3 of us from the Mountaineers' CHS-2 cohort (Conditioning for Hiking Series at 2-3 mph pace) did a 2.2 pace hike Monday 8/4/25 starting at 7:15 and returning to the cars at 2:55 p.m. The restrooms are finally available and stocked (no more Portapotties) and the parking lot was open at 6:30 rather than 7. Have a Discover Pass at the ready. We were first in the lot and saw only 4 people the entire day.
The trail is in fabulous shape, especially the earthy ridge trail from Si to Teneriffe. We had very little wind, so the fog made it impossible to see much of a view. One of our hikers could detect smoke from the Cushman fire in the Olympics (AQI 90 in Seattle).
Fall migration has begun; we had only 9 bird species (locals) on the morning. We also saw a Douglas squirrel, chipmunk, and at least a dozen slugs.
The salmonberries and blueberries are ready for picking, and on a dewy morning we could tell how brushy the upper reaches of this trail are getting. Not quite a shower but definitely be prepared for spider webs and dew with the current pattern of cooler marine mornings burning off mid-afternoon. Foxgloves are spent on the lower reaches but still quite pretty up high, especially with moisture on them.
We spent 15-20 minutes on the fog-covered summit for lunch before heading back down. All told our metrics were roughly 13.8 miles and 4470 feet of elevation gain (Gaia/CalTopo) in just under 6.5 hours moving time. Temps never topped 60 which is almost unheard of for August. A very pleasant outing.
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