Talapus and Olallie Lakes — Sunday, Jun. 29, 2025

*Beware huge pothole* We had been driving down the paved forest service road at normal road speed when abruptly the road turned to gravel. I’m used to there being signs “paved road ends in 0.25 miles” etc but didn’t see one this time. Anyway, most people who hike this area probably already know this, but drive slow after getting off the freeway as the point where the paved road ends comes abruptly and there is a very deep pothole where asphalt meets gravel. The rest of the gravel road has smaller, more manageable potholes.

We had a late start, getting to the trailhead about 2 pm on Sunday. While the tiny parking lot was full, there were plenty of roadside spots. There was TP in the privy and it was in good condition.

The hike itself was wonderful. I love this hike. It’s a steady but mild incline the whole way to Talapus, mostly in the shade. We got to the lake in about 50 minutes. Due to hiking with the kiddo, we stopped at Talapus vs hiking through to Ollalie. There were so few other people there (despite the weekend and fine weather!) that I think we will always do an afternoon hike here when we visit on a nice weather weekend.

There was lots of birdsong throughout the hike, but the most exciting was on the way back, we heard (but did not see) an owl about halfway between the lake and the trailhead! It “hoo-hooooooo”ed several times but we couldn’t find it in the trees.

Love this trail and plan to hike through to Olallie (in a swimsuit!) next time I can solo hike on a hot day.