Hiked Granite Mountain for the first time after work on 7/21/2017 as a training hike.
Getting there: Road construction outside of North Bend/just before the exit added 1 hour travel time.
Parking lot was fairly empty with about 10-15 cars at 5:00pm.
Got on the trail with my pup at 5:10pm. 1.3 miles the trail forks and you stay right for Granite Mountain. There is signage but you could miss it if you completely are not paying attention.
After the fork, it begins to get fairly steep but at no point will you need to truly scramble. The trail then weaves back and forth via switchbacks through the avalanche/exposed area.
When you finally feel like you've crest the ridge and lay eyes on the lookout tower, you do have about 1 mile left.
Being that it was my first time, I went left on what I'm guessing is a winter route that put me towards the front facing boulders. You should stay right here and the trail guides you around the only minor snowfield left. I ended up having to traverse around the edge of it.
All in all it's a great cardio hike that is not technically difficult, but a moderate challenge overall. If you are in great shape and an experienced hiker, you could be fairly bored here going with a less experienced group but could increase pace and still get a phenomenal workout. Add some weight to the pack and it'd serve as a great training hike 100% of the time.
For reference, from car to summit: 1 hour 55 minutes up. 1 hour 22 minutes down. I'm a fast hiker so don't use these times as a reference unless you are as well. I did have my 5 y/o Belgian Malinios with me so she slows me down just a bit on the leash.
Spent time to eat at the top and snap a few pictures with my Sony A6000. Door to door time of 3:40.
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