Gobblers Knob — Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2011

Mount Rainier Area > SW - Longmire/Paradise

Our group from Olympia picked a perfect late autumn day for this hike. The USFS approach road has been recently brushed out, but the road surface is not great. Lots of big chuckholes. 2WD vehicles can make it, but slow going. At the trailhead, we filled out the USFS Wilderness permit forms. About 0.3 miles along, the first stream crossing is a bit tricky, but we hopped rocks without incident. There's a number of very wet sections along the trail as it meanders past lovely meadows. The last half mile approaching Goat Lake has some very wet areas - this trail could really use some help. From Goat Lake, we headed uphill, crossing into the National Park. There are half a dozen blowdowns over the trail in this area, none causing any great difficulty. The trail is quite brushy as you approach the ridge. At Gobblers Knob, we enjoyed grand views & ate lunch sitting on the catwalk surrounding the lookout cab. THEM, Olympia.