I took advantage of a rare midweek holiday combined with an even rarer sunny day in November to go check out the Frog Mountain trail. The drive to the trailhead from Index was beautiful. There were some potholes during the last couple miles when the road turns into a gravel road, but in general, the gravel road was in pretty good shape.
There's plenty of parking at the trailhead, and the pit toilet at the trailhead is, well, it’s what you would expect a pit toilet to be. So, it's great that it's there, and thanks to those who dug it and built it. But I agree, with the WTA write up for this hike that if you really need to go, you probably should stop at the public park restrooms in Index before you finish the drive to the trailhead.
The trail itself was in great shape. Kudos to the work crews who have maintained this trail because it was just really an easy walk up the mountain. There was some snow above 4,500 feet, and the last maybe 50 to 100 feet up to the very top of the mountain was solidly snowed in. However, I didn't need to strap on the micro-spikes to my hiking boots. I expect after a few more snowstorms, that'll be a different story.
There were incredible views throughout the hike – helped by the fact it was a sunny day with no clouds. In total, I did 8.3 miles roundtrip from the trailhead to the top and back. This is about one mile longer than the WTA write up claims for this hike. My GPS measured a total elevation gain of 2,329 feet and the highest elevation at 4,880 feet. It took about 4 hours, which included at least a 30-minute lunch break near the top to take in the views while eating lunch. For me, even though it was over 8 miles and included over 2,300 feet in elevation gain, I would rate this a moderate trail, largely because the trail was in such great condition. It made the length and gain less challenging.
This was my first time at this trail, and it won't be the last time. I will plan a return trip in July or August when the wildflowers are likely to be blooming in some of the mountain meadows that you walk through to get up to the top. So, in general, it was just an incredible hike today and I can't wait to go back!
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