Glorious day on Goat Mountain! Selected this trail thinking it would be more melted out than other nearby hikes given the south-facing/exposed upper sections of trail. The road is bumpy but any car can manage. Our goal was only to get to the knoll at about 5200'. There are a few patches of snow that are soft but not super deep. We did fine in trail runners, with trekking poles, and made it across without much issue. There is a lot of water crossing the trail throughout, plenty to filter for the day. The upper switchbacks before you reach the knoll are somewhat wet from snow melt. It was clear there is still a lot of snow beyond the viewpoint we stopped at—I would not want to attempt before significantly more snow has melted. Heard a ton of Townsend's warblers and a good amount of varied and hermit thrushes in the upper parts of the trail. One Townsend's solitaire at the top! Also saw several tiny toads hopping across the trail in a few spots, and a couple good patches of beautiful glacier lilies. We saw a total of six other hikers all day.
Happy hiking!
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