Beacon Rock State Park - Hamilton Mountain — Saturday, Jul. 2, 2016

Southwest Washington > Columbia River Gorge - WA

This was a wonderful hike. The views were amazing, the falls very relaxing, and the traffic on the trail was less than we expected. We read the posted info about the hike and found it to be the fairly accurate. We did the full round trip hike in 4 hours. The only bit of additional info we could add is: 1)When ascending we did not find the words "difficult" and "more difficult" on the sign just the names, but it did list the mileage of each route so you could choose the distance you want to hike. The Hardy Creek is longer and more gradual, while the Hamilton Mt. is shorter and steeper hike. 2)When you are descending the summit via the Hardy Creek Trail continue to follow the equestrian and campground signs. The trail is wide and looks like vehicles could/have been on it. We encountered a three way fork that gave you the option to take equestrian/campground route, Upper Hardy Creek, or back the way we came -- at this point continue to follow the equestrian trail and you will quickly be rewarded with finding the mentioned picnic table and a babbling brook, which is a great spot to stop and take a drink. Enjoy this hike. We encountered a few moist spots, so I am sure that this trail would be a harder wetter hike earlier in the year.