Well, we finally found her limit. Our four-year-old has cheerfully climbed Rattlesnake, Little Si, Poo Poo Point, and many more this year - even Lake Serene a couple weeks ago - but Mt. Pilchuck was a little much for her.
It is consistently uphill from the very beginning, the first stretch being dirt/wood stairs with many muddy spots, and then the majority being uneven rock. She indignantly refused to turn around - I should have insisted we did - so we made it, at an excruciatingly slow pace, then had to hustle (four-year-old hustle) to make it back to the car by daylight.
If your goal is the lookout, I do not recommend bringing dogs or small children. At the base, as an adult, you need to climb a short stretch of large, steep, difficult boulders using all four limbs, then a vertical ladder with metal rungs. We did it, but we shouldn’t have. Getting up was very challenging; getting down while carrying her was unsafe and scared both of us.
Road: ribbed, but potholes were small and avoidable. One of the best forest roads I’ve seen this year. However, you lose cell signal many miles before you even run out of payment, so have a backup to Google. I had a screenshot of the WTA directions plus Gaia, which came in especially handy on the way out.
Parking lot: 10 am, sunny Sunday, 60 cars. 6 pm, 30 cars. Many people coming up as we headed down were very surprised to hear that the sun was going to go down at 6:30. Check before you go!! They did not look likely to have headlamps or safety gear in their drawstring bags.
Bathroom: morning, stinky, 1 roll TP. Afternoon, stinkier, no TP.
Signage: actually really clear, and bright orange. They must have added a lot since this main description was written.
Views: once you get above the low-level views of clear cuts, the rocky portion gets absolutely stunning, even on the way up. I definitely want to go back alone next year, with time to just drink it in.
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