We arrived an hour before sunset, and there was plenty of parking.

There was light-moderate rain throughout the hike. There was some mud, but the trail is in great condition and well maintained.

This trail is great to bring just about anyone along, there is even wheelchair access for a portion of the trail.

Super cold but beautiful day!

We arrived about 11am. There was some ice on the road between i90 and the trailhead but I was ok in a 2wd car.

The ground was frozen and there were a couple small ice patches but for the most part the trail was ice free.

We just wore hiking shoes, I brought spikes because I was expecting more ice but didn’t need them.

We went out the around the lake trail around tradition lake, then on the wetlands trail to round lake and back on the Bus trail, 2.7 miles overall.

Plenty of parking and only a few people.

Pit toilets were clean and stocked.

Headed to Tradition Plateau on a cool, mostly cloudy day with some blue sky peaking out.  I did not see much of Tradition Lake.  Hiked a loop with Bus Trail, Wetlands Trail, Brink Trail, and Swamp Trail.

Getting to the trailhead is very easy, which is why the trail is so busy.  Lots of people on trail even on a cool day in January.  But, it was not like ants marching.  Plenty of time by myself.  Just you see plenty of other people.  It seems like a lot of people park outside the gate.  They must not have Discover passes.  Don't think you need to park that far away.  Drive in and try to get a better spot.  I lucked out when someone was pulling out of a parking spot.  But, there were plenty of parallel parking spots past the gate.  Doubt this would be true in the summer though.  There is a toilet at the trailhead that is well maintained.

The trails are in extremely good condition.  They are very easy to follow.  On Brink Trail, the buzz of I-90 was constant.  So, that is not ideal.  I just took a quick peak at Tradition Lake but did not go take the trail around.  Round Lake was more accessible and welcoming.

There was a very small tree (5" diameter) laying over the path on Brink Trail.  Easy to climb over though.  Another small tree (8" diameter) laying on Swamp Trail.

I live about 45 minutes from this hike.  Not sure it is worth the trip for such a short hike (my guide book seemed to midjudge distances).  But, you can tag on more miles by just taking different trails.  There are tons of trails on the plateau.  If I lived closer I would be in these woods fairly regularly.

Got my first hike of the new year in! A tenish mile loop with an accidental side trip of one mile (blurgh). It was a gorgeous day and the route included trails of every condition. I also (I think) managed to hike all new-to-me trails today!

Bus trail is flat and easy to follow through lovely quiet forest.

Nook Trail is really nicely graded with a little elevation gain, gradually getting narrower and steeper as it approaches Talus Rock intersection.

Talus Rock Trail was maybe my fave today. Narrow, pretty primitive. A little hard to follow in sections but with really cool grottoes near the large rocks and a fun waterfall.

West Tiger 3 is pretty steep but quite wide and generally easy to follow.

Cable Line is steep and rocky. Managed to keep momentum to the top but I was wheezing when I got to WT1.

Trail b/w WT3 and 2 is, I believe, the newly built WTA trail after the logging finished. Nice and rolly, easy to follow. Saw lots of people trail running it.

TMT through the new cut is pretty narrow - feels a lot rougher than most other trails on Tiger. Also a little sidehilly.

Road walk to WT1 was miserable. So steep. Good Lord. How does a car even drive up that. Bad. At least the views were nice.

Poo Top trail is so narrow and rooty/rocky once it re-enters the forest. Made very slow progress down this. Two annoying trees on this section required getting real low to get past

Hidden Forest and One-View are a touch wider and slightly less steep than Poo Top, but mucky and muddy. The forest here was close and a cool contrast to the wide open views earlier. A couple trees down on this section but nothing you can't easily get around or over.

Poo Poo Point is a very wide but very steep trail (at least it felt like it to my sore little LCLs). Also a tree stump has pulled out of the trail and fallen down the hill, leaving exposed bedrock. This short (20-foot) section of trail was the diciest I did all day. Kinda wanted trekking poles for it.

Adventure Trail is a mucky mess. There are several puddles forming I had to walk around and I slipped a couple times. Once it ducks away from the power lines, it improves a lot. Flat, lovely walk through forest.

Around the Lake was a really nice way to end the day. A little wandery trail next to Tradition Lake. Almost ADA, certainly wheelchair-friendly if you have a more rugged chair. Gravel surface and probably 4 to 5 feet wide.

A couples thoughts/notes:

Three groups passed me as we were heading in the same direction on this hike. None of them asked if they could get by, they just sort of awkwardly rushed by. I know its not technically necessary to let someone know you'd like to pass them, but it feels a little pass-ag to me that none of them just asked if they could get by.

I am very impressed at the views at the top of a Tiger now, and I like that DNR posted the educational posters abt working forests.

SAR was setting up to go in when I left. Hope everyone's okay.

Photo 1 - Rainier! And clouds

Photo 2 - Stump on OneView with the sketchy section of trail

Photo 3 - Inversion with Seattle + bellevue peeking through

Photo 4 - Sweet little waterfall on Talus Rock Trail

I hiked Tradition lake loop with my mom, friend and small dog. The parking lot was pretty full but parking is provided along the road. A small walk was need to reach the trail start and then you were ready! The trail started off bumpy with lots of rocks in the ground and we also crossed a small log in the middle of the trail that was easily stepped over although my dog had more of a trouble getting for it. The view of the lake was not as great as the photos due to trees in the way but still at the view point was a reasonable view. About half way through the trail it leads to an open dirt road where you walk along the side which was not as interesting. On the way back it started sprinkling and getting very muddy. My shoes and my dog were all covered in mud so I would not recommend doing this in the rain.