The History
The indigenous people called this area Is-qua-ah meaning "snake." But the European settlers mispronounced it as Squak, hence the origin of the mountain's name. The town of Issaquah went through several name changes: Squak; then Englewood, a modification of a settler's name in 1867; Gilman in 1892 after Daniel H. Gilman a railroad promoter; and finally Issaquah in the 1890s adopted by the general population.
The Hike
It's all uphill climbing to almost 1,000 feet in the first 1.5 miles. There was a fair amount of snow further up the hike which made for a slippery descent. Overall it felt like climbing up a dozen snow hills.
Friendliness factor: 5/10.
The Flora and Fauna
It was fairly quiet, with pockets of kinglets, chickadees, and Pacific wrens. A pair of ravens flew onto the microwaves at the top and the female did the knocking call. I looked for animal tracks in the snow and was surprised not to find anything.
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