Green Mountain — Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024

Arrived at TH at 9am to two other cars in the small back-in parking area. No toilets at this TH. Took a low-clearance vehicle up and, with the expected cautious driving, felt perfectly fine!

Fire adjacency: definitely smelled smoke upon starting the hike. However, visibility was great at the lookout and we either adapted to whatever reduced air quality there was or it was just generally manageable. There was a small fire visible from the lookout (Miner's Complex Fire) but nothing concerning to your time on Green Mountain. There was a helpful post and sign updated by the Forest Service right before the Suiattle River Road turnoff articulating what the closures and state of fire was. Green Mountain was in the clear for our adventure. There was an obvious haze layer off near Mt. Baker, but no fires impacted our trip.

What an amazing hike! First mile is forest, then totally exposed (and overgrown) meadows full of flowers, creeping up into feelings of subalpine until you reach a nice lookout. Great views of Glacier Peak, Dome Peak, Mt. Baker and so much more. Beautiful campsites near a mid-way meadow; this midway point is also the only sorta source of running water. So many marmot dens up the second half of the hike. We saw three young and curious marmots. The greenness of the mountain on this hike is truly one to be named after :) So many beautiful rolling hills of diverse flowers right now!

The switchbacks make this ascent so gradual and enjoyable. The only steepness kicks in around the last mile, which is a bit of a climb up to the lookout, but well worth-it!  The trail is very straightforward (not root-y or rocky - smooth cruising).

We took a leisurely, lots-of-pictures hike up and it took us 2.5 hrs. Just 1.5 hours down. When we arrived back at the car around 1:30pm, we were the only car in the lot. Can't remember the last time that has happened to me, if ever. We saw a group of two ~1.5 miles into our hike coming down from their overnight and then another group of two coming down right before our last mile. Had the lookout to ourselves and absolutely no one on the way down. Amazing!

Bugs were annoying - biting flies, some mosquitos. We wore spray and needed it. Didn't break out the bug nets. The flowers and greenery are well worth the bugs.

P.S. someone on the trail register wrote that they saw "2 cats on top of lookout" on 7/31. Ominous... of course, with that thought in my mind, we did hear a unique chirp higher up on the trail that I convinced myself sounded like a cougar. But had I not seen the note at the registrar, I would have chalked it up to the random screech of a predator bird or maybe even an unusually loud marmot. Just thought I'd include!