We took advantage of the break from wildfire smoke to hike east of the cascades. The trailhead was only 1/3 full at 12:30 pm on a Sunday. The privy has not been serviced recently but is open.
About .25 miles from the trailhead we encountered a rattlesnake just off the trail. Luckily, it warned us of its presence by rattling quite loudly. We waited for it to cross the trail and move further away before continuing. On the way back, we noticed a hiker had placed a cairn to the side of the trail just before the rattlesnake's location for those returning from the hike. It was right off the trail, so be careful!
This is a gorgeous hike, with several chances to get close to the rushing, clear water of the creek along the way. We hiked about 3.5 miles in and turned around near a talus slope and a thimbleberry patch. At 3.5 miles in the elevation gain was 1,046 according to my iPhone's altimeter. We also saw a couple of salamanders and fish.
The hike took us 2 hours for the first 3.5 miles and 1.5 hours for the return trip. A lovely hike on a hot, dry day.
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