned by a local couple who is working hard to stay in business, they offer outside dining on their beautiful balcony (in the back) facing a lovely memorial garden. Their lattes and other drink offers are very good. Pictures will help you locate this local gem.