Duckabush River — Sunday, Jun. 30, 2024

I've long wondered what lies beyond 5-mile Camp on the Duckabush and now I know: 2 miles of good trail with quality river views followed by 3+ miles of soggy, overgrown misery. The amount of precipitation from the sky was fairly negligible, but the accumulation of water on the vegetation did me in and I got soaked both coming and going. Perhaps it's fine in a dry spell, as CyclePath's recent TR suggests, but otherwise I'd say don't bother heading out any further than 7-mile Camp unless you're a hero with a machete.
On the plus side, the rhodies are blooming and there's tons of wildflowers (too many to list) and berries (huckleberry, strawberry, blueberry, etc). Birdsong was plentiful, too. The first five miles of trail see new improvements every time I'm out here and the road is actually in great shape, aside from some potholes on the final turnoff to the parking lot. Oh, and some folks on their way out said they saw a bear near the NP boundary so be sure to keep your food locked up.