My Garmin had the elevation gain at 3600ft. I had one short side quest, but that alone wasn't responsible for the 800ft difference. Much of the elevation gain is in chunks, vs. a slow, steady set of switchbacks.
Trails:
Section Line - The hike description really undersells how steep this initial section is. It was about 1400ft of gain from trailhead to the intersection with West Tiger RR Grade. Fortunately, there are a number of logs on the side of the trail once you get up to that flat spot, so you can sit for a bit before pressing on.
West Tiger RR Grade - Since it's not maintained, many portions of this have a lot of growth over the trail. The trail here can be fairly narrow, and since you often can't see the edges, I'd advise people to take it slow. That growth also hides wet tree roots just waiting to trip you (I learned the hard way).
One View Trail/Poo Poo Point Trail - I don't think the description is clear here. When you get to the RR Grade/One View Trail intersection, you want to turn right. Then at the next intersection (PPP Trail going left & right), turn left. Even with a map, I still got turned around here, so I got a little bonus mileage + elevation, since I went about halfway down to the Issaquah High School trailhead. Kudos to the hikers that pointed me in the right direction.
West Tiger #1 - FYI that the "summit" is currently closed. Trails around the summit are fine.
Trail conditions: Pretty dry. Think we've had <1 in. of rain in the past week. RR Grade was definitely wet/muddy in spots. There are a few other short muddy sections on the trail, but nothing where you'd sink in ankle deep or anything like that. My boots were still a little wet at the top of WT #3 but dry by the end. Normally a dry trail is great, but as noted in the description, that can make the return down Section Line a little slippery. Your legs will be burning, and you'll be tempted to speed up on many of these downhill sections. Don't do it!
Gear: Because of the overgrowth on the rarely used trails you'll be using you're probably going to want pants instead of shorts. In addition to the wet leaves that soaked the bottom 1/3 of my pants, there were also a few thorny bushes. You will also want trekking poles, especially for the descent.
Misc: Lots of ripe berries. As I recall, these were mostly on the PPP or One View trails.
Wildlife: Many birds. Several slugs (so watch your step!). Some poo-poo. Not a SINGLE Tiger.
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