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Trip Report

Kelly Butte — Friday, Jul. 4, 2025

Mount Rainier Area > Chinook Pass - Hwy 410
Beautiful backdrop

Kelly Butte is flower heaven right now!

We arrived around 8am with a few cars at the trailhead. It has been quite a few years since we were here last and it was fun to visit on the 4th. The previous times I’ve visited there were very few flowers but this time they were everywhere.

The paintbrush is incredible right now and some of them are so huge! A fair amount of bear grass is still in bloom and combined with the lupine and penstemon, the combination made for a wonderful celebration of the red, white, and blue. Tons of flowers to keep your eyes moving and some wild strawberries if you look hard.

We met Amanda, the SFLA volunteer staffing the lookout and she pointed out all the peaks in the distance and invited us into the lookout. Thank you for volunteering!

We were also treated to a bonus goat viewing from the small herd nearby. There was even a baby goat! Such a fun trip to celebrate the 4th!

Watch out for ticks. Our dog had one on his leg fur at the top that hadn’t latched on yet. 

The flower show is really at its best here!
Hard to leave the top with these views
Lots of blue representing along the steep beginning section
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