South Coldwater Trail — Friday, Jul. 3, 2020

We hiked a loop around Coldwater Lake, starting with the Hummocks Trail, then up South Coldwater Lake Trail and back on the west side of the lake  for a total of 15 miles for the day. We parked at the Coldwater Lake Picnic and Boating site (just before where the road is blocked off) and hiked on the road, first to the Hummocks Trail which gave us the best birding and views of St. Helens of the day, then to the South Coldwater Lake Trailhead. The trail up to the ridge was perfect with wildflowers and spectacular views at the top and we only saw 5 people along the ~5 mile stretch. On the way down towards the lakeshore the trail was very brushy, nothing difficult to navigate but did slow us down a bit. The way back along the west side of the lake was very crowded, several groups of 12+ people trying to pass along a narrow trail with few people wearing masks. The crowded part was about ~4 miles so not too bad and overall it was one of the most enjoyable hikes I've done in a while. We saw lazuli bunting, yellow warbler, cedar waxwing, marsh wren and spotted sandpiper among the 33 bird species we counted.