It stopped raining in Issaquah a bit after 1pm so after a bit of indecision I decided to try to get lucky with a weather window and headed out for a short exercise loop at just after 2pm. Did Bear Ridge Trail from the bottom, up to West Tibbett's Creek, Cougar Pass, and Harvey Manning, and then back out via Shangri La for 5.2 miles and abou 1,275 feet of gain. Got mostly lucky with the weather with only a 15 minute spell of wind and rain and a few thunderclaps.
There weren't too many people rolling the dice on the weather today - I only saw two parties up right near the Harvey Manning TH and one hiker down at the Talus end of Shangri La.
Trails have definitely gotten damp from the last 2.5 days of rain. Bear Ridge has mostly drained well with a couple of soggy-but-not-quite-muddy sections in the flat areas as it approaches the bridge before the West Tibb junction. West Tibbett's Creek Trail lives up to its name with some extended sections that have water flowing down the trail and a couple of muddy sections south of the log bridge across the creek. There is also one new blowdown where a dead tree finally broke off its roots - not too difficult to negotiate but it is bark-free so can be slippery if wet. Cougar Pass has a few muddy sections. Harvey Manning is mostly well drained as is Shangri La, though there are a few squishy sections on the latter.
There are signs of spring popping out throughout the trail, especially along the lower section of Bear Ridge Trail which has bunch of blossoms and bright green shoots. Ferns and mosses look great after the rain.
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