Mount Teneriffe — Sunday, Sep. 4, 2011

Snoqualmie Region > North Bend Area

I started my hike at 3:30 pm. I decided to take the Kamikaze Trail to the summit. I started at the Teneriffe trailhead walking up the dirt road. I took the first road to the right about 1 mile past the gate. This road leads to the new trail to Teneriffe falls according to the sign. Other posts call it Kamikaze falls so it’s one or the other. This new trail is very good. At the falls continue up the trail and eventually you will hit the old Kamikaze Trail. It seems like you are getting lost then all of a sudden it’s obvious that you are on the trail as it’s a well-worn boot path. This path goes straight up the ridge with stairs of tree roots and rocks the whole way. It is a very demanding hike and will get you a good work out. But the surroundings are fantastic and you will feel like you are have a real adventure! Very nice views now and again as there are rocky outcroppings here and there that make a great place to give your thighs and lungs a break, drink some Gatorade and say wow to the views. After 2.5 hours I reached the top of the mountain. A very nice reward as the views were great, almost as good as Granite peak. I spent 1/2 hour then decided to take the logging road as it was getting late at 6:30pm and I didn't want to get caught in the dark on the Kamikaze trail I guessed at the location of the trail to the logging road, it was a side trail coming off the trail at the peak. . I saw some colored markers and followed them getting lost and losing the trail once then finding it again. Eventually it comes out on what looks like a recently bulldozed addition to the road. I just followed this steep road down. It took me until 9pm to reach the gate. I had to use my flashlight for the last 45 minutes. I think this is a good loop. However the logging road was not real scenic. It was very dry and dusty today. Kamikaze was almost dry. Only water I saw was in a couple streams off the logging road. Bugs were nasty, but I just kept moving and had minimal problems. Bring lots of water as you will need it. I drank 3.5 liters on this trip. It was a warm dry day (Labor Day Weekend). Big blue skies and a moon in the evening. I passed some father-son campers on the road at the top. A good place to camp. As a side I tried to do this hike last December (2010) and it was too snowy, I could not find the trail past the falls. Kamikaze trail would be a very difficult hike in the winter, would likely need mountaineering gear (boots, crampons). I think I may try again this winter but stick to the road and bring some snow shoes.