There's nothing like the smell of the forest on a hot day - so pine-y! The lupine were fragrant today, too.
As noted, there is a steep section on this trail and it quickly reminded me that I am still recovering from winter's relative lack of activity. We took our time, enjoyed the waterfalls and flowers, and marveled at the destruction of the Norse Peak Fire.
Trail condition was mostly good with a couple trees down that aren't problematic and a couple wet spots were a small stream crosses the trail. The main obstacle was the stream/washout a mile and a half from the trailhead. There is a steep drop down to the stream with no crossing that's immediately obvious. There are a few options for crossing this section:
- Slide down the banks but this would be messy and cause further erosion;
- Cross the fallen log - effective, but a little sketchy because it's not a large log;
- Walk up the stream a bit until the bank slopes down and you see the boot path down to the stream - this is probably the safest and simplest way to go at this time, just watch your step because the soil is pretty soft and gives easily. If you choose this option, be careful not to step on the sensitive foliage - there's lots of bare dirt with some plants coming back after the fire. Hopefully in the future a bridge can be put in to help keep us from going off trail.
After passing the washout, it's only another half mile to the North Fork Union Creek waterfall. Continuing on the trail requires you to cross the creek on a fallen log. This one is much more substantial than the one at the washout, but it's still an iffy crossing because if you fell into the water, there's a good chance you would go over the waterfall. If you choose to cross, go right to see another waterfall.
On the way back, I took all the side trails I could find to get closer to the waterfall. There's a lot of water coming over it right now - quite a sight to see... and hear!
Specs from Gaia: 4.23mi, 2.5hr, 601ft
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