Middle Tiger, Hobart - Middle Tiger Railroad Trail, Tiger Mountain Trail & Fifteenmile Creek Railroad Grade — Wednesday, Apr. 6, 2016

Issaquah Alps > Tiger Mountain

I began my hike from the Middle Tiger Trail trailhead off the West Side Road by the DNR cement concrete bridge that goes over an unnamed creek. The trail goes up steeply for a short distance to the junction with the Hobart-Middle Tiger RR Grade trail. I took the left fork and hiked along the old logging railroad grade once used by Wood & Iverson when their lumber company logged the south section of Tiger Mountain from 1910 to 1932. They had two 3-truck geared Climax steam locomotives that pulled the log trains down to the sawmill at Hobart. The trail goes up a gentle grade and has shoofly trails that go upstream to get across small creeks at the locations of long gone railroad bridges. Further north on the trail I could see Fifteen Mile Creek down below. In one section the old railroad grade had slid out many years ago and a hiking trail had been built across the area. Then it was back to the old grade where a 2 inch wire rope from the old logging days follows along the trail. Right before getting to the junction with the connector trail that goes up hill to the TMT at Hal's Cove I came to a very wet/mud hole area. From the junction I continued on the old grade to where it comes to Fifteenmile Creek. This was the site of the big 1/4 mile long curved logging railroad trestle, now long gone. There is a log to help get across the creek, along with some slippery wet rocks. This trail goes back up hill and meets up with the 15 Mile RR Grade trail. I turned around here and headed back to the junction and hiked up the steep trail about 1/4 mile to the TMT at Hal's Cove. After taking a snack break, I hiked north on the TMT going uphill. When I got to the section of the trail where it starts switch backing down hill, I spotted DNR Timber Sale boundary signs stapled to trees just east of the trail. The trail heads down to cross over Fifteenmile Creek at Custer's Bridge built by the DNR back in 1985. It could use some new handrails as one side is missing and the posts are rotten. Then it was back up hill to the junction with the 15 Mile RR Grade trail. I turned right and hiked up the grade to Fifteen Mile Pass where it meets Road 4000 that goes up to West Tiger 1 and 2 summits. Across the road is the Paw Print Connector trail. The first 1/4 mile of this trail is now a DNR logging road. The picnic table shown on the GT Tiger Mtn. map at the pass is no longer there, but the toilet remains. I turned around at the pass and hiked back down a short ways and found a fallen alder to sit on for lunch in the sunshine. After lunch I hiked back down to the junction with the TMT and took it south across Custer's Bridge. I then met the first other hiker I has seen all day. He had hiked in from Tiger Summit off Highway 18. From Hal's Cove I hiked on the TMT up hill to Millan's Crossing and the junction with the Middle Tiger Trail. I took this trail back down hill (very steep in some sections) one mile out to the trailhead on the West Side Road. Met one other hiker on this trail. A young woman who said she was out on a 20 mile hike and planned on doing another 20 miler the next day. The trail part of my hike was 6 miles, plus 3.5 more walking on the West Side Road. You can't drive to the trailhead because of DNR's gate on the West Side Road at Tiger Summit off Highway 18. Trail Conditions: The trails I hiked had any large fallen trees cut out, except for one on the Middle Tiger Trail. The Hobart-Middle Tiger RR Grade Trail needs some brushing for salmon berry bushes and sword ferns, plus one big mud hole. The connector trail from the H-MTRRG Trail up to the TMT need's to be brushed out and is very over grown. The TMT from Hal's Cove to Custer's Bridge has four mud hole areas that need fixing. The Custer's Bridge needs new hand rails and posts. The 15 Mile RR Grade Trail is in good shape. The Middle Tiger Trail from Millan's Crossing down to the trailhead at the West Side Road has been bushed out. Treking poles were handy for steep sections of the trails I hiked and I used them to flick off many fallen branches. So if you are tired of the crowded trails on West Tiger 3, Si and Rattlesnake Ledge check out the trails on the south section of Tiger Mtn. and hike some trails less traveled. Get the GT Tiger Mtn. map and see all the trails you could hike. George